This course provides a broad introduction to plant bioinformatics, offering participants an overview of current methods, analytical pipelines, and practical tools used to study plant genomes. It will introduce key aspects of genome assembly, annotation, and comparative analysis, and discuss strategies for addressing common challenges such as complex or polyploid genomes. Depending on participant interests and submitted abstracts, the workshop may also explore topics such as transcriptomics, comparative genomics, or the application of AI tools in plant biology.

Hands-on sessions will guide attendees through real data analysis using state-of-the-art tools and workflows.

Poll topics (to tailor the workshop)

• Comparative genomics in plants / algae
• Plant / algae transcriptomics
• AI for programming (broader/general; demonstrated with a plant genomics dataset)

Format & capacity

• Duration: Full-day workshop
• Capacity: Maximum of 30 participants

Hands-on & tools

• Real datasets and reproducible workflows
• Modern toolchains for polyploid-aware assembly, annotation, and comparative genomics
• Practical guidance on data QC, repeat handling, homeolog resolution, and synteny/gene family analysis

Technical needs

• Personal laptop or desktop with internet access
• All sessions will be conducted on a remote server provided for the course (no local installs required)

Provider: Physalia Courses

Physalia-courses (founded in 2016) has run numerous scientific courses and workshops, hosting scientists from institutes worldwide. Attendees are primarily PhD students and postdocs, followed by PIs and technicians.

Team

• Carlo Pecoraro, PhD — Co-founder and Scientific Director
• Angela Balistreri — Co-founder, Administration and Finances
• Valentina Sardina — Course Coordinator

About Physalia

The name reflects a passion for the sea and its organisms. Physalia physalis (a siphonophore) survives through the interaction of specialized zooids—an analogy to how Physalia-courses thrives by combining diverse skills. Their philosophy is to offer high-level scientific training and create ideal conditions for networking and collaboration among researchers.