About the CMBI
The Centre for Molecular and Biomolecular Informatics is the Dutch national centre for computational molecular sciences. The institute pursues a rigorous research program with topics ranging from computational small-molecule chemistry to bioinformatics. All research is related to molecular aspects of life sciences, often with a focus on the relation health - disease. The institute's facilities, databases and software packages are available to external scientists. The CMBI is strongly committed to a series of educational projects, ranging from high school to postgraduate courses and from local university student courses to international workshops.
Presently the CMBI staff are involved in the following activities:
- bioinformatics research
- computational small-molecule research
- organising courses and tutorials to support scientists for scientists in many fields
- maintaining WWW-based servers to give scientists in the Netherlands rapid access to commonly used bioinformatics and small-molecule databases and information systems
- facilitating data- or expertise-intensive research by allowing scientists to visit us and work in the CMBI for a while
Information leaflets provide more detailed information about the centre's services and (a selection of) the research and educational projects.
The research activities of the institute focus on the topics of the group leaders and senior scientists:
- Martijn Huynen: computational genomics
- Sander Nabuurs: Drug docking, receptor - ligand interactions
- Richard Notebaard: System biology of metabolic disease
- Sacha van Hijum: genome analysis
- Jacob de Vlieg: small molecule and biomolecule data-mining
- Gert Vriend: macromolecular structure analysis.
The service activities of the institute focus on the availability of databases and information systems for small molecules and biomolecules, and the software needed to make the best use of them. Many services are provided free of charge, but a user-license is needed to access services for which the institute needs to pay a fee.
The CMBI is involved in many collaborations, most notably in the IMM and in the life-sciences initiative with NCMLS.
The institute is involved in many types of biomedical research. Indeed, medicinal bioinformatics is such an important topic that it deserves a special introductory page about bioinformatics and medicine.
Altogether, the institute provides a lively environment for molecular computational scientists. The availability of a large number of experts in the many sub-disciplines of molecular computation make the CMBI the ideal environment for students, AIOs and young scientists to learn about bioinformatics, drug design, and many forms of computational chemistry. The CMBI offers different oppurtunties for students , to follow courses, and job openings for applicants on different levels.
