Pathogen-ID report submission
Thu, Sep 17, 2026 · Week 4 · Genetics of Disease (Medical Interventions)
Today's goal: Submit a complete pathogen-identification report defending your BLAST result with evidence.
What a finished product looks like
This is a model of the work you should turn in today. Use it to check your own: match the structure and the level of detail, do not copy it. Your data and wording should be your own.
Claim: The unknown pathogen is most likely Escherichia coli.
Reasoning (using match-quality numbers): The top BLAST hit was E. coli at 99 percent identity with an E-value of 2e-120 and 100 percent query coverage. High percent identity plus a very low E-value plus full query coverage together mean the alignment is strong and unlikely to be due to chance.
Control validation: My control run returned its known organism at the expected high identity, which shows the tool and my workflow were reliable before I trusted the unknown result.
Limitation: Sequence-based identification depends on the database being complete and the sample being clean. If the true species is not in the database, or if the sample is contaminated or has sequencing errors, BLAST can return a misleading top hit.
Also due today: Submit in the course shell; confirm it shows as turned in.
WebXam problem for today's skill
One exam-style question that uses exactly what you practiced today. Try it before you reveal the answer, then read why each choice is right or wrong.
Tap an answer to see the full explanation. Nothing is recorded or graded.