BIO322 Cell and Molecular Biology (Fall)

Priority enrollment to students accepted to the Health and Sciences special program. Open to other students if space permits. Required core course for majors in the life sciences. We will discuss structural and functional relationships of cells with emphasis on similarities among all living organisms. This course provides an introduction to cellular biochemistry, metabolism and energy flow, cellular and Mendelian genetics, and the chemical basis of heredity.

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

    • Distinguish the major classes of biomolecules present in cells, including their chemistry of assembly, subcellular locations and functions.
    • Recognize the ways in which energy is obtained by organisms and cells, stored and utilized in different cellular contexts.
    • Describe the nature, organization and replication and inheritance of genetic material in living systems.
    • Describe the expression and regulation of genes, including how proteins that possess specific cellular locations are trafficked and sorted to those sites.
    • Recognize and describe common mechanisms regulating assembly and disassembly of cellular components, including the biochemical mechanisms underpinning protein folding, modification and regulation.
    • Describe the ways cytoskeletal proteins participate in cell organization, division and play specific roles in specialized cell types.
    • Describe the organization and functions of major intra- and extra-cellular signaling pathways.
    • Describe how cells transport, compartmentalize and utilize specific ions to carry out distinct cellular processes.
    • Apply knowledge of cell biology and genetics to selected examples of changes or losses in cell function, including responses to environmental or physiological changes, or alterations of cell function brought about by mutation in contexts such as cancers.
    • Distinguish among experimental methods common to cell biology and genetics and analyze data from experimentation to demonstrate understanding of cell and molecular biology principles.

Prereqs: [BIO 121 and BIO 122 and BIO 123 and BIO 224] and [CHE 106 or CHE 109]

Department: Biology

Location: Madrid

Semester: Fall

Credits: 4