351 lecture syllabus ('14)

Cell & Molecular Biology ZOOL/BOMI 351 Spring, 2014 MWF 10:00-10:50 236 Science Center

INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION Dr. David Markwardt 302 Science Center 368-3880 [email protected]

OFFICE HOURS TBD

COURSE TEXTBOOK(S) Highly Recommended: Molecular Biology of the Cell, 5th Ed. (2008) by Bruce Alberts et al. Supplementary: Essential Cell Biology, 2nd Ed. (2004) by B. Alberts, et al. Cell and Molecular Biology: Concepts and Experiments, 5th Ed. (2008) by G. Karp. Molecular Cell Biology, 5th & 6th Eds. (2004 & 2008) by H. Lodish, et al. The World of the Cell, 6th & 7th Eds. (2006 & 2008) by W. Becker, L. Kleinsmith, and J. Hardin. Recombinant DNA: Genes and Genomes-A Short Course, 3rd Ed. (2007) by J. Watson et al. Reading Primary Literature: A Practical Guide to Evaluating Research Articles in Biology, 1st Ed. (2006) by Christopher M. Gillen

COURSE FORMAT This course is populated by seniors, juniors, and a few sophomores who have been introduced to cell biology in other courses. With this in mind, I have designed ZOOL/BOMI 351 to help you integrate and apply what you have learned in previous courses with current areas of active research. The course will be focused on the molecular mechanisms of eukaryotic cellular biology with a particular concentration in the following areas: • protein structure, function, and • cytoskeleton function and regulation regulation • cell cycle regulation • gene expression • programmed cell death • cell signaling and signal • cellular mechanisms underlying transduction cancer progression • membrane proteins and transport Our exploration of these topics will be rigorous and in-depth. In addition to an extensive reading of your text, you will be required to read papers from the primary literature in 1

each of these areas as well as relevant review articles. You will soon realize that dividing the field of cell biology into discrete topics such as those I have listed is somewhat artificial. As you read the primary literature you will come to see that cell biology is a synergistic discipline; one needs to be conversant in many different areas in order to understand any given paper. The structure of ZOOL/BOMI 351 is a bit different from a traditional lecture course. During the first two weeks of class, we will review organelle structure and function, evolutionary conservation, enzymology, and protein structure and function. During the third week, we will begin our in-depth study of the other course topics, including an analysis of the primary literature. From this point on, we will adhere to the following format:

Background I will spend the first three to five lectures introducing the topic, reviewing introductory and background material and explaining important concepts. During these lectures, you will be expected to read the text and supplementary material.

Analysis and Review of the Primary Literature Following the background lectures, we will typically spend one or two lectures focusing on reviews of a specific area of research and one or two lectures outlining an original paper and discussing techniques used by the authors. These latter sessions will be open to discussion and questions (and there should be lots of questions!) The primary literature is dense, complicated, and not always well written. I expect many of you have had little experience with it, so these sessions will be an important opportunity for you to clarify problem areas. In the final class session before moving on to a different topic, you will work together in teams of three or four on a worksheet to be completed during class. These worksheets are exercises in critical thinking and analysis and they will force you to think hard about the paper(s) we have been working on. In order for you to successfully complete them, you will need to work effectively together. It is well known that working cooperatively is an effective strategy for solving complex problems. These sessions will give you the chance to practice and improve your communication and teamwork skills, both of which will be vital for you to succeed in any field, not just science. Each person in the group will receive the same grade on the worksheet, so it is important for you to be well prepared for these worksheet/analysis sessions. In the past, successful teams have usually met a few times outside of class to go over the paper, generate summaries, review techniques, etc.

TEAMS All members of the group are responsible for contributing to the discussion surrounding the worksheet. While each of you has strengths and weaknesses, it is important that you gain experience in all parts of the group learning process. Remember to help one another instead of getting in each other’s way! Groups will be reconfigured after each of the first two exams.

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GRADING Your final grade is a combination of your lecture grade and your lab grade. The lecture grade is determined by participation, the four highest worksheets to which you contributed, and three exams. Please note that if you do not participate in a worksheet session, you cannot drop the resulting zero. The weighting scheme and grading scale are detailed here: Lecture (75%)

Lab (25%)

Participation: Worksheets: Exam I: Exam II: Exam III:

6% 24% (4 X 6%) 15% 15% 15%

(see lab handout for distribution)

GRADING SCALE 98-100% = 93-96% = 90-92% =

A+ A A-

87-89% 83-86% 80-82%

= = =

B+ B B-

77-79% 73-78% 70-72%

= = =

C+ C C-

67-69% 63-66% 60-62%

= = =

D+ D D-