Biology 045/345 at Earlham


Cell Physiology Biol 41/341


More Information: Syllabus Course Policies (Including grade distribution) Old Exam One Old Exam Two Activities Nobel in Medicine/ Phsyiology	About Cell Physiology Cells are the basic functional units of living organisms, hence the study of their molecular composition, morphology, and biochemical processes is a fundamental field of biological investigations. Even if the subfield in which you are interested is not cellular/molecular biology, the concepts covered in this course will enhance your appreciation for and understanding of other areas of biology. The title of this course, Cell Physiology, was chosen to encompass the general themes that are presented. Where as Cells, Genes, and Inheritance focused on events in the nucleus and information flow within cells and between generations, this course largely examines the structures and functions of materials in the cytoplasm. Topics covered include metabolism of sugars, photosynthesis, membrane structure and function, cell-to-cell signalling and the cytoskeleton. We will have a particular focus on proteins in this course since they catalyze most of the reactions we will study and since they also work as the cell machinery that converts chemical energy into mechanical and electrical phenomena. **************************************************************** LECTURE OBJECTIVES: 1) to introduce a variety of aspects of cellular metabolism, structure, and function. This means that you will gain an understanding of the major structural elements and processes occurring in a cell. 2) to emphasize the concepts underlying the metabolism, structure and function of cellular components. At the end of the course you should be able to recognize patterns and use your knowledge to hypothesize about the metabolism/structure/function of cellular components not directly studied in this course (and potentially applicable to other courses in biology and chemistry). 3) to give you an appreciation of the interconnections of various areas of cell biology. This means that you will be able to identify the significance of a general concept to a specific problem in cell biology (for instance, the importance of the cytoskeleton to cell division, cell signaling, intracellular transport, etc.). 4) to make apparent the importance of cellular biology to other biological fields of study. 5) to introduce a variety of ways of learning material, including traditional lectures, small group work and active learning exercises. **************************************************************** This course is designed to introduce you to the physiology and biochemistry occurring within and among cells. The topics we will cover are diverse and many of the subdisciplines are currently experiencing rapid growth. These features make the material especially exciting. These features also make the course quite full in terms of vocabulary and concepts. Persistence is the key to success. We have also incorporated several features into the course structure that we hope will help make the material more accessible and relevant to you. Chief among these are the activities planned during class meetings. These should help solidify, organize, synthesize or place in context, the material at hand. So, come to class ready to participate, not just listen to a lecture. We will also organize study groups for those persons who are interested.	Contact Info Amy Mulnix Associate Professor of Biology Office: Stanley Hall 135 Phone: 765-983-1498 Fax: 765-983-1497 email: amymul@earlham.edu Office Hours: By appointment or whenever my door is open (if my door is shut, I'm not in or busy). Nathan Trueblood, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Biology Office: Stanley Hall 153 Phone: 765.983.1204 Fax: 765.983.1497 e-mail home page Office Hours: By appointment or whenever my door is open (if my door is shut, I'm not in or busy).


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