THIRD YEAR BIOCHEMISTRY (BI 320) COURSE INFORMATION 2011-12

Course Coordinator:    Dr. Peter Creighton                    

                                    Discipline of Biochemistry,                      

                                    Room 127,

                                    Aran Wing (Ground Floor).                          

                                    Email: peter.creightonnuigalway.ie

Course Structure

The 3^rd Year Biochemistry course is a core subject in the 3^rd Year Science degree programme and carries a weighting of 24 ECTS. The course consists of theory and complementary practical elements. The code for the 3^rd Year Biochemistry course is BI 320, and it is sub-divided into two sections ( BI 314 and BI 315), each of which is equivalent to a weighting of 12 ECTS:

BI 314 (Semester I):  Information flow in the cell, its coordination and regulation

BI 315 (Semester II):  Cellular organisation and responses to environmental change

BI 314 and BI 315 are further sub-divided into two modules each.  

Lecture and Practical Times and Venues  

* One practical session per student per week, i.e. either Monday or Wednesday. Students taking Genetics (BG301) and Pharmacology (PM302) must take the Wednesday practical session.

Important Dates for the Academic Year 2011-2012 (Provisional at present)

The introductory lecture to the third year programme will be on Tuesday 7th of September at 12:00 noon in the Tyndall Lecture Theatre.

The table below gives the start and end dates for each semester, and the approximate dates of the Semester I and Semester II examination periods.

Blackboard and the 3 rd Year Biochemistry Notice Board

Lecture and Practical timetables for each semester, as well as any information of relevance to the course, will generally be posted on Blackboard . There is also a 3^rd Year Biochemistry notice board located at the entrance to the Biochemistry Department, on the corridor to the left-hand side of the McMunn Lecture theatre.  The order in which lectures are given may differ from that indicated in the lecture schedule. However, any changes in the timetable will be announced at lectures and posted on Blackboard.

Practical Classes

At the beginning of the first Semester and based on the information received from the ’ Student Details’ forms, one half of the class will be assigned to Monday’s practical session, with the second half of the class taking Wednesday’s practical.  Practical sessions will commence with a pre-practical talk in the Biochemistry Teaching Laboratory at 14.00. Attendance at pre-practical talks is essential, and will be monitored. Practical classes for Semester I will begin on Monday 12^th September, 2011. 

In order to organize the Monday and Wednesday practical groups, it is essential that each student taking 3^rd Year Biochemistry completes a ’ Student Details’ form and returns it to the class coordinator, Dr. Peter Creighton at the end of the Introductory Lecture (details above), or leave it in the box in the Coffee room, Discipline of Biochemistry, ground floor, before 17.00 Thursday 8^th September, 2011.

A laboratory manual for the 3^rd Year Biochemistry Practical course can be purchased from the Media Services on the main Concourse. The laboratory manual is an absolute essential for the course. Students should read practical material in advance of the relevant laboratory session. Students must wear a white laboratory coat at all times while in the laboratory. Each student should have a pair of safety glasses, as these may be required for certain practical classes.

Practical coursework is continuously assessed by lecturers and class demonstrators. Punctuality and attendance at all practicals is essential.

Examinations

Lecture Course

There is a 3 hour written examination on the lecture course at the end of each semester. There are 7 questions on each semester paper, of which 5 questions must be attempted. Copies of previous examination papers will be provided.

Practical Course

A 2 h written examination on the practical coursework is held at the end of each semester. Each laboratory practical session is continuously assessed. In addition, short MCQs will be held at the end of every few weeks in the practical course. Marks from the practical examination paper, continuous assessment and MCQs will be included in each semester’s examination mark.

Textbooks

All 3^rd year Biochemistry students should have a copy of one Biochemistry textbook:

• Berg, Tymoczko & Stryer, Biochemistry, 6^th edition (2007, W.H. Freeman & Co.) 
• Horton, Scrimgeour, Rawn, Principles of Biochemistry, 4^th edition (2006, Pearson Education)

The textbook can be purchased in the University Bookshop. A number of copies of these textbooks are available on desk reserve in the University Library .

In addition, purchase of one of the following texts is advisable for the 3^rd Year Biochemistry programme:

• Alberts et al., Molecular Biology of the Cell, 5^th edition (2008, Garland Science)
• Alberts et al., Essential Cell Biology, 2^nd edition (2004, Garland Science)
• Lodish et al., Molecular Cell Biology, 6^th edition (2007, W.H. Freeman & Co.)
• Cooper & Hausman. The Cell: A Molecular Approach, 4^th edition (2007, ASM Press)

These texts are available from the University Bookshop, and a limited number are on desk reserve in the University Library. Individual lecturers may provide copies of specific reading material, or may recommend additional books for different sections of the course.

Student feedback on the 3 rd Year programme

Third Year Biochemistry students will be asked to complete survey forms on Blackboard at the end of each semester of the 3^rd Year programme.

Class representatives

Two student representatives will be elected from the 3^rd Year Biochemistry class, as formal student representatives of the class. It is important that these representatives are elected as early as possible in the first semester.

Third Year 12 ECTS courses given by the Department of Biochemistry

Biochemistry offers one third year module -   Human Nutrition (BI306) Lecture times and venues will be posted on Blackboard.

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