BIOL4400 · Biology

Molecular Biology

Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences

This course will explore the structure, function, synthesis and interaction of nucleic acids and proteins. The mechanisms involved in maintaining cellular genetic and epigenetic information, and in reading this "code" to generate specific patterns of gene expression, will be studied in detail. Topics include classic and newly-developed techniques for studying macromolecules; biotechnology; the functional organization of chromosomes; protein folding and modifications; DNA replication, repair and supercoiling; RNA synthesis and processing; translation and the levels of gene regulation. Literature from the foundational investigations that led to our understanding of these processes and the current research in these areas will be presented.