This course will introduce you to the eukaryotic cell, which is the fundamental unit of organization for all living organisms. Much current biological research is directed towards understanding cell structure and function. For example, in medicine, we want to know the cellular basis of various diseases and disorders. As an introductory course, there will be plenty of new concepts and terminology to learn (the "language" of cell biology). We will use this essential information to gradually synthesize a model of the complex living cell, functioning in its microscopic world.

Fall Term 2010

Lectures: Tuesday 11:15; Wednesday 1:15; Friday 12:15

Labs: Monday and Tuesday at 2:15, Rm 314 J. Bruce Brown

Instructors: Moira Galway, Room 418, JBB, tel. 3841 (lectures) and Leslie Buckland-Nicks, Room 331, JBB, tel. 3957 (labs)

Textbook: The World of the Cell, (7th ed), by WM Becker, LJ Kleinsmith, J Hardin and G.P. Bertoni. Published by Pearson Benjamin Cummings, San Francisco, CA in  2009. Lectures will refer to topics and figures in this edition of textbook.

Marking Scheme (tentative):

Midterm Test

20%

Assignment or Quiz

10%

Lab Preparedness and Lab Notebooks

15%

Lab Exam

15%

Final Exam

 40%

Lecture Topics:

September: Introduction to cells and methods in cell biology. Transport to and from the nucleus; protein synthesis, targeting and sorting.

October: Transport to and from the mitochondrion; chemotrophic energy metabolism versus phototrophic energy and the chloroplast. Cell membranes: structure, composition, function, transport.

November: The cytoskeleton in cell movements and organization; the endomembrane system and vesicle transport.  

Laboratory Schedule (tentative):

September: Living cells through the light microscope. Histology and electron microscopy. The power of fluorescence microscopy and spectrophotometry. 

October:  Taking cells apart: isolating and purifying mitochondria. Function of isolated mitochondria. Blotting for protein isolation and detection.

November: An introduction to cell motility. Planning an experiment, and investigating protist motility. Muscles and the movement of multicellular animals. Lab exam.

Some Cell Biology Information on the Web:

CELLS Alive! (http://www.cellsalive.com/). A gallery of cells. See also other links from this site.

Cellupedia: (http://library.thinkquest.org/C004535) 

Additional information will be posted here.

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