Most biodiversity on our planet can be found in tropical latitudes. Tropical rainforests, for example, which account for less than 10% of the Earth’s surface, may contain 50-75% of all plant and animal species. This course will examine some of the myriad biotic interactions that occur in the tropics using an ecological, evolutionary, and behavioral approach. The course will also touch on important applied issues such as reforestation, sustainable agriculture, and ecotourism.

(Offered as BIOL 450 and NEUR 450.)  Concentrating on reading and interpreting primary research, this course will focus on classic and soon-to-be classic neurophysiology papers. We will discuss the seminal experiments performed in the 1950s that led to our understanding of action potentials; experiments in the 1960s and 1970s that unlocked how synapses function; and more recent research that combines electrophysiology with optical methods and genetic techniques to investigate the role of many of the molecular components predicted by the work from the earlier decades.

(Offered as BIOL420 and BCBP 420.) If the basic tenants of eukaryotic molecular biology have followed the prokaryotic paradigm-- DNA makes RNA makes protein--established decades ago, the importance of eukaryotic RNA that is not translated into protein is only now becoming appreciated. While barely more than 1% of the human genome encodes protein, there is evidence that as much as 98% of our genome is transcribed! What function, if any, do all those RNA species serve?

(Offered as PHYS 400, BIOL 400, BCBP 400, and CHEM 400.) How do the physical laws that dominate our lives change at the small length and energy scales of individual molecules? What design principles break down at the sub-cellular level and what new chemistry and physics becomes important? We will answer these questions by looking at bio-molecules, cellular substructures, and control mechanisms that work effectively in the microscopic world. How can we understand both the static and dynamic shape of proteins using the laws of thermodynamics and kinetics?

A study of the architecture and interactions of genetic systems. Advances in genomics are providing insights into a variety of important issues, from the structural limits of DNA-based inheritance to the discovery of novel infectious and genetic diseases. We will address how heritable information is organized in different groups of organisms. We will also cover a major challenge of this emerging field--the application of vast amounts of genetic data to understanding genomic integrity and regulation.

(Offered as BIOL 331, BCBP 331, and CHEM 331.) Structure and function of biologically important molecules and their role(s) in life processes. Protein conformation, enzymatic mechanisms and selected metabolic pathways will be analyzed. Additional topics may include: nucleic acid conformation, DNA/protein interactions, signal transduction and transport phenomena. Four classroom hours and four hours of laboratory work per week. Offered jointly by the Departments of Biology and Chemistry. A student may not receive credit for both BCBP/BIOL/CHEM 331 and CHEM 330.