| Department of Basic Science and Environment | |||||||||||||||||
| Earliest Possible Year | |||||||||||||||||
| Duration | One block | ||||||||||||||||
| Credits | 15 (ECTS) | ||||||||||||||||
| Course Level | MSc | ||||||||||||||||
| Examination | Final Examination oral examination All aids allowed Description of Examination: The oral examination is based on individual presentations of group project reports supplemented with questions to the general pensum. Weight: Oral examination in project report and pensum is judged by 100 % 7-point scale, internal examiner | ||||||||||||||||
| Requirement For Attending Exam | Acceptance of reports of initial exercises. | ||||||||||||||||
| Organisation of Teaching | THIS COURSE WILL BE REPLACED BY THE COURSE "ADVANCED BIOTECHNOLOGY AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS". IT WILL BE POSSIBLE TO SIGN UP FOR THIS NEW COURSE ON FEBRUARY 9, 2009. | ||||||||||||||||
| Block Placement | Block 4 Week Structure: A Block 4 Week Structure: C | ||||||||||||||||
| Teaching Language | English | ||||||||||||||||
| Optional Prerequisites | 230002 Biochemistry 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| Restrictions | The number of students per course is limited to 30 owing to limited space in the laboratories and the need for intensive teaching in the required research techniques and advanced instrumentations | ||||||||||||||||
| Course Contents | |||||||||||||||||
| The course focus on experimental biological chemistry, which especially implies understanding of the relations between structure and properties of the molecules under consideration, in particular biomolecules, which can be macromolecules and/or low molecular weight compounds. Center of attention will be preparative methods usable for isolation of actual native molecules from various types of starting materials and complex matrix systems; this can be of vegetable, animal, or microbial origin, as well as feed or food systems. Strategies and sequences in the required procedures depend on properties of the compounds of interest, the matrix systems and available methods as will be discussed and illustrated in this course. In some cases, the starting point or part of the course can be de novo synthesis e.g. synthesis of peptides. A great part of the work in this course will be devoted to investigation of bioactive molecules as e.g. enzymes and their effectors, which give a need for development and use of bioassay. Following isolation of the actual molecules, an important part of the course will be characterization, identification, and determination of physico-chemical-bioactive properties of the molecules. In collaborative work (few students per group), the students will use basic and applied research method in the studies of compounds which can be: - Lipids, oils, lipid soluble vitamins, antioxidants, phytosterols, amphiphilics as phosphor- and glycolipids in membranes. - Carbohydrates including dietary fibres (plant cell walls) and dietary fibre associated compounds. - Bioactive peptides, proteins, enzymes and glycoproteins, and cofactors important for their function - Bioactive natural products and low molecular weight compounds. The course will give the students basic knowledge to: - Quality assurance. - Planning and designing of experimental work. - Relevant selection of methods and strategies. - Evaluation and interpretation of produced data and results in relation to literature information. - Description of obtained results in reports or papers following scientific rules. | |||||||||||||||||
| Teaching And Learning Methods | |||||||||||||||||
| Laboratory work aiming at bringing the students knowledge on how to transfer theory to practical use of the various instruments, biochemical methods, and technologies are central parts of the course. The students will, in groups of three, spend around 18 h per week working with selected research projects. The project will be chosen among a selection of subjects, and agreed on by the students and the supervisor. Main results and conclusions will be presented at a poster session during the final part of the course and the study will be finalized with a project report. Lectures will throughout the course be used to present the theoretical background for general subjects of interest for biological chemistry research implying topics like bioactive natural compounds, structural identification, protein characterization, protein synthesis, and bioinformatics. There will additional be giving an introduction on how to read and interpret original scientific literature. The combined theoretical and practical laboratory experiments with focus on strategies of actual technologies will train the students in calculation and evaluation of produced data, statistical analyses of obtained results, quality assurance and reporting with evaluation of processing effects on product quality based on own data in relation to literature data. | |||||||||||||||||
| Learning Outcome | |||||||||||||||||
| The aim of the course is to give the students a thorough and fundamental basis for performing experimental research work in the borderline between chemistry, biochemistry, biology and biotechnology. After completing the course, the student should be able to: Knowledge: - Comprehend basic principles required for research studies on bioactive natural products, lipids, dietary fibres, proteins, peptides, enzymes and their inhibitors. - Have a broad understanding of the theory behind applied methods and technologies. - Understand the theory behind methods in biochemistry with changes in properties of analytes dissolved in water as function of ions, organic molecules and surfactants. Skills: - Apply correct use of original literature in relation to their reasearch work. - Develop relevant and optimized strategies of experimental procedures based on principles from new as well as traditional biological methods and technologies. - Transfer a hypothesis through mathematical/statistical description to results, which can be statistical and experimental tested. - Evaluate experimental data in relation to published values. - Expand the knowledge to experimental work with more complex systems as starting materials. - Respond and reflect on environmental related problems in experimental biochemistry. Competences: - Carry out simple biochemical experiments. - Make a correct and comprehensive report documenting their experimantal work. | |||||||||||||||||
| Course Litterature | |||||||||||||||||
| Depending on the research projects in the course, relevant new and original literature, scientific papers and monographs will be selected. Examples of supplementary literature can be: B.W.Wenclawiak, M.Koch, W.Hadjicostas (Eds) (2004: Quality Assurance in Analytical Chemistry. Training and Teachning. Springer Verlag, Berlin, Heidelberg. ISBN 3-540-40578-X. L.Buckberry and T.Tessdale (2001: Essentials of Biological Chemistry (udvalgte afsnit). John Wiley & Sons Ltd. West Sussex, UK. ISBS 0-471-48906-9. H.Sørensen, S.Sørensen, C.Bjergegaard, S.Michaelsen (1999): Chromatography and Capillary Electrophoresis in Food Analysis. Royal Society of Chemistry, Cambridge, UK. ISBN 0-85404-561-9. G.Walsh (2002): Proteins, Biochemistry and Biotechnology, John Wiley and Sons Ltd. West Sussex, UK. ISBN 0-471-899070 D.Voet & J.G.Voet (2004): Biochemistry, John Wiley and Sons, ISBN 0-471-39223-5 | |||||||||||||||||
| Course Coordinator | |||||||||||||||||
| Keld Ejdrup Andersen, kea@life.ku.dk, Department of Natural Sciences/Biochemistry & Natural Product Chemistry, Phone: 35332461 | |||||||||||||||||
| Study Board | |||||||||||||||||
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| Course Scope | |||||||||||||||||
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