Basic Biology and Metabolism-E2
"In our world there is no form of matter more astonishing than the living cell: tiny, fragile, marvelously intricate, continually made afresh, yet preserving in its DNA a record of information dating back more than three billion years, to a time when our planet had barely cooled from the hot materials of the nascent solar system. Ceaselessly re-engineered and diversified by evolution, extraordinarily versatile and adaptable, the cell retains a complex core of self-replicating chemical machinery that is shared and endlessly repeated by every living organism on the face of the Earth in every animal, every leaf, every bacterium in a piece of cheese, every yeast in a vat of wine.Curiosity, if nothing else, should drive us to study cell biology; we need to understand cell biology to understand ourselves. But there are practical reasons, too, why cell biology should be a part of everyone’s education. We are made of cells, we feed on cells, and our world is made habitable by cells. The challenge for scientists is to deepen our knowledge of cells and find new ways to apply it. All of us, as citizens, need to know something of the subject to grapple with the modern world, from our own health affairs to the great public issues of environmental change, biomedical technologies, agriculture, and epidemic disease."
(From Essential Cell Biology, by Alexander Johnson, Dennis Bray, Julian Lewis, Karen Hopkin, Keith Roberts, Martin Raff, and Peter Walter)
This course is designed to provide the fundamentals of cell biology that are required by anyone to understand both the biomedical and the broader biological issues that affect our lives.
Textbook: "Essential Cell Biology ", Fifth Edition.
Introduction to Biological Rhythms-E2
Since the beginning of Humanity, time and its measurement has always occupied a central position in our minds. Sundials and stone circles are the legacy of early civilizations striving to know the time of day and the time of the seasons.Despite this keen interest in knowing Time, the existence of an internal biological clock keeping track of time in an autonomous manner but synchronized to the environment has only been recognized towards the end of the 20th century. In 2017, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to Jeffrey Hall, Michael Rosbash and Michael Young for their work in understanding how the circadian clock works at the molecular level.
The discovery of molecular oscillators, either at the gene expression or biochemical levels, leading to pervasive circadian rhythms in physiology and behavior in virtually every organisms studied thus far, has provided a solid base in understanding how our health intimately depends on such harmonious rhythms.
This course will dive into the fascinating world of Chronobiology, from the history of the discipline to its latest groundbreaking progresses.
Textbook: "Chronobiology: Biological Timing in Health and Disease " (Progress in Molecular Biology and Translational Science, Book 119) 1st Edition
Introduction to Molecular Cell Biology-E2
Intended to be a follow up to Basic Biology and Metabolism-E2, this lecture series will delve deeper into the molecular and biochemical processes that take place inside the cell.Theory and Practice in Scientific Writing and Discussion (Pharmaceutical Sciences, English)A-E3
This lecture series will provide students with the basics of scientific English.Expressions and vocabulary used in scientific texts are different from everyday English. When giving a presentation or a seminar, or writing a report or research manuscript, it is critical to use a well organised and precise language so that the ideas and discoveries are well communicated.
This course is mainly targeted to students who wish to pursue a scientific career, especially in research.
Although learning new vocabulary and grammar is a substantial part of this course, the emphasis will be put on practice.
Theory and Practice in Scientific Writing and Discussion (Pharmaceutical Sciences, English)B-E3
The purpose of this course is to give a group of 2-3 students the opportunity to present, in English, a scientific paper of their choice. Other students in the audience will be encouraged to ask questions, which will be taken into account in the final assessment.Skill Development for Clinical Researches
