CHEM046

General Info

Course

Essential Cell Biology / CHEM-046

Year of study

Semester

Spring, B (First year undergraduates)

Number of Credits

3 (ECTS: 4)

Department

Chemistry, University of Crete

Instructor

Charalampos (Babis) Spilianakis, PhD

Office

IMBB-FORTH, A204

e-mail

spiliana@imbb.forth.gr

Phone

2810-391163 (office), 2810-391173 (lab)

Office hours

09.00 am - 21.00 pm

Lectures

Chemistry Auditorium A1, Monday 12.00-14.00, Friday 11.00-13.00

Teaching Methods

Lectures (PowerPoint Presentations), Videos & narrated animations, Student Response System (iRespond), Multiple Choice Questions.

Language of Instruction

Greek

Assessment methods

Written Examination

Attendance

Attendance at all lecture sessions is expected. If a session is missed, it is the student’s sole responsibility to make up any work missed.

Academic Honor Principle

Students are expected to observe the University’s Code of Student Conduct. Cheating on examinations and/or problem sets is not acceptable and will be met with zero tolerance!

Instruction Materials

Textbook choice I
Essential Cell Biology
Bruce Alberts, Dennis Bray, Karen Hopkin, Alexander Johnson, Julian Lewis, Martin Raff, Keith Roberts, Peter Walter

Garland Science, Taylor & Francis Group, Third Edition
Student resources:
Textbook Resource List by publisher.

Lectures Download

Each academic year the Powerpoint presentations in either .pptx format (Microsoft Office 2011) or .pdf format will be uploaded upon the completion of each lecture (material included in an individual lecture's file may be covered in more than a 2 hours session).

Downloads from previous Academic Years

Final Exams with answers

2010.1, 2010.2, 2011.1, 2011.2, 2012.1, 2012.2, 2013.1, 2013.2, 2014.1, 2014.2, 2014.3,

Description
Introduction to cells
Microscopy
Cell architecture
Life's common mechanisms

Download: Powerpoint presentation (pdf).
Description
The molecular design of life
Biochemical unity underlies Biological diversity
DNA illustrates the interplay between form and function
Chemical components of cells
What are macromolecules
Chemical bonds and groups
An outline of some of the types of sugar
Fatty acids and other lipids
The 20 amino acids found in proteins
A survey of the nucleotides
The principal types of weak noncovalent bonds

Download: Powerpoint presentation (pdf).
Description
Energy, Catalysis and Biosynthesis
The use of energy by cells
Free energy and Catalysis

Download: Powerpoint presentation (pdf).
Description
DNA and Chromosomes
The Structure of DNA
A DNA Molecule Consists of Two Complementary Chains of Nucleotides
The Structure of DNA Provides a Mechanism for Heredity
The Structure of Eukaryotic Chromosomes
Eukaryotic DNA Is Packaged into Multiple Chromosomes
Chromosomes Contain Long Strings of Genes
Specialized DNA Sequences Are Required for DNA Replication and Chromosome Segregation
Interphase Chromosomes Are Not Randomly Distributed Within the Nucleus
The DNA in Chromosomes Is Always Highly Condensed
Nucleosomes Are the Basic Units of Eukaryotic Chromosome Structure
Chromosome Packing Occurs on Multiple Levels
The Regulation of Chromosome Structure
Changes in Nucleosome Structure Allow Access to DNA
Interphase Chromosomes Contain Both Condensed and More Extended Forms of Chromatin

Download: Powerpoint presentation (pdf).
Description
DNA Replication, Repair, and Recombination
DNA REPLICATION
Base-Pairing Enables DNA Replication
DNA Synthesis Begins at Replication Origins
New DNA Synthesis Occurs at Replication Forks
The Replication Fork Is Asymmetrical
DNA Polymerase Is Self-correcting
Short Lengths of RNA Act as Primers for DNA Synthesis
Proteins at a Replication Fork Cooperate to Form a Replication Machine
Telomerase Replicates the Ends of Eucaryotic Chromosomes

DNA REPAIR
Mutations Can Have Severe Consequences for a Cell or Organism
A DNA Mismatch Repair System Removes Replication Errors That Escape the Replication Machine
DNA Is Continually Suffering Damage in Cells
The Stability of Genes Depends on DNA Repair
Double-Strand Breaks Can be Repaired Rapidly But Imperfectly
A Record of the Fidelity of DNA Replication and Repair Is Preserved in Genome Sequences

HOMOLOGOUS RECOMBINATION
Homologous Recombination Requires Extensive Regions of Sequence Similarity
Homologous Recombination Can Flawlessly Repair DNA Double-strand Breaks
Homologous Recombination Exchanges Genetic Information During Meiosis

MOBILE GENETIC ELEMENTS AND VIRUSES
Mobile Genetic Elements Encode the Components They Need for Movement
The Human Genome Contains Two Major Families of Transposable Sequences
Viruses Are Fully Mobile Genetic Elements That Can Escape from Cells
Retroviruses Reverse the Normal Flow of Genetic Information

Download: Powerpoint presentation (pdf).
Description
From DNA to Protein: How Cells Read the Genome
FROM DNA TO RNA
- Portions of DNA Sequence Are Transcribed into RNA
- Transcription Produces RNA Complementary to One Strand of DNA
- Several Types of RNA Are Produced in Cells
- Signals in DNA Tell RNA Polymerase Where to Start and Finish
- Initiation of Eucaryotic Gene Transcription Is a Complex Process
- Eucaryotic RNA Polymerase Requires General Transcription Factors
- Eucaryotic RNAs Are Transcribed and Processed Simultaneously in the Nucleus
- Eucaryotic Genes Are Interrupted by Noncoding Sequences
- Introns Are Removed by RNA Splicing
- Mature Eucaryotic mRNAs Are Selectively Exported from the Nucleus
- mRNA Molecules Are Eventually Degraded by the Cell
- The Earliest Cells May Have Had Introns in Their Genes
FROM RNA TO PROTEIN
- An mRNA Sequence Is Decoded in Sets of Three Nucleotides
- tRNA Molecules Match Amino Acids to Codons in mRNA
- Specific Enzymes Couple tRNAs to the Correct Amino Acid
- The RNA Message Is Decoded on Ribosomes
- The Ribosome Is a Ribozyme
- Codons in mRNA Signal Where to Start and to Stop Protein Synthesis
- Proteins Are Made on Polyribosomes

Download: Powerpoint presentation (pdf).