BIOCHEMICAL METHODS FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
- Overview
- Assessment methods
- Learning objectives
- Contents
- Bibliography
- Teaching methods
- Contacts/Info
Background of cell structure and general chemistry is required.
Oral only, two questions. Both will concern the organization of the exposure of a subject of the course to evaluate knowledge of the contents and critical understanding.
The course aims at teaching background knowledge on biomolecules and their transformations in living systems, on regulation of protein synthesis and on analytical techniques for quantitative determination of nucleic acids and proteins with a global approach.
1. Biomolecules. Weak interactions in the aqueous medium. Sugars. Amino acids and peptides. Structural organization of proteins. Nucleotides and nucleic acids. Enzymes. Lipids and membranes (1 CFU).
2. Basics of metabolism. Bioenergetics. Catabolism of glucose and fatty acids. The Krebs cycle. Degradation of amino acids. Oxidative phosphorylation. Principles of biosynthesis (1 CFU).
3. Regulation of gene expression. The central dogma. Transcription. Protein synthesis. Receptors. Signal transduction pathways (1 CFU).
4. Analytical techniques in transcriptomics and proteomics. The global approach. Electrophoresis of nucleic acids and proteins. Capillary electrophoresis and Sanger sequencing. Next generation sequencing. DNA arrays. Chromatography of peptides and proteins. Mass spectrometry. Bottom-up vs. top-down proteomics (1 CFU).
5. Principles of Systems Biology. Over-representation analysis. Protein networks (1 CFU).
6. Discussion of examples from the scientific literature (endocrine disruptors, soil proteomics, bioindicators, metal ions and organometallic compounds, pesticides).
Bibliography, handouts, slides and any other teaching aids will be made available to the student on the e-learning website.
Suggested textbooks:
Parts 1-3: Nelson, Cox. Introduzione alla Biochimica di Lehninger. Quinta edizione. Zanichelli. ISBN: 9788808621184 (paperback); 9788808436870 (EBook).
Part 4: Stoppini, Bellotti. Biochimica applicata. Edises. ISBN: 9788879597135.
Parts 5-6: Scientific articles and handouts.
Only lectures given by the teacher in the presence of students.
None