Course Description

Learning is not compulsory... neither is survival.
W. Edwards Deming (1900 - 1993)

The Introduction to Experimental Biosciences (Bios 211) is a required intermediate level laboratory course for biosciences majors. It also meets most health professions requirements for a year of biology laboratory. We focus on the process of science and on writing, quantitative, and several other fundamental practical skill areas, in the context of investigative laboratory studies. Enrollment in this course requires that the student has either taken Bios 111, our entry level laboratory course, or passes a qualifying examination. See the sign-up page for more details.

Assignments include pre-lab preparation, starting/maintaining a laboratory notebook, laboratory work, several research papers, and a final exam. Students will attend a one hour lecture and participate in an afternoon laboratory session each week for the first seven weeks of the semester. Due dates for writing assignments will extend past the first seven weeks and the final exam will be held at the end of the semester. Preparation for laboratory work, time in class, and time spent on writing and other assignments should require a total of 90 hours, equivalent to the time that one would invest in a two credit lecture course in a technical area.

If you plan to take this course, then please read the remaining pages under "Getting started" and follow the instructions for registration. The "Sign up" form is only accessible from campus. If you must sign up from off campus then please contact the instructor. Note what topics are covered on the "Policies" page and plan to go back to it if you have questions about the honor code, rules for submitting assignments, grading policies, etc.

See "Using this site" for how to use course web pages to obtain information and to keep up with assignments.

Abbreviated syllabus

Bios 211 is designed to introduce and develop communication, quantitative, analytical, problem solving, and teamwork skills, all of which are essential to success in a broad number of fields. The actual content of the laboratory studies was selected on the basis of its utility in teaching such skills.

What you will need

For the first day in the laboratory you will need a blank laboratory notebook (bound, quadrille ruled, designed to make duplicate copies), a pair of laboratory goggles, and a black marker ("Sharpie") for marking glassware. The required text is "Writing Papers in the Biological Sciences, 4th edition," VE McMillan, New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2006 (ISBN 0-312-44083-9). You will need the text when the writing assignments begin, about the third week of classes. Please keep the text after you finish the course. You may need to consult it for assignments in upper division laboratory courses, and it is a good reference for technical writing in general.

Week one

(lecture)  Course content, organization, expectations; introduction to "laboratory math" and good bench technique; mixtures, solutions, use of SI units and prefixes, formulas, colorimetric assays, spectrophotometry, and dilutions; hazards and safety considerations
(laboratory)  Introduction to laboratory record keeping; prepare solutions, dilutions, standards and samples for protein assay; conduct an assay, determine fraction yields, conduct dilutions

Week two

(lecture)  Structure of blood and origin of blood cells; erythrocyte cytoskeleton and rationale behind the research project; blood and blood cell fractionation, differential cenrifugation, and collecting samples
(laboratory)  Isolate red blood cells from whole blood; Lyse red cells and isolate membranes using differential centrifugation; use a Bradford assay to determine sample protein concentrations; freeze samples for later analysis

Week three

(lecture) Overview of protein structure; denaturing proteins for electrophoresis; polyacrylamide gels; principle of discontinuous gel electrophoresis; band separation and calibration
(laboratory) Prepare samples for electrophoresis; prepare polyacrylamide gels; load and run samples; remove and stain gels

Week four

(lecture)  Analysis of SDS-PAGE, including objectives of the analysis, strategies, calibration of gels, kinds of evidence that we collect, and how we use such evidence; principles and use of a polarographic system for measurement of dissolved oxygen  
(laboratory)  Complete the analysis of protein gels; learn to operate a polarographic system, collect and analyze data

Week five

(lecture)  Preparation of mitochondria from fresh liver tissue; paths of electrons from specific substrates, proton pumping, oxidative phosphorylation, and respiratory control; expected responses to electron transport inhibitors, uncouplers, and inhibition of ATP synthase
(laboratory)  Dissection of fresh liver; tissue fractionation to isolate mitochondria; polarographic studies on electron transport, respiratory control, electron transport inhibitors, uncoupling agents, and inhibition of oxidative phosphorylation.

Week six

(lecture)  Importance, dynamics, and biology of microtubules; concepts of regulation by feedback inhibition and of steady states; regeneration of flagella in the organism Chlamydomonas
(laboratory)  Tutorial:  learn to use the research light microscope. On your own:  find, view, and measure selected microscopic specimens; practice making estimates based upon measurements; fix and observe Chlamydomonas and learn to measure flagella length

Week seven

(lecture)  Flagella regeneration study; overall question; specific hypothesis; experimental design; experimental controls; experimental error; collection of replicate data; criteria for selecting valid data; graphing; statistical analysis
(laboratory)  Measurement of flagella regrowth following amputation in Chlamydomonas

Weeks eight and later

Remaining writing assignments will be due at intervals. In addition to the date scheduled by the Registrar, the final exam will be offered the first two weekdays of finals, morning and afternoon, in the teaching lab. The early dates are reserved for students with conflicts, either with other final exams or with travel plans.