Syllabus (Updated 1/18/2016)

Below you will find the sequence of lectures, a copy will be posted here after it is given. Please email the webmaster if it is not posted by the end of the day the lecture is given.

Lecture slides and other course materials:

Lecture 1 (Jan 5):
The genome: codes, organization, expression vs. inheritance

Lecture 2 (Jan 7):
Nucleic acid structures: chemistry, space, time (evolution)

Recitation (Jan 6-8):
Dissecting primary research papers

Lecture 3 (Jan 12):
DNA to RNA: transcription and splicing

Lecture 4 (Jan 14):
DNA approaches: how we know what we know?

Recitation (Jan 13-15):
Bootcamp: molecular biology techniques and interpretation

Lecture 5 (Jan 19):
More on how we know what we know ... & Intro to the protein code

Lecture 6 (Jan 21):
Translation: making protein from RNA template & Protein structure intro

Lecture 7 (Jan 26):
Protein structure, functional analysis, and evolution

Lecture 8 (Jan 28):
Evolution and genome manipulation & Brief comment on quantitating biological reactions
The new frontier of genome engineering with CRISPR-Cas9 (Optional reading)

Lecture 9 (Feb 2):
Components of transcriptional regulatory machines ... & Bacterial modes of regulation, part 1

Lecture 10 (Feb 4):
Bacterial Regulation, II
The different roles of tryptophan transfer RNA in regulating trp operon expression in E. coli versus B. subtilis (Optional reading)

Midterm Review Session (Feb 6):
Part 1
Part 2 - Experiments

Lecture 11 (Feb 9):
Quantitative aspects of transcription factor binding and gene regulatory circuit design

Lecture 12 (Feb 11):
Protecting the family jewels: DNA replication

Lecture 13 (Feb 16):
Repair, engineering, subversion, and evolution: Many uses of DNA recombination

Lecture 14 (Feb 18):
Epigenetics and gene regulation: new elements for transcriptional regulation in multicellular eukaryotes

Lecture 15 (Feb 23):
Combinatoriality in cis and trans: transcriptional control in multicellular eukaryotes

Lecture 16 (Feb 25):
Developmental gene regulation: intersection with epigenetics and gene networks
Transcription factors: from enhancer binding to developmental control (Supplementary reading)

Lecture 17 (Mar 1):
Regulation by RNA interference

Lecture 18 (Mar 3):
Other RNAs as regulators and RNAs as enzymes

Lecture 19 (Mar 8):
Common Misconceptions and Practice Problems

Final Exam Review (Mar 10):
Final Review