Unit BIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY
- Course
- Chemistry
- Study-unit Code
- 55004006
- Curriculum
- In all curricula
- Teacher
- Carla Emiliani
- Teachers
-
- Carla Emiliani
- Sandra Buratta (Codocenza)
- Hours
- 22 ore - Carla Emiliani
- 20 ore (Codocenza) - Sandra Buratta
- CFU
- 6
- Course Regulation
- Coorte 2020
- Offered
- 2022/23
- Learning activities
- Caratterizzante
- Area
- Discipline chimiche organiche e biochimiche
- Academic discipline
- BIO/10
- Type of study-unit
- Obbligatorio (Required)
- Type of learning activities
- Attività formativa monodisciplinare
- Language of instruction
- Italian
- Contents
- Structural-functional organization of the cell. Structure and function of nucleic acids. Aminoacids. Structure and function of proteins. Myoglobin and hemoglobin. Enzymes: catalysis and kinetics. Introduction to metabolism. Glycolysis. Beta-oxidation of fatty acids. Tricarboxylic acid cycle. Electron transport chain and oxidative phosphorylation. Amino acid catabolism. Urea cycle.
- Reference texts
- 1. Introduzione alla Biochimica di Lehninger di David L. Nelson, Michael, M. Cox. Ed. Zanichelli
2. Biochimica di C. Campbell, Farrell. Ed. EdiSES
3. Biochimica-Molecole e Metabolismo di Dean R. Appling, Spencer J, Anthony-Cahill, Christopher K. Mathews. Ed. Pearson
4. Principi di Biochimica, di Garret, Grisham; Piccin ed - Educational objectives
- Knowledge: at the end of the course the student will have to know: structures and properties of the main biological macromolecules (carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, DNA); their modes of interaction, the main metabolic and energy production pathways of the cell.
Capacity: at the end of the course the student must be able to relate the knowledge acquired in the abiotic field, in the General Chemistry and Organic Chemistry courses, to a Chemical-Biological field. He must be able to integrate the acquired knowledge into a coherent framework - Prerequisites
- In order to understand the subjects dealt with in the course, the students must have a good basic knowledge in the field of general and inorganic chemistry and organic chemistry. Regarding biological aspects, it is indispensable that students have a basic knowledge acquired during their secondary school studies. Further knowledge will be acquired by the students during the course.
- Teaching methods
- The course will be organized with lectures on all subjects of the course. Lessons will be integrated with slide projections and movies.
- Other information
- It is planned a tutorial activity during the course. The dates of receiving students are available in the professor's website or by e-mail appointment request.
- Learning verification modality
- They consist of a written examination followed by an oral examination. In the written test students have to answer to forty multiple-choice questions (Libreol). This text will be used to verify the level of knowledge acquired. Students who achieve a score of at least 18/30 will be admitted to the oral exam.
Students, who have not passed the written test, will have the possibility to discuss about their problems with the teacher, the day of the oral examination. - Extended program
- The chemical constituents of living organisms.
The molecular logic of life.
Biochemistry and cell organization.
Amino acids, peptides and proteins.
Secondary, tertiary and quaternary structure of proteins
Purification, identification and structural analysis of proteins.
Protein function: protein-ligand reversible bond (oxygen-binding proteins); complementary protein-ligand interactions (immune system and immunoglobulins); interaction between proteins modulated by chemical energy (actin, myosin and molecular motors).
Enzymes: catalytic mechanism; enzymatic kinetics; inhibition and regulation mechanisms of enzymatic activity, examples of enzymatic reactions.
Carbohydrates: monosaccharides, disaccharides, polysaccharides, glycoconjugates
Nucleotides and nucleic acids: basic notions on structure and functions
Lipids: Structure and function of the main classes of structural and reserve lipids.
Biological membranes: components, structure, transport mechanisms.
Principles of bioenergetics and metabolism: glycolysis and gluconeogenesis; citric acid cycle, catabolism of fatty acids; oxidation of amino acids and urea cycle, principles of bioenergetics and biological redox reactions, electron transport chain and oxidative phosphorylation.
Elements of photosynthesis and synthesis of carbohydrates in plants.