Unit ADVANCED TECHNIQUES

Course
Molecular and industrial biotechnology
Study-unit Code
55A02112
Curriculum
In all curricula
Teacher
Paolo Foggi
CFU
12
Course Regulation
Coorte 2024
Offered
2024/25
Type of study-unit
Obbligatorio (Required)
Type of learning activities
Attività formativa integrata

BIOLOGICAL COMPLEX SYSTEMS

Code A003090
CFU 6
Teacher Pier Luigi Gentili
Teachers
  • Pier Luigi Gentili
Hours
  • 42 ore - Pier Luigi Gentili
Learning activities Caratterizzante
Area Discipline chimiche
Academic discipline CHIM/02
Type of study-unit Obbligatorio (Required)
Language of instruction Italian, English
Contents Features of Complex Systems and Epistemological Complexity.
Living beings are described as Complex Systems.
Principles and methodologies for investigating Complex Systems.
Reference texts P. L. Gentili, “Untangling Complex Systems: A Grand Challenge for Science”, CRC Press, 2018, ISBN 9781466509429.
Educational objectives The graduate students in Industrial and Molecular Biotechnology can learn the principles of Out-of-Equilibrium Thermodynamics and Non-Linear Dynamics only in this course.
The primary purpose of this course is to give the students the conceptual and methodological bases to face the analysis of Complex Systems and particularly the phenomenon of life. The central notions that must be learned by students are:
• the evolutionary criteria of the biophysical and chemical systems that are in out-of-equilibrium conditions from the thermodynamical point of view;
• self-organization;
• deterministic chaos and fractal structures;
• Natural and Computational Complexity.
All these notions will allow students to:
• know the physical and chemical properties of living beings;
• have the paradigms and the computational techniques to investigate the behavior of living beings at the molecular and ecological levels;
• appreciate the limits in predicting deterministic chaos;
• characterize Fractal structures in living beings.
Prerequisites Knowledge of Equilibrium Thermodynamics.
Teaching methods The concepts proposed in this module will be taught through 42 hours of frontal lessons. During these lessons, the teacher will continuously test students' learning process by asking questions. The explanation of some subjects will be assisted by proposing videos and by computer simulations performed through software available online.
Other information For any question, please get in touch with the teacher.
Learning verification modality The learning of the course topics is tested through an oral exam with questions related to the contents carried out in the frontal part of the course. The questions will regard the principles of non-equilibrium thermodynamics and non-linear dynamics. Students will have to demonstrate that they have learned the basic methodologies and principles required to investigate complex systems. The oral exam will last between 30 and 40 minutes.
Students with disabilities and/or with DSA are invited to visit the page dedicated to the tools and measures envisaged and to agree in advance on what is necessary with the teacher (https://www.unipg.it/disabilita-e -dsa).
Extended program The subjects proposed are listed below:
1) Introduction to Natural Complexity. Properties of the Complex Systems and living beings.
2) Detailed analysis of the II Law of Thermodynamics.
3) Non-equilibrium Thermodynamics. Flows and Forces. Linear and Non-Linear regimes. Entropy Production and evolution criteria for the out-of-equilibrium systems.
4) Linear stability analysis for the stationary states: stable and unstable stationary states, and oscillations.
5) Oscillatory biochemical reactions, chemical waves, Turing structures. Periodic Precipitations.
6) Bifurcations and deterministic Chaos.
7) Fractal structures.
8) Natural and Epistemological Complexities. Strategies to face Global Challenges.
Obiettivi Agenda 2030 per lo sviluppo sostenibile The 2030 Agenda includes global challenges. To face these global challenges, it is necessary to know Complex Systems. This course provides fundamental contents and methodologies for understanding Complex Systems and therefore it favors the achievement of the objectives of the 2030 Agenda.

SPECTROSCOPIC TECHNIQUES APPLIED

Code GP004122
CFU 6
Teacher Paolo Foggi
Teachers
  • Paolo Foggi
  • Martina Alunni Cardinali (Codocenza)
Hours
  • 37 ore - Paolo Foggi
  • 5 ore (Codocenza) - Martina Alunni Cardinali
Learning activities Caratterizzante
Area Discipline chimiche
Academic discipline CHIM/02
Type of study-unit Obbligatorio (Required)
Language of instruction Italian
Contents Spectroscopies for the determination of molecular structures of biological interest.
Reference texts Notes by the teacher
Educational objectives To provide the students an integrated vision of the technical tools for the determination of the molecular structures.
Prerequisites None
Teaching methods class lessons and experiments in the laboratory.
Other information contact the teacher
Learning verification modality oral exam
Extended program 1. Protein structure. The Ramachandran plots. Alfa-elix and beta-sheet.
2. NMR Spectroscopy. General principles. Linear H-NMR. Frequency resolved NMR and pulsed techniques.Free Induction Decay. Relaxation mechanisms.The Fourier transform.
3. Bidimensional NMR. NOESY and COSY.
4. Optical activity. Circular dichroism spectroscopy. General principles and applications. The peptide bond. Secondary structure and CD spectra.
5. Light diffusion. Molecular volume and light scattering.
6. Raman spectrosocpy. General principles. The resonace Raman technique. Its application in different spectral regions. The peptide bond, aromatic amino-acids, the heme group.
Obiettivi Agenda 2030 per lo sviluppo sostenibile
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