Biochemitry and Cell Biology (5 cr)

Objectives (course unit)

Student is able to
- describe the essential features of cell structure, cell organelles and their function
- define the structure, characteristics and function of different biomolecules
- explain the basics of biochemical catalysis and enzymes
- describe the key features of cell metabolism
- describe the most important features of cell cycle, cell division, growth, differentiation and signalling

Content (course unit)

- Cell structure and evolution, cell metabolism, membrane structures and cytoskeleton
- Biomolecules and the most important biochemical compounds
- Enzymes
- Essential metabolism (mainly energy metabolism)
- Cell cycle, cell division, growth, differentiation and signalling

Prerequisites (course unit)

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Assessment criteria, satisfactory (1-2) (course unit)

The student is able to recognize and define the most important structures of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. The student is able to recognize the different classes of biomolecules and knows their most important functions in cells. The student has a basic knowledge of how the genes regulate different cellular functions. The student knows the basic principles of cellular metabolism. The student knows the basics of the cell cycle, cell division and cell death. The student knows what the genome and the expression of genes mean.

Assessment criteria, good (3-4) (course unit)

The student is able to describe the structure of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells, as well as cell organelles and their most important functions. The student is able to recognize and explain the different classes of biomolecules and knows their functions in cells. The student understands the central principles and mechanisms of the transfer of biological information. The student is able to explain the mechanism of enzyme function and central metabolic routes and knows their importance for the cells. The student knows the basics of
how the genome and expression of genes control cell activity.
The student has an overall picture of the cellular functions.

Assessment criteria, excellent (5) (course unit)

The student is able to describe elaborately the structure of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells, as well as cell organelles and their functions. The student is able to describe the different reactions, structure and functions of biomolecules and is able to describe their significance for vital functions. The student can explain the principles, mechanisms, and factors affecting the transfer of biological information. The student knows the mechanism of enzyme function and regulation, central cellular metabolic routes and the factors affecting to them. The student is also able to evaluate their interactions. The student understands how the genome and expression of genes control cell activity.
The student has a good overall picture of the cellular functions.

Assessment criteria, pass/fail (course unit)

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Location and time

Starts in 1st period and continues to the 3rd period.

Exam schedules

The course includes 4 tests and a final exam / retest.
Preliminary timetable: tests on October 28, November 18, December 11, February 5 and final exam / retest February 18. There is no need to register for tests. For final exam / retest please contact the teacher by e-mail tuuli.valineva@tuni.fi
Re-exams for the whole course in Exam-system in 4th period.

Assessment methods and criteria

Midterm tests (4 in total). The test scores are counted together, and they are calculated as the total grade of the course. Additional assignments and study activity can increase the score.
At the end of the course, a midterm re-exam is arranged.
The course can also be completed by a final exam. The scores for midterm tests or additional assignments do not affect the final exam score, ie the weight of the exam is 100% of the total score. The exam is graded 0-5.
Re-exams for the whole course are arranged in Exam. The scores for midterm tests or additional assignments do not affect the re-exam score, ie the weight of the exam is 100% of the total score. The re-exams are graded 0-5.

Assessment scale

0-5

Teaching methods

Lectures
Assignments
Tests
Final exam

Learning materials

Lecture material
Heino, Jyrki, Vuento, Matti: Biokemian ja solubiologian perusteet
Sanoma Pro 2014. 3. ed.

Student workload

50 h contact lessons, 83 h independent work.

Content scheduling

Part 1 (1st test) Cell: structure, organelles and their functions, biomolecules: proteins, lipids, carbohydrates
Part 2 biomolecules: nucleic acids, genetic information flow
Part 3 enzymes, cell metabolism
Part 4 cell cycle, cell division, cell death, cell differentiation and cell signalling

Completion alternatives

Either 4 tests or final exam

Practical training and working life cooperation

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International connections

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Further information

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Assessment criteria - satisfactory (1-2) (Not in use, Look at the Assessment criteria above)

The student is able to recognize and define the most important structures of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. The student is able to recognize the different classes of biomolecules and knows their most important functions in cells. The student has a basic knowledge of how the genes regulate different cellular functions. The student knows the basic principles of cellular metabolism. The student knows the basics of the cell cycle, cell division, cell death, cell differentiation and cell signalling.

Assessment criteria - good (3-4) (Not in use, Look at the Assessment criteria above)

The student is able to describe the structure of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells, as well as cell organelles and their most important functions. The student is able to recognize and explain the different classes of biomolecules and knows their functions in cells. The student understands the central principles and mechanisms of the transfer of biological information. The student is able to explain the mechanism of enzyme function and central metabolic routes and knows their importance for the cells.
The student can explain the basic principles of the cell cycle, cell division, cell death, cell differentiation and cell signalling. The student has an overall picture of the cellular functions.

Assessment criteria - excellent (5) (Not in use, Look at the Assessment criteria above)

The student is able to describe elaborately the structure of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells, as well as cell organelles and their functions. The student is able to describe the different reactions, structure and functions of biomolecules and is able to describe their significance for vital functions. The student can explain the principles, mechanisms, and factors affecting to the transfer of biological information. The student knows the mechanism of enzyme function and regulation, central cellular metabolic routes and the factors affecting to them. The student is also able to evaluate their interactions. The student can explain the principles of the cell cycle, cell division and cell death. The student understands the process of cell differentiation. Thestudent understands the principles and signifigance of cell signalling. The student is able to descibe different ways of cell to cell communication and their differences. The student has a good overall picture of the cellular functions.