Lecture_1_notes_Intro_BCH400_2025_v2

Instructor Information

• Role: Guide and Test

• Instructor: Professor Jeff Harper

• Office Location: Howard Medical Science Building, Rooms 220/222

• Phone: 775 784 1349

• Email: jfharper@unr.edu (Subject: BCH 400)

• Office Hours: Fridays from 9:00 to 10:00 AM

• Contact for Issues:

  • First: Read the textbook or Google Wikipedia

  • Second: Ask a friend (most important resource)

  • Third: Ask questions in class or submit via email

Course Overview

• Course Name: BCH 400

• Semester: Spring 2025

• Visual Philosophy: René Magritte's The False Mirror - Encourages critical thinking about perception

Student Learning Outcomes

1. Predict how chemical and physical factors influence biomolecules' structure and function.

2. Determine the impact of metabolic processes on biological functions.

3. Explain the transduction of genetic information into biochemical processes.

4. Articulate a basic understanding of enzyme kinetics and allosteric regulation.

Description of Assignments

• Total Points: 600

• Exams: 5 regular exams (100 points each, lowest score dropped; max 400 points)

• Quizzes: Multiple quizzes totaling 100 points

• Final Exams: 2 comprehensive (100 points each, lowest score dropped; max 100 points)

• Exam Format: Multiple choice, true/false, structure drawings

• Grading Scale:

  • A: 90 - 100%

  • B: 89 - 80%

  • C: 79 - 70%

  • D: 69 - 50%

  • F: <50%

• Grade Entries: Grades on WebCampus may not include extra credit; official records maintained off-line.

Recommendations for Success

Before Class

• Read chapter summaries using the electronic book.

• Print lecture templates from WebCampus.

During Class

• Use lecture templates for note-taking.

• Take notes on everything written on the board.

• Actively ask questions.

After Class

• Review relevant chapter sections.

• Solve problems at the end of each chapter.

• Rewrite lecture notes.

What is Biochemistry?

• Definition: Biochemistry is the chemistry of life that applies to all living organisms.

• Applications: Relevant in fields such as drugs, bioengineering.

Major Classes of Biomolecules

1. Lipids

   • Monomer: Fatty acids

   • Polymer: Membrane phospholipids

2. Proteins

   • Monomer: Amino acids

   • Polymer: Protein complexes

3. Carbohydrates

   • Monomer: Glucose

   • Polymer: Cellulose

4. Nucleic Acids

   • Monomer: Nucleotides

   • Polymer: DNA/RNA

Common Themes in Biomolecules

• Monomers form polymers via condensation reactions.

• Polymers are broken down through hydrolysis.

Important Biochemical Reactions

• Peptide Bond Formation: Essential reaction to remember for the first test.

Key Historical Figures in Biochemistry

• Friedrich Miescher: Discovered nucleic acids.

• Avery, MacLeod and McCarty: Identified DNA as genetic information in 1944.

• Watson and Crick: Proposed DNA structure in 1953.

• Kary Mullis: Created PCR (polymerase chain reaction) in 1983.

• CRISPR-Cas System: Developed in 2013 for targeted genome modification, Nobel Prize awarded in 2020.

Amino Acid Structures and Variations

• Essential to memorize the structures of all 20 amino acids for test preparation.