Biology Course Structure
MOLECULAR and CELLULAR BIOLOGY—33%
This branch of biology studies how molecules control all processes and growth of the cell, the basic unit of life.
Chemical composition of organisms:
- Simple chemical reactions and bonds
- Properties of water
- Chemical structure of carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, nucleic acids
- Origin of life
Cells:
- Structure and function of cell organelles
- Properties of cell membranes
- Comparison of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells (bacteria, plant and animal)
Enzymes:
- Enzyme-substrate complex
- Roles of coenzymes
- Inorganic cofactors
- Inhibition and regulation of enzymes
Energy transformations:
- Glycolysis, cellular respiration, anaerobic pathways
- Photosynthesis
Cell division:
- Structure of chromosomes
- Mitosis, meiosis, and cytokinesis in plants and animals
Chemical nature of the gene:
- Watson-Crick model of nucleic acids
- DNA replication
- Mutations
- Control of protein synthesis: transcription, translation, posttranscriptional processing
- Structural and regulatory genes
- Transformation
- Viruses
ORGANISMAL BIOLOGY—34%
The study of the structure, function, ecology, and evolution at the level of the organism; an individual form of life such as a bacterium, plant, or animal.
Structure and function in plants with emphasis on Angiosperms:
- Root, stem, leaf, flower, seed, fruit
- Water and mineral absorption and transport
- Food translocation and storage
Plant reproduction and development:
- Alternation of generation cycles in ferns, conifers, and Angiosperms
- Gamete formation and fertilization
- Growth and development: hormonal control
- Tropisms and photoperiodicity
Structure and function in animals with emphasis on vertebrates:
- Major systems ( digestive, gas exchange, skeletal, nervous, circulatory, excretory, immune)
- Homeostatic mechanisms
- Hormonal control in homeostasis and reproduction
Animal reproduction and development:
- Gamete formation, fertilization
- Cleavage, gastrulation, germ layer formation, differentiation of organ systems
- Experimental analysis of vertebrate development
- Extraembryonic membranes of vertebrates
- Formation and function of the mammalian placenta
- Blood circulation in the human embryo
Principles of heredity:
- Mendelian inheritance patterns (dominance, segregation, independent assortment)
- Chromosomal basis of inheritance
- Linkage, including sex-linked traits (hemophilia, colorblindness)
- Polygenic inheritance (height, weight, skin color)
POPULATION BIOLOGY—33%
The study of a group of individuals of the same species that have a high probability of interacting with each other; especially the growth and regulation of the population size, genetics, demography, and life history evolution of the population.
Principles of ecology:
- Energy flow and productivity in ecosystems
- Biogeochemical cycles (water, nitrogen, carbon)
- Population growth and regulation (natality, mortality, competition, migration, density, r- and K-selection)
- Community structure, growth, regulation (major biomes and succession)
- Habitat (biotic and abiotic factors)
- Concept of niche
- Island biogeography
- Evolutionary ecology (life-history strategies, altruism, kin selection)
Principles of evolution:
- History of evolutionary concepts
- Concepts of natural selection (differential reproduction, mutation, Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, speciation, punctuated equilibrium)
- Adaptive radiation
- Major features of plant and animal evolution
- Concepts of homology and analogy
- Convergence, extinction, balanced polymorphism, genetic drift
- Classification of living organisms (taxonomy)
- The evolutionary history of humans
Principles of behavior:
- Stereotyped, learned social behavior
- Societies (emphasis on insects, birds, primates)
Social biology:
- Human population growth (age composition, birth and fertility rates, the theory of demographic transition)
- Human intervention in the natural world (management of resources, environmental pollution)
- Biomedical progress (control of human reproduction, genetic engineering)