In a typical undergraduate biology curriculum, students do not dive into research until they first wade through large amounts of content. Biology courses in the first few years of the college curriculum tend to be lecture-based and exam-based courses. As a result, science students are mainly exposed to content knowledge--not the skills scientists…

An integrated and projected-based laboratory course was described, integrating interconnected knowledge points and biochemistry and molecular biology techniques on a research project-based system. The program, which served as an essential extension of theoretical courses to practice, was conducted with a sophomore of basic medical science who had…

Project-based (research-driven) laboratory courses stimulate student involvement, improve critical thinking and initiate cooperative learning. To this end, a 7-week laboratory project was designed for a sophomore cell biology course to reinforce the fundamental relationship between genotype and phenotype using yeast alcohol dehydrogenase I (ADH1).…

Many laboratory courses consist of short and seemingly unconnected individual laboratory exercises. To increase the course consistency, relevance, and student engagement, we have developed a research-inspired and project-based module, "From Gene to Structure and Function". This 2.5-week full-day biochemistry and structural biology module…

Active teaching methodologies have been placed as a hope for changing education at different levels, transiting from passive lecture-centered to student-centered learning. With the health measures of social distance, the COVID-19 pandemic forced a strong shift to remote education. With the challenge of delivering quality education through a…

Here, we present a 10-week project-oriented laboratory module designed to provide a course-based undergraduate research experience in biochemistry that emphasizes the importance of biomolecular structure and dynamics in enzyme function. This module explores the impact of mutagenesis on an important active site loop for a biomedically-relevant…

A single semester molecular biology laboratory has been developed in which students design and execute a project examining transcriptional regulation in "Saccharomyces cerevisiae." Three weeks of planning are allocated to developing a hypothesis through literature searches and use of bioinformatics. Common experimental plans address a…

A project-based biophysical chemistry laboratory course, which is offered to the biochemistry and molecular biology majors in their senior year, is described. In this course, the classroom study of the structure-function of biomolecules is integrated with the discovery-guided laboratory study of these molecules using computer modeling and…

This article describes a synergistic two-semester writing sequence for biochemistry courses. In the first semester, students select a putative protein and are tasked with researching their protein largely through bioinformatics resources. In the second semester, students develop original ideas and present them in the form of a research grant…

Recognizing that undergraduate students can benefit from analysis of 3D protein structure and function, we have developed a multiweek, inquiry-based molecular visualization project for Biochemistry I students. This project uses a virtual model of cyclooxygenase-1 (COX-1) to guide students through multiple levels of protein structure analysis. The…

We describe the organization of wet-lab special-study modules (SSMs) in the Central Research Laboratory of Dokuz Eylul Medical School, Izmir, Turkey with the aim of discussing the scientific, laboratory, and pedagogical aspects of this educational activity. A general introduction to the planning and functioning of these SSMs is given, along with…

New approaches are currently being developed to expose biochemistry and molecular biology undergraduates to a more interactive learning environment. Here, we propose a unique project-based laboratory module, which incorporates exposure to biophysical chemistry approaches to address problems in protein chemistry. Each of the experiments described…

A key goal of molecular/cell biology/biotechnology is to identify essential genes in virtually every physiological process to uncover basic mechanisms of cell function and to establish potential targets of drug therapy combating human disease. This article describes a semester-long, project-oriented molecular/cellular/biotechnology laboratory…