There is interest in admission criteria that predict future success in biomedical graduate school programs, but identifying predictors of PhD attainment is inherently complex. In particular, high noncompletion rates of PhD programs have long been recognized as a major crisis. Here, we present a quantitative analysis of the PhD students enrolled in…

Research Findings: This study aims to understand the ways in which classroom-level teacher-child interaction quality is predictive of self-regulatory behavior and physiology. Specifically, we examine if high-quality and consistent behavioral and emotional support are related to preschool children's behavioral self-regulation, inhibitory control,…

Structures of 10 proteins from the Protein Data Bank were 3D printed as part of an undergraduate biochemistry teaching laboratory. All structures were successfully printed in either a space filling surface representation or a cartoon representation that traces the Ca carbon atoms of each amino acid residue. All structures were printed using…

Protein engineering represents a modern approach to generate novel proteins for the different fields of biotechnology. Here, we report about an 8-day laboratory activity in which students generate enzyme variants to degrade the herbicide glyphosate. The students conduct a true research experiment in an important field (bioremediation by novel,…

An upper-division undergraduate- or graduate-level laboratory experiment, challenging students to identify bovine serum albumin, equine myoglobin, bovine calmodulin, and bovine cytochrome c, uses four methods of matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS): linear positive, in-source decay, peptide…

This work seeks to add to the growing body of chemistry education research that emphasizes the teaching and learning of advanced topics, focusing on students' understanding of enzyme kinetics. The data corpus relevant to this study involved 14 second-year undergraduate students enrolled in an introductory biochemistry course taught in a chemistry…

Cell migration, a fundamental process in development, wound healing, and immune function, is a common topic in undergraduate cell biology courses. We developed laboratory exercises with an inquiry-based learning (IBL) approach in which cell migration could be examined with the scratch assay, adapted from the primary literature. A narrow scratch…

Today smartphones are inseparable parts of modern life and are capable of performing many desktop computers' tasks such as scientific analysis with greater convenience. Here, we present OligoCOOL, which is an Android application for analyzing nucleic sequences. This application enables users to perform several common biomedical analyses for a…

Emerging research suggests that adiponectin, a cytokine produced by adipose tissue, may be implicated in ASD. In this prospective birth cohort study (n = 847), we assessed the association between cord, early childhood plasma adiponectin and the risk of developing ASD. ASD was defined based on ICD codes of physician diagnosis. Cord adiponectin…

Colleges and universities are learning to provide relevant virtual lab experiences for students due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Even schools attempting in-person instruction often need to utilize virtual experiences for students absent due to quarantine or illness. Much of biochemistry is amenable to molecular visualization and/or computational…

We used a technique known as reach tracking to investigate how individual differences in working memory capacity (WMC) relate to the functioning of two processes proposed to underlie cognitive control: a threshold adjustment process that temporarily inhibits motor output in response to signals of conflict and a controlled selection process that…

Student preparation has been shown to be of appreciable importance to student success in laboratory components of science courses. To promote student engagement prior to each laboratory session, technique and content videos, online assessments, and additional methods aiming to decrease cognitive load have been put into effect. Edpuzzle allows for…

The aim of this online workshop is to familiarize biomedical faculties students with the principle of RT-PCR method. The following assumption is made, students participating in the workshop: (1) are already familiar with the principle of PCR reaction; (2) can distinguish PCR from RT-PCR; (3) know the basic possibilities of using the above…

Team-based learning (TBL), which encourages students to become active rather than passive learners, has gained world-wide popularity in medical education due to its proven positive effect on more than one aspect of the educational process. At King Abdulaziz University (KAU), clinical biochemistry is still taught in the form of didactic lectures,…

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is a case that can be used as a biochemistry learning resource in relation to the topic of viruses. Learning to use cases will be effective if students are assigned to produce reports, articles, or other scientific papers. Self-assessment can be used to assess the competencies that have been learnt…