This is an archived course. A more recent version may be available at ocw.mit.edu.

Readings

The assigned pages per lecture closely follow the lectures but are not the exact replicas of the lectures. All readings are from the required course textbook:

Amazon logo Sadava, D. E., D. M. Hillis, et al. Life: The Science of Biology. 10th ed. W. H. Freeman, 2012. ISBN: 9781429298643.

LEC # TOPICS READINGS
1 Welcome; Introduction and course organization
2 Chemical bonding and molecular interactions; Lipids and membranes Chapter 2: Sections 2.1 and 2.2, Chapter 3: Sections 3.1 and 3.4, and Chapter 6: Section 6.1.
3 Structures of amino acids, peptides and proteins Chapter 3: Section 3.2.
4 Protein function; Metabolism Chapter 8: Sections 8.1 and 8.3–8.5.
5 Carbohydrates and glycoproteins Chapter 3: Section 3: 3.3.
6 Nucleic acids Chapter 4: Section 4.1 and Chapter 13: Sections 13.1 and 3.2.
7 Organization of the genome Chapter 11: Sections 11.1 and 11.3–11.5.
8 Rules of inheritance Chapter 12: Section 12.1.
9 Understanding genome organization, experimental approaches Chapter 12: Sections 12.4 and 12.5.
10 Genetics of human disease Chapter 12: Section 12.2.
11 Cells: The simplest functional units Chapter 5: Sections 5.1–5.3.
EXAM 1 (Covering Lec 1–10)
12 Replication Chapter 13: Sections 13.2–13.4.
13 Transcription Chapter 14: Sections 14.1–14.3.
14 Splicing and chromatin remodeling Chapter 14: Section 14.4.
15 Translation Chapter 14: Section 14.5.
16 Protein folding & diseases of mis-folding Chapter 3: Section 3.2.
17 Cloning techniques Chapter 18: Sections 18.1–18.3, 18.5, and 18.6.
18 Analyzing the human genome Chapter 13: Section 13.5 and Chapter 17: Sections 17.1–17.5.
19 Gene therapy Chapter 18: Section 18.4, Chapter 17: Section 17.4, and Chapter 15: Section 15.5.
20 Cell Trafficking and protein localization Chapter 14: Section 14.6.
21 Cell Signaling: Overview Chapter 7: Sections 7.1–7.5.
22 Cell Signaling: Examples Chapter 11: Section 11.7.
23 Visualizing life: Dyes and stains Chapter 5: Section 5.1.
24 Visualizing life: Fluorescent proteins
EXAM 2 (Covering Lec 11–22)
25 Cell cycle Chapter 11: Sections 11.1 and 11.2.
26 Cell cycle and checkpoints Chapter 11: Sections 11.3–11.5.
27 Stem cells and Apoptosis Chapter 11: Section 11.6 and Chapter 19: Sections 19.1 and 19.5.
28 Cancer 1: The stages of tumorigenesis Chapter 11: Section 11.7.
29 Cancer 2: Cancer genetics
30 Carcinogens and mutations
EXAM 3 (Covering Lec 23–30)
31 Immunology 1: Overview of the immune system Chapter 42: Section 42.2.
32 Immunology 2: Immune cell diversity and autoimmune diseases Chapter 42: Sections 42.3–42.6.
33 Viruses Chapter 26 preview.
34 Antivirals
35 Bacteria and antibiotics
36 Wrap-up