Module Identifier | BS34820 | ||||||||||||||
Module Title | GENE EXPRESSION & DEVELOPMENT | ||||||||||||||
Academic Year | 2005/2006 | ||||||||||||||
Co-ordinator | Professor John Draper | ||||||||||||||
Semester | Semester 2 | ||||||||||||||
Other staff | Dr Gareth W Griffith, Dr Ian M Scott, Dr Luis A J Mur | ||||||||||||||
Pre-Requisite | BS23720 , BS22320 | ||||||||||||||
Course delivery | Lecture | (30 x 1 hour) | |||||||||||||
Seminars / Tutorials | 2 x 3 hour presentations on Apoptosis, 2 x 2 hour discussion workshops | ||||||||||||||
Practical | The students are expected to construct an electronic poster to accompany presentation. | ||||||||||||||
Assessment |
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Part One: - The Control of Gene Expression
In multicellular organism, developmental pathways are often regulated by perception of chemical cues from other cells. Thus, a basic knowledge of these processes is critical to understanding the induction of gene expression. This is followed by an examination of the role of inducible transcription factors in the regulation of gene transcription. Here we shall discuss how, in response to the activation of signalling pathways, combinations of transcription factors can either up- or down-regulate transcription of target genes. The RNA resulting from transcription represents the unprocessed transcript. Following processing, mRNA is translated. Translation too is subject to differential regulation. The overall rate of translation can be altered, and translation of individual mRNA species can be blocked. The newly-formed polypeptide is also subject to a variety of post-translational modifications, e.g. targeting and degradation.
Part Two- An overview of cell signalling
This section will introduce signals and signaling cascades by focusing on three pathways which will feature in Part 3. Therefore, signaling associated with retinoic acid, which plays a key role in patterning in embryos and the Ras GTP-binding protein proto-onco-gene and other pro-carcinogenic proteins associated with epithethial growth factor/ mitogenic activated protein kinase cascade will be explored.
At this point we shall take a short break from formal lectures. Split into small groups, students will prepare talk and a poster on an aspect of apoptosis; a programmed cell death mechanism utilised in mammalian cells. The presentation will be marked by the class and will contribute 15% of the final module marks.
Part Three: Gene Expression and Signalling in Developmental Processes.
The final section considers developmental processes in plants, fungi and vertebrates.
Problem_solving | Not a formal part of the course | ||
Research skills | The course demands considerable further reading in order for the students to fully understand the concepts that will be discussed in the lectures as well as for the workshop and coursework essay. This reading must include primary research papers. Therefore, the students will be expected to understand experimental approaches and results. This, together with the proper assessment of the results, demands considerable research skills. A feature of the lecture material will be a stress on the experimental rationale used to generate the given data. | ||
Communication | The students will be expected to read widely, integrate widely differing forms of information and communicate the relevant (sometimes opposing) data in their essay, poster and presentations. The poster is a widely used format to present results in scientific conferences | ||
Improving own Learning and Performance | The course has an emphasis on self ¿learning as integral to the fully exploiting the opportunities offered by the course. This entails the students developing their own learning regimes based on careful self-management of time and study approaches. | ||
Team work | The students will be expected to collaborate within small groups to develop a presentation on a given topic and a poster. This will involve showing interpersonal skills to come to join decisions as to the major themes of the topic under-discussion and share the work-loads appropriately. | ||
Information Technology | The course requires the use of commonly used software packages to prepare written coursework and presentations. The students will also be expected to extract information from the internet; for example, information on genes sequences and function. | ||
Application of Number | Not relevant to course | ||
Personal Development and Career planning | The course will develop the student¿s ability to access data from a variety of sources and both synthesise into either a traditional text (essay) or an oral or poster presentation. This will augment the student¿s critical faculties and communication skills. Such represent valuable transferable skills. The molecule also acts as an introduction into major areas of scientific research and should therefore help in the planning of future courses (MPhil/PhD) or careers, | ||
Subject Specific Skills | The subjects covered are major areas of research in molecular biology. The will be a large number of vocational opportunities which will arise from the knowledge base and practical exercises which feature in this module. |
This module is at CQFW Level 6