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  6. BI25M7: ENERGY FOR LIFE

BI25M7: ENERGY FOR LIFE (2014-2015)

Last modified: 28 Jun 2018 10:27


Course Overview

  • understanding the fundamental workings of cells is important to a wide range of scientific disciplines; 
  • this course integrates the key metabolic and biochemical processes that underpin human, animal and plant life in relation to health and disease; 
  • this core knowledge prepares you for more advanced study in all areas of life sciences and has wide ranging applications; 
  • you will also participate in an award winning practical series focussed on drug discovery which will build essential employability skills in experimental design, data analysis and practical laboratory skills

Course Details

Study Type Undergraduate Level 2
Term Second Term Credit Points 15 credits (7.5 ECTS credits)
Campus None. Sustained Study No
Co-ordinators
  • Dr John Barrow
  • Professor Kathleen Shennan

What courses & programmes must have been taken before this course?

None.

What other courses must be taken with this course?

None.

What courses cannot be taken with this course?

None.

Are there a limited number of places available?

No

Course Description

"Now, a living organism is nothing but a wonderful machine endowed with the most marvellous properties and set going by means of the most complex and delicate mechanism." Claude Bernard, An Introduction to the Study of Experimental Medicine (1865). For life to be "set going" and survive, the single unit of life (the cell) must utilise and manage energy. This is as true for a single cell as it is for a multi-cellular organism such as you. The course deals with the way cells manage their energy requirements by reference to the processes of carbohydrate, fat and protein metabolism. Cellular processes that allow the complete breakdown of these food molecules to produce energy will be discussed with reference to glycolysis, the citric acid cycle, the breakdown of fatty acids, the terminal respiration system and oxidative phosphorylation. Mechanisms by which cellular molecules are built from simple precursors will also be explored via the processes of gluconeogenesis, glycogen synthesis, photosynthesis, the pentose phosphate pathway and amino acid metabolism. This collection of highly dynamic processes can only take place in a coordinated manner because of enzymes, which allow the processes to occur and also offer points of control, consequently enzyme function and catalysis will be discussed. The course will conclude by examining how the human body can control these processes to efficiently control its energy requirements and expenditure.

Contact Teaching Time

Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.

Teaching Breakdown

More Information about Week Numbers


Details, including assessments, may be subject to change until 30 August 2024 for 1st term courses and 20 December 2024 for 2nd term courses.

Summative Assessments

1st Attempt: 1 two-hour essay/short answer examination (70%) and in-course assessment (30%). Continuous assessment comprises: 1 lab report (30%).

Resit: 1 two-hour essay/short examination (70%) and previous continuous assessment (30%).

Formative Assessment

PRS-based revision sessions allow students to assess their understanding of the lecture material and receive feedback on their performance.

Feedback

Practical reports will be marked with written comments. Students are given general feedback on performance during PRS revision sessions. Students receive on-line feedback on completion of the on-line tests.

Course Learning Outcomes

None.
 

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