CHM 225 : Biochemistry
This course covers the chemistry of biologically important molecules: amino acids, proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, and nucleic acids. Bioenergetics, biosynthesis, genes, chromosomes, and DNA metabolism round out the course. The lab introduces analytical and synthesis techniques for the biologically significant compounds. Prerequisites: BIO 121, CHM 115, and CHM 116. Three lecture hours and one laboratory hour per week. Instructional Support Fee applies.
Gen. Ed. Competencies Met: Scientific Reasoning and Discovery.
4 credits Spring
Course Outcomes
Biochemistry aims to describe the structure, organization, and functions of organisms in molecular terms.
By the end of this course, you should be able to:
1. Explain the physical and chemical properties of water and describe why water serves as the solvent for most biochemical reactions.
2. Solve problems involving buffers and apply acid-base concepts to formulate buffer systems used in biochemical reactions.
3. Distinguish the main chemical and biological differences between carbohydrates and lipids.
4. Recognize the various functional groups found in amino acids and predict how they determine the secondary and tertiary structure of proteins.
5. Describe the structure and mechanism of representative enzymes in biochemical pathways.
6. Interpret plots of enzyme kinetic data.
7. Describe the primary catabolic pathways of carbohydrates.
8. Distinguish the key regulatory points, the energetics of the reactions, and the key chemical transformations involved in carbohydrate catabolism.