9797238 - THE CELL: MOLECULES AND PROCESSES
Modulo Molecular biology II

By the end of the course, students are expected to:

- Understand the basic concepts and terminology of the main techniques of molecular biology.

- Describe the applicability of the main techniques of molecular biology.

- Discuss the connections between the molecular approaches and the notions described in the courses of Molecular Biology, Applied Biology and Medical Genetics.

·       Manipulation of nucleic acids: electrophoresis and nucleic acid hybridization

·       Recombinant DNA: molecular cloning

·       PCR, RT-PCT and qPCR

·       DNA sequencing and NGS

·       Gene expression and protein-nucleic acid interactions: chromatography; western blot; EMSA; ELISA; immunoprecipitation; chromatin immunoprecipitation

·       Transgenic organisms

·       J. Zlatanova & K.E. vanHolde Molecular Biology. Structure and dynamics of Genomes and Proteomes, 1st edition, 2016, Garland Sciences, ISBN: 9780815345046

·       James D. Watson et al, Molecular Biology of the Gene, 7th edition, 2014, Pearson, ISBN: 9780321762436.

Since it is an annual course, the exam will be held in the second semester along with the first module. The final assessment of acquired knowledge is conducted by an oral examination. The grade is expressed on a scale of thirty, up to a maximum of 30/30 cum laude (with honors). The final grade is determined by the weighted average of the scores obtained in the course subjects.

The oral examination consists of an interview during which questions will cover at least three different topics from the course curriculum. The assessments aim to evaluate: i) the level of knowledge of the course modules; ii) the clarity of presentation; iii) the property of medical-scientific language. The assessment of learning can also be conducted remotely if the conditions necessitate it.

For the assignment of the final grade, the following parameters will be considered:

·       Score 29-30 with honors: The student demonstrates an in-depth knowledge of the topics, promptly and correctly integrates and critically analyzes presented situations, independently solving even highly complex problems. They possess excellent communication skills and command medical-scientific language proficiently.

·       Score 26-28: The student has a good understanding of the topics, is able to integrate and critically and logically analyze presented situations, can fairly independently solve complex problems, and presents topics clearly using appropriate medical-scientific language.

·       Score 22-25: The student has a fair understanding of the topics, although it may be limited to the main areas. They can integrate and critically analyze presented situations, although not always in a linear fashion, and present topics fairly clearly with moderate language proficiency.

·       Score 18-21: The student has minimal knowledge of the topics, possesses modest ability to integrate and critically analyze presented situations, and presents topics sufficiently clearly, although their language proficiency may be underdeveloped.

Exam not passed: The student lacks the minimum required knowledge of the core content of the course. Their ability to use specific language is minimal or nonexistent, and they are unable to independently apply acquired knowledge.

- The mechanism of PCR

- Restriction endonucleases and the molecular cloning

- Strategy of DNA sequencing