CHY 462/562: Biochemistry lab First, read this. Instructor To Be Announced Meetings Schedule 1:15-5:00 PM, Monday Science Building (Portland), room 362 and lab 366 PLEASE NOTE: Some lab projects will require your attention on days and times outside of regular lab hours. Check the schedule. Texts 1) USM Biochemistry Online Lab Manual (experiments provided through links in the Schedule.) 2) Approved Laboratory Notebook 3) Approved Safety Goggles 4) USM student computer account. If you do not already have one, go to Academic Computing Services in Luther Bonney Hall and ask to set up this account. Notebooks are available at USM Bookstore, Portland, and the Campus Bookstore on Forest Avenue. Evaluation Six Laboratory Reports, weighed equally, including one Report in Publication Form. See Report Assignments. One brief report, weighted as 1/2 of a report. Lab Notebook, weighted as 1/2 of a report. Prelab Exercises, 5 exercises, each weighted as 1/5 of a report, due at beginning of meeting on day specified in Schedule. Prelab exercises are essential preparation for lab. If you show up without them, you are showing up unprepared, and you will be less efficient and less effective in lab. Therefore, NO CREDIT for late Prelab Exercises. Notice to Disabled Students If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability, please inform me during the first week of the semester, after consulting with the Office of Academic Support for Students with Disabilities, 237 Luther Bonney (Voice: 780-4706; TTY: 780-4395; FAX: 780-4403). For problems with writing or study skills, make an appointment at the Learning Center, 253 Luther Bonney (780-4228) or the Counseling Center, 106 Payson Smith (780-4050). Course Goals This course provides experience with techniques of broad use in biochemistry. Your main goals in each experiment are 1) to learn a new laboratory method, 2) to use the method to collect reproducible, interpretable data, 3) to calculate useful results from your data, and 4) to explain the meaning of your results, by describing molecular models and mechanisms. A Case Study: Biochemistry of Lysozyme, an Antibacterial Enzyme You will apply all of the techniques of the course to a study of the enzyme lysozyme, which is abundant in hen eqq white (where it protects the chick embryo from bacterial infection by breaking down the cell wall of certain types of bacteria). By applying the lab techniques to a single biomolecule and its action, you will get a feeling for doing research on a well-defined system and getting to know that system in detail. As you might imagine, this kind of detailed exploration of molecular systems is the foundation of our knowledge of biochemistry, and underlies every factual statement in your biochemistry text. By the end of the semester, combining what you learn about lysozyme from the class and the lab, you will be on your way to becoming an expert on this enzyme, building the level of expertise you would need to develop on any biomolecular system that you wanted to understand fully. Lab Schedule Experiments, assignments, and due dates. Guidelines How to get full credit, first time, for lab reports and notebooks. Grading Policy How I will compute your grades. Lab Safety Guidelines for working safely in USM Chemistry laboratories. Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) Look up hazards and handling procedures for chemicals you use in lab. Biochemistry Resources Your biochemistry home on the World Wide Web. Look here to review classroom graphics, and for exercises, learning strategies (with quiz assignments), and handouts. The Fine Print Make sure you get full credit for your work. See this statement of policies, practices, and penalties. Biochemistry Resources