Unit 3104: Comprehensive Biochemical Principles

1. Introduction to Biochemical Principles

• Overview of biochemistry and its significance
• Structure and function of biomolecules
  • Proteins: amino acid composition, peptide bonds, functional groups
  • Carbohydrates: monosaccharides, disaccharides, polysaccharides
  • Lipids: fatty acids, triglycerides, phospholipids, steroids
  • Nucleic acids: DNA, RNA structure and function

2. Enzyme Kinetics

• Enzyme function and catalytic mechanisms
• Enzyme-substrate interactions
• Michaelis-Menten kinetics
  • Vmax, Km concepts
• Enzyme inhibition
  • Competitive, non-competitive, uncompetitive inhibition
• Factors affecting enzyme activity
  • pH, temperature, substrate concentration, cofactors

3. Metabolic Pathways

• Overview of cellular metabolism
• Glycolysis: steps and regulation
• Citric Acid Cycle (Krebs Cycle)
• Oxidative Phosphorylation and Electron Transport Chain
• Gluconeogenesis
• Fatty acid metabolism
  • Beta-oxidation and synthesis

4. Regulation of Metabolism

• Feedback inhibition and activation
• Allosteric regulation of enzymes
• Hormonal control
  • Insulin, glucagon, epinephrine roles
• Metabolic signaling cascades
  • Second messengers and protein phosphorylation

5. Bioenergetics

• Principles of energy transformation in cells
• ATP synthesis and energy currency
• Energy storage molecules
• Thermodynamics of metabolic reactions
  • Gibbs free energy, spontaneity, coupled reactions

6. Molecular Biology Basics

• Central dogma of molecular biology
• DNA replication mechanisms
• Transcription process
• Translation and the genetic code
• Gene regulation
  • Transcriptional and translational control mechanisms

7. Protein Structure and Function

• Levels of protein structure
  • Primary, secondary, tertiary, quaternary
• Protein folding and chaperones
• Protein stability and denaturation
• Relationship between structure and biological function

8. Membrane Biochemistry

• Structure of biological membranes
  • Lipid bilayer, membrane fluidity
• Membrane transport mechanisms
  • Passive diffusion, facilitated diffusion, active transport
• Cell signaling via membrane receptors
• Membrane-bound enzymes and their roles

9. Biochemical Techniques

• Chromatography
  • Types: paper, column, affinity, HPLC
• Electrophoresis
  • SDS-PAGE, agarose gel electrophoresis
• Spectroscopy
  • UV-Vis, fluorescence, NMR basics
• Mass spectrometry fundamentals
• Recombinant DNA technology
  • Cloning, PCR, gene expression analysis

10. Applications of Biochemical Principles

• Biochemistry in medicine
  • Disease mechanisms, drug design
• Biotechnology applications
  • Genetic engineering, enzyme production
• Agriculture
  • Crop improvement, pest resistance
• Environmental science
  • Bioremediation, pollution monitoring
• Importance of biochemical research across fields