Unit description
Provides an overview of general biochemistry to enable students to understand the role of chemical reactions in biological systems. Covers basic biochemical organisation and processes of the body, bioenergetics, selected metabolic pathways, and methods of separation and characterisation of molecules of biological interest.
Unit content
- Review of organic functional groups, cellular structure and function, and properties of water
- Amino acids and protein structure, function, biological roles, and metabolism
- Enzymes, coenzymes, reaction kinetics
- Metabolism and bioenergetics: Krebs cycle, electron transport chain and ATP synthesis
- Carbohydrates: structure, function, biological roles, and metabolism
- Lipids: structure, function, biological roles, and metabolism
Learning outcomes
Unit Learning Outcomes express learning achievement in terms of what a student should know, understand and be able to do on completion of a unit. These outcomes are aligned with the graduate attributes. The unit learning outcomes and graduate attributes are also the basis of evaluating prior learning.
Learning outcomes and graduate attributes
| On completion of this unit, students should be able to: | GA1 | GA2 | GA3 | GA4 | GA5 | GA6 | GA7 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | describe the key chemical and structural characteristics of amino acids, proteins, enzymes, carbohydrates, lipids and cell membranes. | Intellectual rigour | Knowledge of a discipline | |||||
| 2 | relate the chemical and structural characteristics of biochemical molecules to their biological roles and functions. | Intellectual rigour | Knowledge of a discipline | |||||
| 3 | discuss the metabolic pathways of proteins, carbohydrates and lipids, and explain bioenergetics in a cellular context. | Intellectual rigour | Knowledge of a discipline | |||||
| 4 | explain the inter-related nature of metabolic pathways and how they are regulated in human biochemistry. | Intellectual rigour | Knowledge of a discipline | |||||
| 5 | interpret data and explain the link between theory and the experimental process. | Intellectual rigour | Knowledge of a discipline | |||||
Prescribed texts
Session 1
- Tymoczko JL, Berg JM, and Stryer L, 2015, Biochemistry, a short course, 3th edn, WH Freeman and Co., New York, USA. ISBN: ISBN-13: 9781464126130; ISBN-10: 1464126135.
Teaching and assessment
Gold Coast
| Teaching method |
| Workshop on-site 1 hour (Weeks 1, 12) |
| Workshop on-site 2 hours (Weeks 4, 6, 10, 13) |
| Laboratory session 2 hours (Week 5) |
| Lecture online 2 hours (6 weeks) |
| Laboratory session 3 hours (Weeks 2, 3, 9, 11) |
| Assessment | |
| Exam: closed book | 50% |
| Exam: closed book | 25% |
| Workbook | 25% |
Lismore
| Teaching method |
| Workshop on-site 1 hour (Weeks 1, 12) |
| Workshop on-site 2 hours (Weeks 4, 6, 10, 13) |
| Laboratory session 2 hours (Week 5) |
| Lecture online 2 hours (6 weeks) |
| Laboratory session 3 hours (Weeks 2, 3, 9, 11) |
| Assessment | |
| Exam: closed book | 50% |
| Exam: closed book | 25% |
| Workbook | 25% |
Fee information
Domestic
Commonwealth Supported courses
For information regarding Student Contribution Amounts please visit the Student Contribution Amounts.
Commencing 2017 Commonwealth Supported only. Student contribution band: 2
Fee paying courses
For POSTGRADUATE or UNDERGRADUATE full fee paying courses please check Domestic Postgraduate Fees OR Domestic Undergraduate Fees
International
Please check the international course and fee list to determine the relevant fees.