structure
32 concepts carry this thread across the degree.
Cell theory
All living things are made of cells, and cells arise only from pre-existing cells.
Prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells
Two fundamentally different cellular architectures.
Organelles and the structure-function principle
Each organelle's form is matched to its role.
The fluid mosaic membrane
A dynamic lipid bilayer studded with mobile proteins.
The cell cycle and mitosis
How a cell duplicates and divides its contents faithfully.
The endosymbiotic theory
Mitochondria and chloroplasts descend from engulfed bacteria.
The levels of protein structure
From amino-acid sequence to folded, functional shape.
Enzymes and activation energy
Biological catalysts that speed reactions without being consumed.
The DNA double helix
Complementary base pairing on two antiparallel strands.
Lipids and self-assembly
Amphipathic molecules spontaneously form bilayers.
Carbohydrates and polysaccharides
Sugars as energy stores and structural polymers.
The light reactions of photosynthesis
Turning light into ATP and NADPH.
The Calvin cycle
Fixing carbon dioxide into sugar.
The cohesion-tension theory
How water is pulled up a plant.
Plant hormones and tropisms
Directional growth in response to stimuli.
Stomatal regulation
Trading gas exchange against water loss.
Protein folding
The thermodynamics that select the native state.
X-ray crystallography
Determining structure from diffraction.
Enzyme kinetics
The Michaelis-Menten model of catalysis.
Allosteric regulation
Control by binding at a site away from the active site.
Molecular motors
Proteins that convert chemical energy into motion.
Recombinant DNA technology
Cutting and joining DNA from different sources.
Cloning vectors
Carrying and replicating engineered DNA in cells.
Engineered genetic circuits
Switches and oscillators built from biological parts.
Gene therapy
Treating disease by correcting DNA.
Pharmacokinetics
Absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion of drugs.
Dose-response relationships
Potency, efficacy and the therapeutic window.
Receptor pharmacology
Agonists, antagonists and binding.
Genomic medicine
Tailoring treatment to an individual's genome.
The Lineweaver-Burk linearisation
Plotting 1/v against 1/[S] turns the Michaelis-Menten hyperbola into an exact straight line, at the price of an error structure that demands weighting by v^4.
Selection coefficient and allele frequency change
How the selection coefficient s and dominance h set the per-generation change in allele frequency: the exact recursion and its weak-selection limit.
Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium
One generation of random mating fixes an autosomal locus at genotype proportions p^2, 2pq, q^2 set by the allele frequency, which itself never changes.