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123

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6

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BU-101 · Cell Biology 6

T-001	Cell theory All living things are made of cells, and cells arise only from pre-existing cells.
T-002	Prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells Two fundamentally different cellular architectures.
T-003	Organelles and the structure-function principle Each organelle's form is matched to its role.
T-004	The fluid mosaic membrane A dynamic lipid bilayer studded with mobile proteins.
T-005	The cell cycle and mitosis How a cell duplicates and divides its contents faithfully.
T-006	The endosymbiotic theory Mitochondria and chloroplasts descend from engulfed bacteria.

BU-102 · Biological Molecules 5

T-007	The levels of protein structure From amino-acid sequence to folded, functional shape.
T-008	Enzymes and activation energy Biological catalysts that speed reactions without being consumed.
T-009	The DNA double helix Complementary base pairing on two antiparallel strands.
T-010	Lipids and self-assembly Amphipathic molecules spontaneously form bilayers.
T-011	Carbohydrates and polysaccharides Sugars as energy stores and structural polymers.

BU-103 · Genetics 5

T-012	Mendel's law of segregation Paired alleles separate into different gametes.
T-013	Mendel's law of independent assortment Genes on different chromosomes are inherited independently.
T-014	The dihybrid cross Predicting the 9:3:3:1 ratio of two traits.
T-015	Genetic linkage and recombination Nearby genes tend to be inherited together.
T-016	Sex linkage Inheritance of genes carried on the sex chromosomes.

BU-104 · Evolution & Natural Selection 5

T-017	Natural selection Differential survival and reproduction of heritable variation.
T-018	Fitness and adaptation Reproductive success shapes the traits of a population.
T-019	Speciation How reproductive isolation gives rise to new species.
T-020	The evidence for common descent Homology, fossils and molecules point to shared ancestry.
T-021	Sexual selection Traits favoured through mate choice and competition.

BU-105 · Ecology 5

T-022	Trophic levels and energy flow Energy dissipates as it passes up a food chain.
T-023	Logistic population growth Growth slows as a population nears carrying capacity.
T-024	Competition and the niche Two species cannot occupy the same niche indefinitely.
T-025	Predator-prey dynamics Coupled cycles of predator and prey abundance.
T-026	Biogeochemical cycles How carbon and nitrogen move through ecosystems.

BU-106 · Organismal Physiology 4

T-027	Homeostasis and negative feedback Stabilising the internal environment against disturbance.
T-028	Diffusion and osmosis Passive movement of molecules down a gradient.
T-029	Gas exchange surfaces Why exchange surfaces are thin, moist and large.
T-030	The principle of mass transport Why large organisms need circulatory systems.

BU-201 · Molecular Biology 5

T-031	The central dogma Information flows DNA to RNA to protein.
T-032	Semiconservative DNA replication Each old strand templates a new complementary one.
T-033	Transcription Copying a gene into messenger RNA.
T-034	Translation and the genetic code Reading codons to build a polypeptide.
T-035	Mutations How changes in DNA sequence alter proteins.

BU-202 · Cell Signalling & Membranes 5

T-036	Membrane transport Passive, facilitated and active movement across membranes.
T-037	Signal transduction Converting an external signal into a cellular response.
T-038	Receptor-ligand binding Specificity and affinity in molecular recognition.
T-039	Second messengers Amplifying and relaying signals inside the cell.
T-040	The resting membrane potential The Nernst equation applied to ion gradients.

BU-203 · Microbiology 5

T-041	The bacterial growth curve Lag, exponential, stationary and death phases.
T-042	Antibiotic resistance Evolution in action under drug selection.
T-043	Horizontal gene transfer Sharing genes between unrelated lineages.
T-044	Viral replication The lytic and lysogenic strategies.
T-045	Microbial metabolic diversity The many ways microbes extract energy.

BU-204 · Population & Molecular Genetics 5

T-046	The Hardy-Weinberg principle Allele and genotype frequencies in an idealised population.
T-047	Genetic drift Random sampling changes allele frequencies.
T-048	Gene flow Migration mixes alleles between populations.
T-049	Mutation-selection balance Why harmful alleles persist at low frequency.
T-050	Inbreeding and heterozygosity The genetic cost of mating with relatives.

BU-205 · Animal Physiology 5

T-051	The action potential The all-or-nothing electrical impulse of a neuron.
T-052	The oxygen dissociation curve Cooperative oxygen binding by haemoglobin.
T-053	Osmoregulation in the kidney The countercurrent multiplier concentrates urine.
T-054	Muscle contraction The sliding-filament mechanism of the sarcomere.
T-055	Hormonal regulation Endocrine control of physiological state.

BU-206 · Plant Biology 5

T-056	The light reactions of photosynthesis Turning light into ATP and NADPH.
T-057	The Calvin cycle Fixing carbon dioxide into sugar.
T-058	The cohesion-tension theory How water is pulled up a plant.
T-059	Plant hormones and tropisms Directional growth in response to stimuli.
T-060	Stomatal regulation Trading gas exchange against water loss.

BU-207 · Developmental Biology 5

T-061	Differential gene expression One genome gives rise to many cell types.
T-062	Morphogen gradients Concentration gradients supply positional information.
T-063	Hox genes and the body plan Master genes that specify anatomy.
T-064	Induction Cells directing the fate of their neighbours.
T-065	Apoptosis Programmed cell death sculpts developing tissues.

BU-301 · Immunology 5

T-066	Innate and adaptive immunity Two coordinated layers of defence.
T-067	Clonal selection How lymphocytes specific to a pathogen are amplified.
T-068	Antibody structure and diversity Generating a near-limitless repertoire from limited genes.
T-069	MHC and antigen presentation Displaying cellular contents to T cells.
T-070	Immunological memory The basis of long-lasting immunity and vaccines.

BU-302 · Neuroscience 5

T-071	Synaptic transmission Chemical communication across the synapse.
T-072	Neural integration Summing excitatory and inhibitory inputs.
T-073	Long-term potentiation A cellular mechanism of learning and memory.
T-074	Sensory transduction Converting physical stimuli into neural signals.
T-075	Neural coding How spikes represent information.

BU-303 · Molecular Genetics & Genomics 6

T-076	The operon model Coordinated regulation of bacterial genes.
T-077	Eukaryotic gene regulation Enhancers, chromatin and transcription factors.
T-078	Epigenetic inheritance Heritable change without altered DNA sequence.
T-079	The polymerase chain reaction Exponential amplification of a DNA target.
T-080	DNA sequencing Reading the order of bases in a genome.
T-081	CRISPR-Cas9 Programmable, targeted genome editing.

BU-304 · Evolutionary Biology 5

T-082	Phylogenetics Reconstructing evolutionary relationships from data.
T-083	The molecular clock Dating divergence from accumulated substitutions.
T-084	Kin selection Hamilton's rule explains altruism among relatives.
T-085	Coevolution Reciprocal evolutionary change between interacting species.
T-086	The neutral theory Most molecular evolution is selectively neutral.

BU-305 · Ecology & Population Dynamics 5

T-087	Metapopulation dynamics Colonisation and extinction across habitat patches.
T-088	Island biogeography Species richness from area and isolation.
T-089	Ecological succession How communities assemble and change over time.
T-090	Keystone species Species with outsized effects on community structure.
T-091	r- and K-selection Contrasting life-history strategies.

BU-306 · Structural Biology & Biophysics 5

T-092	Protein folding The thermodynamics that select the native state.
T-093	X-ray crystallography Determining structure from diffraction.
T-094	Enzyme kinetics The Michaelis-Menten model of catalysis.
T-095	Allosteric regulation Control by binding at a site away from the active site.
T-096	Molecular motors Proteins that convert chemical energy into motion.

BU-307 · Cancer Biology 5

T-097	Oncogenes and tumour suppressors The genetic accelerators and brakes of cancer.
T-098	The hallmarks of cancer The capabilities a tumour must acquire.
T-099	Cell cycle checkpoints Surveillance that guards against damaged division.
T-100	Angiogenesis and metastasis How tumours secure a blood supply and spread.
T-101	Clonal evolution of tumours Cancer progression as natural selection.

BU-308 · Systems Biology 4

T-102	Gene regulatory networks The logic of cellular decision-making.
T-103	Feedback loops in biology Sources of robustness and oscillation.
T-104	Metabolic flux analysis Tracing material flow through a metabolic network.
T-105	Emergent properties Behaviour arising from interactions, not parts.

BU-401 · Bioinformatics & Computational Biology 5

T-106	Sequence alignment Detecting homology by dynamic programming.
T-107	Database searching with BLAST Fast approximate matching against large databases.
T-108	Building phylogenetic trees Distance and likelihood methods.
T-109	Hidden Markov models Finding genes and motifs probabilistically.
T-110	Clustering gene expression Finding structure in transcriptomic data.

BU-402 · Synthetic Biology & Genetic Engineering 4

T-111	Recombinant DNA technology Cutting and joining DNA from different sources.
T-112	Cloning vectors Carrying and replicating engineered DNA in cells.
T-113	Engineered genetic circuits Switches and oscillators built from biological parts.
T-114	Gene therapy Treating disease by correcting DNA.

BU-403 · Epidemiology & Disease Ecology 5

T-115	The SIR model Compartmental modelling of an epidemic.
T-116	The basic reproduction number R0 sets the threshold for an outbreak.
T-117	Herd immunity The immune fraction that halts transmission.
T-118	Transmission dynamics Contact rate, infectiousness and spread.
T-119	Vaccination strategy Controlling disease at the population level.

BU-404 · Molecular Medicine 4

T-120	Pharmacokinetics Absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion of drugs.
T-121	Dose-response relationships Potency, efficacy and the therapeutic window.
T-122	Receptor pharmacology Agonists, antagonists and binding.
T-123	Genomic medicine Tailoring treatment to an individual's genome.