Fall 2015

Details of courses Biology

1

Course code

BIO 310

Course Title

Biostatistics

Credits:

Course Coordinator

Ramana Athreya

Nature of Course

Lectures and Numerical Lab sessions

Pre requisites

None.

Objectives

The course introduces biologists to probability and statistics with a

strong emphasis on using computer simulation of random number
distributions to understand the importance of statistical analysis.

Course contents

Topics
1. Statistical measures
2. Probability: Basic concepts, distribution functions, change
of variables;
3. Fitting data: fitting functions, goodness of fit, correlation,
regression, smoothing, interpolation, extrapolation
4. Statistical tests: Parametric and non-parametric tests, null
hypothesis, statistical significance, confidence intervals,
Type I and II errors, ANOVA, multiple testing
5. Time series analysis: Correlation, periodicity
The fortnightly interaction includes 4 hours of lectures, and 2
hours of hands-on experience of using the R statistical package

Evaluation /assessment

a. Mid-sem examination 35 %
b. End-sem examination 35%
c. Assignments/quizzes 30%

10

Suggested readings

3. Sokal and Rohlf (1995) Biometry: the principles and practice of

statistics in biological research. 3rd Ed, W. H. Freeman and Co.
4. Zar, J.H. (2009). Biostatistical Analysis. 5th Edition, Prentice hall

Course code

BIO 311

2
3

Course Title
Credits

Advanced Cell Biology

4

Hrs
3
7

10
6
8

4
5
6
7

Course Coordinator
Nature of Course
Pre requisites
Objectives (goals, type of
students for whom useful,
outcome etc)
Course contents
(details of topics with no
of lectures for each)

Nagaraj Balasubramanian*, Thomas Pucadyil

L- lectures alone
Should ideally be taking the BIO 313 course with this.
This course will provide a detailed insight into advanced concepts of
cellular structure and function. It also aims to give you a sense of the
complex regulatory mechanisms that control cell function.
# This course covers a wide range of advanced cell biology topics
discussing in some detail membrane structure and transport (4),
intracellular compartments (4), protein sorting and vesicular traffic (4). It
will look at mechanisms of cell communications, including signaling
pathways from receptors at the membrane to intracellular signal
propagation (6), cell junctions and adhesion to the extracellular matrix
(4). It will also look at the role of the cytoskeleton and motor proteins in
cellular processes (4). How many of these events are brought together in
a cellular event like cell migration will be discussed (2). Finally it will also
discuss cell cycle and cell division in context of the DNA replication (4).
# Student paper presentations will focus on techniques used to address
major aspects of above cell functions (4)
(In brackets the tentative number of lectures per topic)
a. End-sem examination - 30%
b. Mid-sem examination - 30%
c. Quiz - 30%
d. Project work/term paper
e. Presentations -10%
Text Book(s)
1) Molecular Biology of the Cell by Alberts, Johnson, Raff, Lewis et
al.(2007) 5th Ed. Garland Science;
2) Molecular Biology of the Gene by James Watson et al., (2007) 6th Ed.
Benjamin Cummings;
3) Molecular Cell Biology by Lodish, Berk, Kaiser, et al., (2007) 6th
Ed.W.H.Freeman;
4) Reviews recommended on the course website.

Evaluation /assessment

10

Suggested readings
(with full list of authors,
publisher, year, edn etc.)

Course code

BIO 313

2
3

Course Title
Credits

Advanced Molecular Biology

4

Course Coordinator &

participating faculty (if
any)
Nature of Course
Pre requisites
Objectives (goals, type of
students for whom useful,
outcome etc)

Mayurika Lahiri*, L S Shashidhara

5
6
7

L- lectures alone
None
This course helps to provide fundamental concepts from the enormous
and ever-growing field of Molecular Biology to Undergraduate students.
This course will help students to have a sound knowledge of molecular

biology, which will also enable them to carry out research using
molecular biology techniques.
8

Course contents
(1) Diversity of Genomes (2)
(details of topics /sections
(2) Maintenance of the Genome (18)
with no. of lectures for
each)
- DNA, Chromosomes and Genome
- Replication of DNA
- The Mutability and Repair of DNA
- Homologous Recombination at the Molecular Level
(3) Expression of the Genome (10)
- Mechanisms of Transcription
- RNA Splicing- Translation
4) Techniques in Molecular Biology (10)
- Molecular Cloning methods
- Molecular Tools for Studying Genes and Gene Activity

Evaluation /assessment

a. End-sem examination- 30 %
b. Mid-sem examination- 30 %
c. Quiz- 40 %

10

Suggested readings
(with full list of authors,
publisher, year, edn etc.)

Text Book(s)
1. Molecular Biology of the Gene by Watson, Baker, Levine, Losick et al.
[2007] 6 Ed. Benjamin Cummings
2. Principles of Gene Manipulation by Primrose, Twyman, Old [2002] 6
Ed. Wiley-Blackwell
3. Molecular Biology by Weaver [2011] 5 Ed. McGraw- Hill Science.
4. Molecular Biology and Genomics by Mulhardt [2006] 1 Ed. Elsevier.

Course code

BIO 314

2
3

Course Title
Credits

Bioinformatics
4

5
6
7

Course Coordinator &

participating faculty (if
any)
Nature of Course
Pre requisites

MS Madhusudhan*

L&P- Lectures& Lab sessions

MTH103 (Introduction to Computation)

Objectives (goals, type of This course is an introduction to bioinformatics and computational

students for whom useful, structural biology. The systematic acquisition of data made possible by
outcome etc)
advances in genomics and proteomics technologies has created a gap
between the available data and its analysis leading to insights from the
data. Computational and theoretical approaches to understanding
biological systems are an essential step in closing this gap. Also included
in this course are topics in data-mining, 3D model building, ligand
docking (drug development) and algorithm development. Lectures will
be supplemented with computer labs to understand the algorithms being
covered. Programming assignments may be given so some familiarity
with programming in any language will help.
This course would be useful to BS/MS students in their 34 years and to
Int PhD and PhD students.

Course contents
(details of topics /sections
with no. of lectures for
each)

Evaluation /assessment

Topics: Sequences analysis (pairwise alignment, multiple sequence

alignment, motif discovery, gene annotation), pattern
recognition/discovery in large-scale expression data, hidden markov
models for sequence analysis, inferring phylogenetic trees (UPGMA,
neighbor-joining, maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood), analysis of
next generation sequencing data (Alignment, ChIP-Seq, RNA-seq,
Assembly), Bayesian networks, Protein 3D structure modeling (homology
modeling/comparative modeling, ab inito modeling), Molecular docking,
drug design and Introduction to Molecular dynamics.
a. End-sem examination- 35 %
b. Mid-sem examination- 35 %
c. Quiz- 10 %
d. Assignments- 20 %

10

Suggested readings
(with full list of authors,
publisher, year, edn etc.)

Text Book(s)
1. R. Durbin, S. R. Eddy, A. Krogh, and G. Mitchison, Biological Sequence
Analysis: Probabilistic Models of Proteins and Nucleic Acids (Cambridge
University Press, 1999), ISBN 0521629713
2. Arthur Lesk, Introduction to Bioinformatics (Oxford University Press,
2008), ISBN-10: 0199208042 ISBN-13: 978-0199208043
3. Arthur Lesk, Introduction to Protein Science : Architecture, function

and genomics (Oxford University Press, 2010), ISBN-10: 0199541302

ISBN-13: 978-0199541300
4. D. Gusfield, Algorithms on strings, trees, and sequences : computer
science and computational biology (Cambridge Univ. Press, 2007), ISBN
0521585198

Course code

BIO 320

2
3

Course Title
Credits

Genetics
4

Course Coordinator &

participating faculty (if
any)
Nature of Course
Pre requisites
Objectives (goals, type of
students for whom useful,
outcome etc)

Girish Ratnaparkhi *, Richa Rikhy

5
6
7

L&T- Lectures & Tutorials (Assignments, Presentations)

None
The goal of this Course is to build upon Basic Genetics, which the
students learnt in their high school and the first few semesters at IISERPune. This course was designed to revise basic concepts and then move
on to advanced concepts. A student who completes this course is
expected to be conversant in the Science of Genetics, its history as well
as current advances. A strong emphasis will be laid on modern tools and
techniques as also the utility of model organisms, which are the
workhorses of the science of genetics.With the above aims in mind, the
course will follow a path wherein the students first read Classic papers,
th
th
that defined the field of genetics in the 19 and 20 centuries. This
thread of understanding will be followed till the present, with the latest
papers (2000-2015) being discussed in the course.
The course is heavy in terms of reading with research papers, reviews
and articles uploaded online every week for reading and analysis.
All lecture slides will be uploaded online as a resource once a week.

Course contents
Section #1 (Lecture Topics)
(details of topics /sections
i) Mendelian Genetics. 3 lectures week 1
with no. of lectures for
each)
ii) Non-Mendelian Genetics: Linkage, Incomplete Dominance, Maternal
Inheritance, Extra-nuclear inheritance, Sex-linked inheritance, Sex
determination, Dosage Compensation, Epigenetics, Genomic imprinting.
3 lectures week 2
iii) The Chromosomal basis of inheritance. 2 lectures

iv) The Genetics of Bacteria and Bacteriophages. Bacterial transposons.

Vertical and Horizontal gene transfer. Transformation, Transfection &
Transduction. Genetic Complementation. Genetic Mapping. 3 lectures
week 4 test
v) Genetic screens as a basis for functional genomics. Deficiences, EMS &
X-ray based mutagenesis screens. Creating alleles. Enhancer traps, EPLines, RNA-inheritance, FLP-FRT & Cre- Lox Systems. Nusslein-Volhard &
Weischaus Zygotic and Maternal Screens, Behavior mutant screens. Feb
week 1
vi) Gene isolation Manipulation and the techniques that revolutionized
modern genetics (Chapter 20). Working with Nucleic Acids and Proteins.
Polymerase Chain Reaction. DNA Sequencing, Southern, Western &
Northern Blots. In-situ Hybridization, FISH, SNPs, RFLPs, ESTs, STS &
Oligonucleotide Arrays. Gene Cloning vs Animal Cloning, Nuclear
transplantation, stem cells & iPS cells. Week 2
The utility of the following Model Organisms will be discussed:
Escherichia coli, Arabidopsis thaliana, Caenorhabditis elegans, Drosophila
melanogaster & Mus Musculus. E. coli and D. melanogaster at different
points during the course.
Section #2 Term-paper, Seminars and Assignments
Based on the class size, students will be given assignments and term
papers and/or Seminar Topics. Group presentations may be required.
9

10

Evaluation /assessment

Suggested readings
(with full list of authors,
publisher, year, edn etc.)

End-sem examination- 25 %

Mid-sem examination- 25 %

Quiz- 20 %

Seminar/Term paper and Assignments- 30 %

Text Book(s)
(i)Introduction to Genetic Analysis Griffiths, AJ et. al. , 2008, 9
Edition. WH Freeman & Co. New York.

th

(ii) Reviews, Research papers and Essays provided by the Coordinator.

These will be uploaded online as PDF files for easy download.

Course code

BIO 322

2
3

Course Title
Credits

Biophysics-I (NKN)
4

Course Coordinator &

participating faculty(if
any)
Nature of Course
(Please mark or tick the
appropriate one)
Pre requisites

Chaitanya Athale* and guest lectures

L&T- lectures and tutorials.

None. This course is a prerequisite for Biophysics II offered in the Winter

Semester (Jan-Apr).

Objectives (goals, type of This course will introduce the exciting new interdisciplinary field of
students for whom useful, Physical Biology of the Cell. It will introduce the student to the physical
outcome etc)
concepts used to study biology. Given the diversity of the chemical
entities and results of high-throughput genomic, proteomic and postgenomic studies, the need for theories that allow a unification of
biological phenomena has been recognized as being critical. We begin
with order of magnitudes in biophysics. This will set the stage for models
from classical mechanics and their application to processes ranging from
molecules, to tissues. The role of biophysical techniques in quantification
of cell and molecular systems will be addressed- both from the
perspective of the underlying physics as well as the insights obtained in
biology. Demonstration labs on measurement of cells- size, dynamics,
forces and diffusion will be used to generate data that the students are
expected to evaluate, interpret and report the results using SciPy
(scientific python). Reports are due no later than 1 week after the lab,
with specific deadlines being announced in advance. Assignments will be
provided throughout the course. Self-learning will be evaluated through
the evaluation of reading of papers by students and their presentation.
Labs, assignments and presentations will constitute the major part of the
continuous assessment over and above the mid- and end- semester
exams.

Course contents
(details of topics /sections
with no. of lectures for
each)

Section #1- (Molecular biophysics, 10 lectures) Chemical forces

translation and rotation, biomolecules as machines work, power and
energy, thermal, chemical and mechanical switching via biomolecules.
Organization of biomolecules self assembly and thermodynamics,
electromagnetic effect on biomolecules ion channels and nerves,
chemical kinetics, biological reactions and interactions, introduction to
protein folding.
Section #2 (Cellular biophysics, 22 lectures)Topics: Order of magnitude
physics applied to biology, construction plans for cells and organisms,
time keeping at many scales, model systems across the scales, random

walks, rate equations and dynamics of the cell, network organization in

space and time
Section #3 (Membranes and Life, 3 lectures) Membrane mechanicsmodels and measurements. Going from atomistic to continuum ideas.
Section #4 (Beam theory and cytoskeleton, 7 lectures) The mechanics
associated with cellular architecture. Cellular skeleton and extracellular
matrices.
Section #5 (Physical features of cell migration, 2 lectures)Integrating
ideas from intra- and extra-cellular structures to understand the role of
forces in cell migration.
Section #6 (Biophysical techniques, 7 lectures)Topics: Light in biology,
microscopy techniques, measuring forces in bio-molecules.
Demonstration labs.
Section #7 (Presentations of topics by students, 4 lectures) Reading
assignments and their presentations.
9

Evaluation /assessment

a. End-sem examination- 25 %
b. Mid-sem examination- 25%
c. Quizzes, Reading-projects, Group-work - 30%
d. Assignments- 20 %

10

Suggested readings
(with full list of authors,
publisher, year, edn etc.)

Text Book(s)
Nelson, P. (2003) Biological Physics: Energy, Information, Life. Freeman
Philips, R., Kondev, J., Theriot, J. (2008) Physical Biology of the Cell.
Garland Sciences.
Mechanics of the Cell (2002) Boal. Cambridge Univ. Press.

Course code

BIO 410

2
3

Course Title
Credits

Advanced Biochemistry I
4

Course Coordinator &

participating faculty (if
any)
Nature of Course
Pre requisites

Sudha Rajamani*, Gayathri Pananghat

5
6

L- lectures alone
No prerequisites.This course is a prerequisite for Advanced Biochemistry

II (BIO 417)
7

Objectives (goals, type of The course aims at introducing advanced concepts in biochemistry and
students for whom useful, provides a framework to understand basic biomolecular function. It
outcome etc)
introduces the principles of thermodynamics as they apply to biological
systems and lays special emphasis on studying enzymes as biological
catalysts; a universal prerequisite for the very existence of all life. It also
deals with routine and advanced methodologies used in generating and
analyzing biochemical data.
This course is essentially meant to help understand biology from the
point of view of molecules and physicochemical principles.

Section #1: Primary structure determination of proteins and nucleic acid

Course contents
(details of topics /sections sequencing; chemical evolution (Lectures: 6)
with no. of lectures for
Section #2: Biochemistry underlying information transfer processes.
each)
(Lectures: 6)
Section #3: Biochemical techniques pertaining to biomolecular
purification and characterization (Lectures: 6)
Section #4: Binding and folding thermodynamics; Topics: Thermodynamic
principles, binding and protein folding reactions analyzed from the
framework of enthalpy, entropy, free-energy and heat capacity
(Lectures: 8)
Section #5: Enzyme biochemistry; Topics: Enzymes as biological catalysts,
kinetics of unireactant systems, inhibition systems, enzyme activation,
multisite and allosteric enzymes. (Lectures: 10)

Evaluation /assessment

a. End-sem examination- 30 %
b. Mid-sem examination- 30 %
c. Quiz/Paper discussions- 40 %

10

Suggested readings
(with full list of authors,
publisher, year, edn etc.)

Text Book(s)
Biochemistry Voet, D., Voet, J.G. Publisher: Wiley; 3 edition
Lehninger Principles of Biochemistry David L. Nelson, Michael M. Cox.
Publisher: W. H. Freeman, Fourth Edition
Jeremy M Berg; John Tymoczko; Lubert Stryer (2012), Biochemistry,
th th
7 /6 edition (or older), Wiley.
Segels Enzyme Kinetics: Behavior and Analysis of Rapid Equilibrium and

Steady-State Enzyme Systems (April 1993), Wiley.

Also, primary research articles and reviews would be utilized to provide
contemporary insights into the field.
1

Course code

BIO 411

2
3

Course Title
Credits

Ecology I
4

Course Coordinator

Deepak Barua*

5
6
7

Nature of Course
Pre requisites
Objectives

L- lectures alone
None
This course will cover the basic theoretical framework of ecology, and
deal with some of the topics that were introduced in Bio 201 (Ecology
and Evolution) in greater detail

Course contents

Introduction (4 lectures)
Definition of Ecology; Hierarchical levels of biological organization;
Philosophy of the Science of Ecology; Complexity in Nature; History of
Ecological thought; Significance of Ecology; Evolution by Natural
Selection
I. Ecology of Individual Organisms (8 lectures)
Physiological ecology: conditions vs. resources, niche, tolerance range,
optima, acclimation, limiting factors, energy balance, photosynthesis,
respiration, storage, growth, reproduction, abiotic factors: temperature,
moisture, light, soil, fire, nutrients
II. Population Ecology (10 lectures)
Population growth and regulation: What is a population, birth rate, death
rate, life tables, survivorship curves, population growth functions,
carrying capacity, population pyramids; Evolution of life histories: r and K
selection, iteroparous vs. semelparous reproduction, Ageing and
senescence, tradeoffs; Species interactions: competition, mutualism,
herbivory, predation, optimal foraging, parasitism, trophic cascades
III. Community Ecology (8 lectures)
Community structure: emergent properties, dominance, diversity, spatial
structure, assembly rules; Community change: disturbance, succession,
climax, phenology, seasonal patterns
IV. Ecosystem Ecology (8 lectures)

Productivity and energy flow: primary production, secondary production,

consumers, decomposition, energy flow, biomass vs. production,
ecological efficiency, detritus vs. grazing;Biodiversity, conservation and
climate change: Indices of diversity, causes and consequences of
diversity, effects of climate change
9

Evaluation /assessment

a. End-sem examination- 30 %
b. Mid-sem examination- 30 %
c. Assignments/discussion/participation/term paper 40 %

10

Suggested readings

a. Begon, M., Townsend, CR, and Harper, JL. (2005) Ecology - From
Individuals to Ecosystems. 4th Ed. Blackwell Publishing.
b. Ricklefs RE and Miller GL (2000). Ecology. 4th Ed. Freeman and
Co.
c. Gurevitch J, Schener SM, and Fox GA (2006). The Ecology of
Plants. 2nd Ed. Sinaeur and Associates.

Course code

BIO 334

2
3

Course Title
Credits

Neurobiology I
3

Course Coordinator &

participating faculty (if
any)
Nature of Course
Pre requisites
Objectives (goals, type of
students for whom useful,
outcome etc)

Suhita Nadkarni*, Nixon Abraham

5
6
7

L- lectures alone
None
The course posits neuroscience as a specialized discipline. The
overarching goal of the course is to provide a detailed description of the
logic of the nervous system from the perspectives of evolution,
organization, development, physiology and emergent properties like
learning and memory. The course is aimed at students interested in
understanding the fundamental basis of the neural function and output
and those interested in pursuing neuroscience in the future.

Course contents
Membrane channels, ionic basis of resting potential and action potential
(details of topics /sections (5 Lectures)
with no. of lectures for
Diversity in biophysical properties of ion channels and its effects on
each)
membrane excitability (2)
Propagation of action potential and Synaptic transmission (2 Lectures)

Synaptic plasticity Hebbian theory, learning and memory (4 Lectures)

Organization of the nervous system (2 Lectures)
Evolution of Nervous systems (4 Lectures)

Evaluation /assessment

Adult Neurogenesis and Neuropathology (2 Lectures)

Experience dependent synaptic refining (2)
Adult Neurogenesis and Neuropathology (2)
a. End-sem examination- 30 %
b. Mid-sem examination- 30 %
c. Assignments, Projects. Quiz 40 %

10

Suggested readings
(with full list of authors,
publisher, year, edn etc.)

Text Book(s)
th
i) E. Kandel, et al. (2000). Principles of Neural Science, 4 Ed. McGrawHill Medical
ii) M. Bear, et al (2006). Neuroscience. 3
Wilkins

rd

Ed. Lippincott Williams &

iii) D. Sanes, et al. (2005). Development of the Nervous System. 2nd Ed.
Academic Press
1

Course code

BIO 431

2
3

Course Title
Credits

Epigenetics
3

Course Coordinator &

participating faculty (if
any)
Nature of Course
Pre requisites

Sanjeev Galande*

5
6

L- lectures alone
None (preferred: Biochemistry/Genetics/Cell and Molecular Biology)

Objectives (goals, type of To introduce students to basics concepts in gene regulation, chromatin
students for whom useful, biology, genome-environment interaction, epigenetics and its
outcome etc)
applications in genomics and disease biology. The course would be useful
for the students who are interested in learning about the organization of
genes and their organization at molecular level and also using a systems
approach. The discussions will encompass biochemistry, bioinformatics,
genomics, proteomics, computational biology and systems biology.

Course contents
Mapping and sequencing of genomes from large number of
(details of topics /sections evolutionarily diverse species in the past decade revealed that sequence
with no. of lectures for
per se is not sufficient to understand genome function, the higher-order

each)

organization of the genome and its various modifications are also

important. In eukaryotic nuclei genome is packaged by association with
number of basic proteins to form chromatin with nucleosomes as its
repeating structural units. However, chromatin is highly heterogeneous
at both micro and macro levels due to differential chemical modifications
of DNA and histones which can mark various functional states of
chromatin. Distinct functional states ranging from highly active to
completely silenced can be associated with specific nucleosome
rearrangements, histone variants, histone post-translational
modifications, and interactions of non-histone regulators. This projects a
very dynamic scenario in which the environmental and cell-type specific
signals can inflate the finite coding capacity of the genome into an
epigenome with virtually infinite possibilities of combinations and
regulation. Thus, chromatin structure has emerged as a key player in the
transmission of heritable gene expression patterns.
In this course I will begin with the fundamentals of regulation of gene
expression and chromatin organization (6 lectures) and then discuss
emerging concepts of how DNA sequence can dictate chromatin
organization at the domain level (6 lectures), with specific emphasis on
regulatory elements such as boundary elements and insulators (6
lectures). Mechanisms underlying the roles of these elements in
development, differentiation and complex diseases will be discussed
using specific examples. We will also discuss recent developments
underlying epigenetic regulation of behavior and transgenerational
effects of diet and lifestyle (12 lectures).

Evaluation /assessment

a. End-sem examination- 30 %
b. Mid-sem examination- 30 %
c. Quiz- 10 %
d. Wrtitten essay assignment/paper presentation 20 %

10

Suggested readings
(with full list of authors,
publisher, year, edn etc.)

1. Histone variants ancient wrap artists of the epigenome. Talbert P. B.

and Henikoff, S. Nat. Rev. Mol. Cell Biol., 2010 doi:10.1038/nrm2861
2. Divide and (epigenetic) rule: Chromatin domains as functional and
structural units of genomes. Mishra RK and Galande S. Journal of Indian
Academy of Sciences, Platinum Jubilee issue, 2009, pp 211-224.
3. The mammalian epigenome. Berstein et al., Cell 2007, 128: 669-681.
4. Linking DNA methylation and histone modification: patterns and
paradigms. Cedar H, Bergman Y. Nat Rev Genet. 2009, 10(5):295-304.
5. Boundaries. Boundaries...Boundaries??? Lunyak VV. Curr Opin Cell

Biol. 2008, 20(3):281-7.

6. Transgenerational Epigenetic Inheritance: Myths and Mechanisms.
Heard E and Martienssen R, Cell 2014, 157(1):95109.

Course code

BIO 454

2
3

Course Title
Credits

Structural Biology
3

Course Coordinator &

participating faculty (if
any)
Nature of Course
Pre requisites
Objectives (goals, type of
students for whom useful,
outcome etc)

Saikrishnan Kayarat*, Jeetender Chugh, Gayathri Pananghat

5
6
7

L- lectures alone
None
The course provides an introduction to the structure of biomolecules
with emphasis on the techniques used for structure determination and
analysis. The course covers basic aspects of sample preparation,
structure determination and structure analysis. The aim of the course is
to introduce students to the process involved in structure determination
and analysis, and how structural information can be utilized for better
understanding of biological processes. The course is for V and VII
semester students.

Course contents
Introduction to structures of biomolecules: proteins and nucleic acids
(details of topics /sections
Recombinant technology and purification techniques to isolate
with no. of lectures for
biomolecules
each)
Determination of atomic structure using X-ray crystallography
Studying macromolecular assembly using electron microscopy
Biophysical and spectroscopic techniques to understand
structuresGraphics tools to visualize and analyze atomic structure of
biomolecules.
Understanding biological process through structures: snippets from
protein translation

Evaluation /assessment

a. End-sem examination- 35 %
b. Mid-sem examination- 35 %
c. Quiz- 15 %

d. Assignments- 15 %

10

Suggested readings
(with full list of authors,
publisher, year, edn etc.)

Introduction to Protein Structure by Carl Branden, John Tooze, Garland

Science; 2 edition (January 3, 1999)
Biomolecular Crystallography: Principles, Practice, and Application to
Structural Biology by Bernhard Rupp, Garland Science; 1 edition (October
20, 2009)
Understanding DNA by Chris Calladine, Horace Drew, Ben Luisi, Andrew
Travers, Elsevier Academic Press (2004)
Textbook of Structural Biology by Anders Liljas, Lars Liljas, Jure Piskur,
Goran Lindblom, Poul Nissen & Morten Kjeldgaard, Pub. Date: March
2009, Publisher: World Scientific Publishing

Course code

BIO 452

2
3

Course Title
Credits

Plant Biology II
3

Course Coordinator &

participating faculty (if
any)
Nature of Course
Pre requisites
Objectives (goals, type of
students for whom useful,
outcome etc)

Anjan Banerjee*

5
6
7

Lectures and laboratory sessions

Plant Biology-I
The objective of this course is to understand applied aspects of plant
biology. Students would get the knowledge to deal with practical
questions/problems in Plant Biology field and the advanced technologies
being practiced in modern Agricultural biotechnology.

History of plant cell culture. Various methods of Plant Cell Tissue and
Course contents
(details of topics /sections Organ Culture, direct and indirect organogenesis, somatic
with no. of lectures for
embryogenesis, micropropagation (5 L)
each)
Plant genetic engineering: transformation and transgenic plants, gene
transfer and genetic engineering technologies, molecular mechanism of
Agrobacterium mediated genetic transformation. Ti and Ri Plasmids,
Multiple Gene Transfer (MGT) to Plants and engineering metabolic
pathways, Plant-pathogen interaction and disease resistance plants.
VIGS- Virus Induced Gene Silencing in plants, Regulatory Issues (7L)
Exploring model plant Arabidopsis/or any crop plant genomes and
introduction to plant genomics and biotechnology (2L)
Phyto-remediation and its applications (2L)
Plantibodies and Molecular Farming, Production of

Evaluation /assessment

phytochemicals/neutraceuticals (2L)
Introduction to Quantitative Inheritance (2L)
Molecular markers and Marker Assisted Selection/molecular breeding
(3L). Seed testing (1L).
a. Mid Semester examination- 30 %
b. End-Sem examination - 30 %
c. Quiz -15%
d. Laboratory work - 15%
e. Projects/ Assignments/ presentation - 10 %

10

Suggested readings
(With full list of authors,
publisher, year, edn etc.)

1. Indra KV, and Trevor T. (2005) Plant Cell and Tissue Culture, Kluwer
Academic Publishers
2. Introduction to plant cell tissue culture. MK Rajdan
3. Rainer F, and Stefan S. (2004), Molecular Farming-plant
made pharmaceuticals and technical proteins, Wiley Verlag & Co.
4. Kan W, (2006) Agrobacterium protocols (Methods in Molecular
Biology), Vol. 1 and 2, Humana Press
5. In addition to the suggested books, papers are from Current Opinion
in Biotechnology. Trends in Plant Science, Plant Cell Report, Plant
Science and Plant Biotechnology etc.

Course code

BIO 301/401

2
3

Course Title
Credits

Lab Training/Theory Project

3

Course Coordinator &

participating faculty (if
any)
Nature of Course
Pre requisites

Collins Assisi*

5
6
7

Lab/Theory research project

Permission from the faculty member who will guide you through the
project
Objectives (goals, type of The goal of BIO 301/401 is to encourage students to learn by
students for whom useful, participating in ongoing research at IISER Pune. The student must consult
outcome etc)
a faculty member and mutually agree on a project before registering for
this course. The expectations and evaluation criteria must be discussed
and agreed upon before registering. In addition to conducting research,
students are also expected to present their results in the form of written
reports and poster presentations/talks.
Course contents
(details of topics /sections
with no. of lectures for

each)
9

Evaluation /assessment

10

Suggested readings

See above
To be decided by the project supervisor 70%
Project presentation evaluated by a departmental committee
30%
As per suggestion of the project advisor