B016088 - BIOCHEMISTRY AND LABORATORY

Italian

Structural pattern in Proteins. Allosteric protein. Enzymes: kinetics, mechanism and regulation. Lipids: structure and function. Biological membranes. Structure of nucleotides and nucleic acids.
Carbohydrates, Lipids and Protein metabolism. The Tricarboxylic Acid Cycle and Oxidative Phosphorylation. Biosynthesis of nucleotides and porphyrins. The integration of metabolism

Textbooks:

D.L. Nelson, M.Cox Lehninger Principles of Biochemistry by W.H. Freeman and Company

J.M. Berg, J.L. Tymoczko, L. Stryer Biochemistry by W.H. Freeman and Company

Knolewdge acquired:
Protein structure. Enzymes: catalysis and reaction mechanism. Structure of nucleic acids. Lipids and biological membranes. Bioenergetics.Metabolism of carbohydrates. Lipids and aminoacids: Citric acid cycle and oxidative phosphorilation.

Competence acquired
Molecular design of life.
Protein functions
Metabolic pathways: design and regulation

Skills acquired (at the end of the course):
Analyses of protein solutions
Determination of enzymatic activity
Chromatography of biomolecules

Courses required:
Chemistry (general and organic)
Courses recommended
Basic Biology

CFU: 9
Total hours of the course (including the time spent in attending lectures, seminars, private study, examinations, etc...): 225
Hours reserved to private study and other indivual formative activities: 149
Contact hours for: Lectures (hours): 64
Contact hours for: Laboratory (hours): 12
Contact hours for: Laboratory-field/practice (hours): 0
Seminars (hours): 0
Stages: 0
Intermediate examinations: 0

Office hours:
Friday 11-12

Oral test

Structure and function of proteins
Proteins are versatile macromolecules built from 20 aminoacids. Structural levels in proteins: primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary structure.Globular proteins: myoglobin and haemoglobin. Allosterism. Fibrous proteins: keratin,collagen. Fibroin.

Enzymes
Classification. Kinetics and inhibition of enzymes. Coenzymes.Catalitic strategies:chymotrypsin, carbonic anidrase, lysozyme etc. regulatory strategies. Ribozymes.
Lipids and Cell Membranes
Fatty acids. Triacylglycerols , phospholipids and sphingolipids. Bilayer membranes. Proteins membrane: transport, communication and energy transduction. Liposoluble vitamins.
Carbohydrates
Monosaccharides, disaccharides. Polysaccharides: glycogen, starch, cellulose. Glicosaminoglycans: proteoglycans, .peptidoglycans.
Nucleic acids
Stucture of DNA and RNA.
Metabolism
Basic concepts. Bioenergetics.
Carbohydrates metabolism
Glycogen breakdown. Polysaccharides digestion. Glycolysis. Pentose phosphate pathway. Citric Acid Cycle. Oxidative phosphorilation. Gluconeogenesis. Glycogen biosynthesis. Regulation mechanisms.
Fatty acid metabolism
Pancreatic lypase and hormone-stimulated lypase.. Fatty acid oxidation. Biosynthesis of fatty acids and triacylglicerols. Biosynthesis of membranes lipids and steroids
Protein metabolism.
Protein turnover and aminoacid catabolism. Urea cycle. Aminoacids as precursors of many biomolecules: porphyrins and pyrimidine/purine nucleotides.
Methods (some) in biochemistry
Protein purification. Enzymatic activity determination.