Core Curriculum

    Standardization of first-year graduate course requirements ensures consistency in the quality and content of the MCDB program.  In addition to improving graduate education, the core curriculum provides a common experience for all entering Ph.D. students and promotes early graduate student socialization which has recognized value in improving the graduate school experience.

Biochemistry: 

Content:  Proteins, nucleic acids, lipids and carbohydrates. 

Delivery: BIOCH755 (3 credits) and BIOCH765 (3 credits)

Cell Biology:

Content:  Cell organization, cell polarity, membrane dynamics, cytoskeleton, cell junctions, cell motility, cell adhesion, signal transduction, cell cycle control, cell death, specialized cell functions (e.g. muscle, neuron, epithelial), differentiation, organelle function and biogenesis, protein trafficking

Delivery:  BIOL707 Advanced Cell Biology (3 credits)

Genetics:

Content:  Complementation, recombination, mapping, suppression, epistasis, lambda, gene structure, gene expression, promoter and enhancer functions, transcription, translation, splicing, regulation, model systems, genomics

Delivery:  BIOL705 Eukaryotic Genetics (3 credits)

Modern Molecular Approaches:

Content:  Seminar-styled, critical analysis of data, experimental design, modern methodologies of cell and molecular biology including strengths and limitations of various methods, paper reading, and bioinformatics.

Delivery:  BIOL860:  Modern Molecular Approaches (3 credits)

Electives:

Additional graduate credit required for the Ph.D. will be obtained through existing graduate courses in Developmental Biology, Immunology, Plant Biology, Virology, etc…

Students are also required to participate in a minimum of one MCDB-related journal club.