BIOL 2030BIOL 2040
Compare and contrast the fundamental features of mitosis and meiosis with emphasis on the movement of homologous chromosomes during these cellular reproductive processes [BIOL 1010] [BIOL 1030] Describe the most basic similarities and differences between Bacteria, Archaea and Eukaryotes, and the evolutionary relationships between ‘protists’ and animals, plants and fungi. [BIOL 1010] Compare and contrast the fundamental mechanisms that regulate gene expression in prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. [BIOL 2030] Describe and diagram the structure of DNA. [BIOL 2030] Describe how DNA is transcribed to RNA and how RNA is translated into proteins. [BIOL 2030] Explain the basic process of evolution by natural selection (following from what are sometimes called Darwin's postulates). [BIOL 2040] Interpret genetic and protein variability using detailed knowledge of the genetic code and the processes of transcription and translation. [BIOL 2030] Apply the Mendelian principles of heredity for both autosomal and sex-linked inheritance. [BIOL 2030] Comprehend the basic principles of population and quantitative genetics, and give examples of their application to real biological systems. [BIOL 2030] Define and explain the four evolutionary forces, mutation, selection, drift and migration. [BIOL 2040] Explain how complex genetic systems lead to modifications of the basic principles of Mendelian inheritance. [BIOL 2030] Explain the basic mechanism(s) by which evolutionarily novel characters (e.g. wings, eyes, blood clotting, flagellae) arise. [BIOL 2040] Interpret Mendel’s rules of heredity in terms of the eukaryotic cell cycle. Describe meitoic crossing over and its relationship to genetic linkage. [BIOL 2030] Predict the effects of each evolutionary force on allele and genotype frequencies in a given situation and for combinations of two evolutionary forces (calculate the change for simple situations – qualitative predictions for situations involving two evolutionary forces. [BIOL 2040]
Comprehend different evolutionary models for genetic load and how these led to the neutral theory of molecular evolution. Understand and describe the “Neutral theory” and the “nearly neutral theory”. Know the major predictions of neutral theory and give examples where predictions have been validated with real molecular data. Comprehend both the benefits and pitfalls of neutral theory.Comprehend the complexity of homology relationships under a variety of different molecular evolutionary processes.Demonstrate the relationship between critical thinking and good scholarship within a course project.Know mechanisms for functional divergence at the molecular level that span a wide range of biological complexity. Understand how specific models of adaptive evolution explain real examples of functional divergence.Know the historical, cultural, and social framework that lead to the Darwinian theory of evolutionKnow updates and extensions to Darwinian theory that led to modern theory. Comprehend and explain principles arising from the neo-Darwinian synthesis and neutral theory.Understand how explicit models of population genetic processes serve as the theoretical foundation for microevolution. Apply these models to understand different mechanisms of evolution acting on real biological data.Understand how molecular evolutionary processes give rise to patterns of genetic diversity that we observe in the natural world, and how to use those patterns to make inferences about different processes.Understand the evolutionary significance of mutations at different levels of complexity. Apply evolutionary theory to understand impacts of mutations on fitness, rates of molecular evolution and genetic control of mutation.Understand the importance of molecular evolution in the post-genomic era, and be able to explain this to non-specialists.Use knowledge of molecular evolution for clear and explicit communication and exchange of ideas about the topic within a course project.
