BIO327 From gene to function in plants
Credits (ECTS):10
Course responsible:Åshild Gunilla Ergon, Romulo Sacramento Sobral
Campus / Online:Taught campus Ås
Teaching language:Engelsk
Limits of class size:20 maximum students
Course frequency:Annually
Nominal workload:250 hours.
Teaching and exam period:Autumn parallel
About this course
Learning outcome
Knowledge
- Students will be acquainted with the major types of regulatory mechanisms in plants from epigenetic up to post-translational regulation.
- Students will be familiarized with key regulators involved in plant function highlighting the different levels of regulation these regulators are subjected to (chromatin structure, miRNAs and transcription factors)
- Students will understand the rationale behind different laboratory techniques and bioinformatic analyses that can be used to describe gene function, such as comparative genomics, forward and reverse genetics, mutant analysis (knock out, knock in) and genotyping, immunolabelling, protein-protein and protein-DNA interactions, expression analysis (qRT-PCR or gene reporter assays) or transient and permanent plant transformation.
Skills
- Students will have practical experience in various techniques within plant molecular biology and their importance in biological research
- Students will be able to design a strategy to unravel the gene function of a candidate gene for a specific trait
- Students will be capable to integrate data obtained from distinct sources to make inferences about gene function, e.g. experiments at molecular, cell, tissue or whole plant level, quantitative/population genetic analyses, and different types of -omics.
General competence
- A high level of understanding of plant gene functions and how to apply them
- Lectures and guest lectures (20h) and 5 practical sessions (1 bioinformatic and 4 lab sessions, 4h each).
- Canvas
- BIO200, BOT200, BIO244
- An understanding of DNA structure and general regulation is helpful, and so are the concepts of hypothesis testing.
Combined assessment.
Written exam during the exam period (multiple choice and descriptive answers) - 3 hours
Lab report, that will include all practical sessions counts 25% of the final grade.
A written and presented assay counts 25% of the final grade
Active participation during lectures counts 10% of the final grade
Written exam counts 40% of the final grade
- The sensor will approve the exam questions and assist in the assessments
- Lab sessions are mandatory
15 h - lectures
5 h - guest lectures
20h - practical sessions
10 h - presentations (20 min + 10 min discussion)
2 h - exam
- M-PV
- Special requirements in Science