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Syllabus
Fall Semester Faculty:

James Morrissey Richard Mintel Lin-Feng Chen

Course Director 268 MSB 517 MSB
417 MSB tel: 333-7188 tel: 333-7764
tel: 265-4036 r-mintel@uiuc.edu lfchen@life.uiuc.edu
jhmorris@uiuc.edu

The most effective way to get in touch with the instructors for this course is by e-mail, and we are
always willing to schedule appointments to meet with students individually. In addition, feel free to
contact the teaching assistants with questions about the lecture materials.

Fall Semester Teaching Assistants:

James Wrzosek Paul Rodriguez-Waitkus

jwrzosek@uiuc.edu rdrgzwtk@uiuc.edu

The teaching assistants hold weekly review sessions held every Wednesday at 7 PM in room 356B
Med Sci Bldg (Aug 29 through Dec 5). The TAs can also be contacted by e-mail to answer specific
questions about the course, or for individual help as needed.

Web: http://www.med.uiuc.edu/m1/biochemistry/

Goal: The goal is to provide an understanding, at the molecular level, of the enzyme reactions that
underlie cellular metabolism, and of the structure and function of biological macromolecules,
especially as these processes relate to human health and disease. The course will cover how
the major building blocks of cells and tissues are synthesized and degraded, how enzymes
function, and how cellular energy metabolism is regulated. In addition, the course will explore
how derangement of the proper regulation of these biochemical processes can lead to human
disease.

Organization
The course is 1.5 semesters long:
< Fall semester – lectures & review
< Spring semester – problem-based learning in small groups
Grading
A single final grade for biochemistry will be assigned at the end of the 1.5 semesters, with the fall
semester contributing about 60%, and the spring semester about 40%.
< Fall semester: Three exams, all multiple-choice
< Spring semester: One exam, consisting of a combination of multiple choice and short written
answers
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Fall Semester Overview

Lectures
• Twenty-six lectures, presented by faculty (Drs. Morrissey, Mintel and Chen)
• In addition, three faculty-led review sessions (one before each exam)
• The series of lectures in the fall semester is designed to provide a broad background in medical
biochemistry.
TA reviews
• TA review sessions, conducted by teaching assistants, are held during the fall semester every
Wednesday at 7 PM in room 356B Med Sci Bldg (from Aug 29 through Dec 5). These sessions
are devoted to providing extra help for the topics covered that week in the course. You are
encouraged to attend, especially if you feel yourself in need of extra assistance. Teaching
assistants are also available for individualized assistance for anyone who needs it. Students in the
past have found the TA review sessions to be very useful and we strongly encourage you to take
advantage of the assistance available to you.
Lecture materials/handouts
• Lecture handouts are distributed at the beginning of each class meeting and are also available for
download from the Medical Biochemistry web site: http://www.med.uiuc.edu/m1/biochemistry/
• Additional information about this course and copies of the PowerPoint presentations for many of
the lectures are also available from this same web site.
Textbooks
• Textbooks for the fall semester:
Required: Champe, Pamela C., Harvey, Richard A., and Ferrier, Denise R. Biochemistry,
3rd Edition, Lippincott Williams & Williams, 2005.
Designed to help medical students review biochemistry prior to taking the USMLE Step
One examination, this book covers most aspects of medical biochemistry but is written in
somewhat telegaphic fashion. If you have had biochemistry before and have used a
reputable, recent, biochemistry textbook, you should use it along with this book for your
study.
Optional: Garrett, Reginald H., and Grisham, Charles M., Principles of Biochemistry With a
Human Focus, Brooks Cole, 2001.
The authors are excellent teachers of biochemistry and the explanations are well-crafted,
precise, and useful. If you have had biochemistry recently and have a comparable
textbook, you needn’t purchase this book. If you have not had biochemistry before or do
not own a comprehensive biochemistry textbook, you should buy this book.
Examinations
• Questions for the fall semester examinations will be based on material covered in the Champe et
al. textbook as well as on material in the lecture handouts.
• Fall semester exams are all multiple choice.
• The first two interim examinations during the fall will cover only newly assigned material, while the
final examination in December will cover the work of the entire fall semester.

Lectures – Fall Semester
Lecture Topic
1 Amino Acids
2 Structure of Proteins
3 Globular Proteins
4 Fibrous Proteins
5 Enzymes
6 Bioenergetics and
Oxidative
Phosphorylation
7 Glycolysis
8 TCA Cycle,
Gluconeogenesis
9 Glycogen Metabolism
10 Metabolism of
Monosaccharides
and Disaccharides
11 Pentose Phosphate
Pathway and NADPH
3
What’s covered Chapter*
Buffers, pH, & acid-base equilibria; 1
structures & properties of amino acids
Protein structure (primary, secondary, 2
tertiary & quaternary structure); forces that
stabilize protein structure; how
polypeptides can be cleaved & sequenced
Structure & function of globular proteins, 3
focusing mostly on hemoglobin (and
myoglobin): O2 -binding to Hb &
dissociation; allosteric control of O2 binding
to Hb
Structure, folding & properties of fibrous 4
proteins, focusing on collagen & elastin
How enzymes catalyze biochemical 5
reactions; energy changes; Michaelis-
Menten kinetics; inhibitors & modulators of
enzymes; types of inhibition
Free energy changes during metabolic 6
reactions; ATP as an energy carrier;
electron transport chain; ATP generation in
mitochondria
Glucose transport; overview of the 8
reactions of glycolysis; energy production
steps of glycolysis; production of lactate
during anaerobic glycolysis
Entry of carbon atoms into the TCA cycle; 9 & 10
energy production by the TCA cycle;
regulation; reactions unique to
gluconeogenesis; regulation of
gluconeogenesis
Glycogen structure & function; how 11
glycogen is synthesized & degraded;
regulation of glycogen synthesis &
degradation
Fructose metabolism; galactose 12
metabolism; lactose synthesis
Reversible & nonreversible oxidative 13
reactions; uses of NADPH; glucose-6-
phosphate deficiency
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Lectures – Fall Semester

Lecture Topic What’s covered Chapter*
12 Glycosaminoglycans/ Glycosaminoglycan (GAG) & glycoprotein 14
Glycoproteins structure & function; ABO blood group
structures; synthesis & degradation of
GAGs & glycoproteins; lysosomal storage
disorders, including I-cell disease
13 Metabolism of Dietary Properties of lipids & fatty acids; digestion 15 (all) & 16
Lipids/Fatty Acids of dietary lipids; chylomicron synthesis & (I & II)
delivery of lipids to tissues; storage of
triacylglycerols in adipose tissue
14 Fatty Acid Fatty acid synthesis; â-oxidation of fatty 17 (III-IV)
Metabolism acids; other types of fatty acid oxidation;
production of ketone bodies by liver & their
use by peripheral tissues
15 Complex Lipid Structure, function & roles of phospholipids 17
Metabolism & glycolipids; synthesis & degradation of
phospholipids & glycolipids; Niemann-Pick
disease; synthesis & properties of
eicosanoids
16 Cholesterol & Steroid Cholesterol properties & synthesis; HMG 18
Metabolism CoA reductase/statins; plasma lipoprotein
structure, function & metabolism; bile salts
& acids; steroid hormone synthesis
17 Blood Clotting Overview of platelet function; overview of (no chapter;
the blood clotting cascades; hemophilias; handout
fibrin polymerization; brief overview of only)
fibrinolysis, anticoagulants & thrombolytic
therapy
18 Amino Acids: Overview of nitrogen metabolism & protein 19
Disposal of Nitrogen turnover; digestion of dietary proteins; urea
cycle & ammonia metabolism; hyper-
ammonemia
19 Amino Acid Glucogenic & ketogenic amino acids; 20
Degradation and catabolism of carbon skeletons of amino
Synthesis acids; biosynthesis of nonessential amino
acids; PKU & other metabolic defects in
amino acid metabolism
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Lectures – Fall Semester

Lecture Topic What’s covered Chapter*
20 Conversion of Amino Porphyrin metabolism; heme biosynthesis; 21
Acids to Specialized porphyrias; heme degradation, bilirubin &
Products jaundice; synthesis of other nitrogen-
containing compounds such as
catecholamines, creatine, histamine,
serotonin, & melanin
21 Nucleotide Nucleotide structure, synthesis of purines & 22
Metabolism pyrimidines; nucleotide synthesis &
degradation; disease associated with
purine degradation (gout, ADA deficiency);
22 DNA Structure and DNA structure; DNA replication; 29 & 30
Function, RNA organization of eukaryotic DNA; reverse
Structure and transcriptase; drugs that target DNA
Synthesis synthesis; DNA repair; xeroderma
pigmentosum
23 RNA Structure and RNA structure; gene transcription; pre- 30 & 31
Synthesis, Protein mRNA processing & splicing; steps in
Synthesis translating RNA into protein; types of
mutations & their consequences;
posttranslational modification of
polypeptide chains
24 Biotechnology and DNA cloning, sequencing & manipulation; 32
Human Disease cDNA; RFLPs; PCR; analyses of gene
expression; gene therapy; transgenic
animals
25 Diabetes/Integration Insulin & glucagon synthesis, function & 23-25
of Metabolism I regulation; hypoglycemia; effects of insulin
& glucagon in well-fed state & in fasting;
biochemical basis for type 1 & 2 diabetes
26 Integration of Macronutrients & micronutrients; review of 27 & 28
Metabolism II the structures & biochemical roles of
vitamins; nutrition & chronic disease
*Chapters in Champe et al. (with chapter sections in parentheses)
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Spring Semester Overview

Goal
• The spring half-semester consists of an interactive, problem-based approach to clinical aspects
of modern medical biochemistry.
• This portion of the course ties together the knowledge gained during the fall semester and applies
it to a series of medical cases that illustrate how biochemical processes can contribute to the
pathogenesis, diagnosis and/or treatment of a variety of human diseases.

Textbook
• Textbook for the spring semester:
Required: Higgins, S. J., Turner, A.J., and Wood, E.J. Biochemistry for the Medical Sciences:
An Integrated Case Approach, Addison Wesley Longman Ltd., 1994.
This textbook is out of print but you can purchase authorized photocopies at the T.I.S.
Bookstore. Although this textbook will be used for the spring semester portion of the course,
we suggest that you glance through some of the cases during the fall semester as we cover
related topics.

Organization
• Class meets twelve times
• Class is divided into small discussion groups consisting of about 12-18 students each
• Attendance of students (at their assigned session) is mandatory
• Format: student-led discussions; students report the answers they’ve researched to the questions
in the textbook
• Two cases (i.e., two chapters from Higgins et al.) are discussed at each class meeting
• Small subgroups of students are assigned to research specific questions regarding each case
• The instructors (faculty & TAs) facilitate the student discussions; correct mistakes; amplify student
answers
• The instructors for the spring semester are Drs. Morrissey, Mintel, Chen, Ordal and Manchanda,
plus three TAs. (The TAs are advanced M.D./Ph.D. students.)

Examination
• The single biochemistry examination in the spring is based on the clinical topics assigned for that
semester, and cognate subjects from the fall.
• The spring semester exam is a combination of multiple choice and short written answers.
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Small Group Meetings – Spring Semester

Class Topics Chapters†

(Organizational class meeting; assignment of students into small
1 —
groups)
Diagnosis of a boy with phosphofructokinase (PFK) deficiency
2 1&2
Causes and treatment of marasmus vs. kwashiorkor
Biochemical tests for myocardial infarction
3 3&4
Mechanism of action of a metabolic poison acting on mitochondria
Neonate with defect in enzyme in urea cycle
4 5&6
Anemias caused by iron deficiency vs. lead toxicity
Child with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (21-hydroxylase deficiency)
5 7&8
Child with defective type I collagen gene
I-cell disease (severe lysosomal storage disease)
6 9 & 10
Methylmalonic acidemia
â-thalassemia (hemoglobin Constant Spring)
7 11 & 12
RIA to measure glucagon levels in 3 patients with different disorders
Biochemical basis for oral rehydration therapy of cholera
8 13 & 14
Mechanism by which 2-naphtylamine causes bladder cancer
Consequences of mutations in G proteins coupled to PTH receptor
9 Use of peptidases to determine angiotensinogen sequence & 15 & 16
activation
How liver disease causes changes in circulating levels of liver
10 enzymes 17 & 18
Unusual type of diabetes caused by mutation in insulin receptor
Phenylketonuria
11 19 & 20
Hypercholesterolemia associated with mutation in LDL receptor
Parkinson-like illness after exposure to synthetic heroin derivative
12 21 & 22
Androgen insensitivity due to mutations in androgen receptor
†
Chapters in Higgins et al.