BIOL/CHEM 2065 – INTRODUCTION TO BIOCHEMISTRY

Winter 2024 Syllabus

Instructor: Dr. Alex Zimmer
Office: CRI 202
Email: alex.zimmer@unb.ca
Lectures: MWF - 08:30AM - 09:20AM – HH 225
Lab: Th - 02:30PM - 05:20PM – GH 6A
Office hours: By appointment (20-30 min slots) on Mondays and Wednesdays from 9:30-11:30
and 1:30-3:30
Teaching Assistants: Emily Blacklock (emily.blacklock@unb.ca)
Peyton Hartenstein (peyton.hartenstein@unb.ca)
Emil Senathirajah (emil.senathirajah@unb.ca)
Course Description:
The purpose of this course is to introduce students to the fundamental principles of the molecular
basis of life. The lecture component will cover a variety of concepts in biochemistry focusing
primarily on the structures and functions of the 4 major biological macromolecules, nucleic
acids, proteins, carbohydrates, and lipids, and will additionally cover principles of acid-base
chemistry, reaction energetics, membrane function, and metabolism. The lab sessions are
designed to provide some basic skills in the isolation and analysis of proteins and carbohydrates,
providing hands-on context for lecture material.
Course Objectives:
1. Identify the properties and the main roles of the 4 major classes of biomolecules: nucleic
acids, proteins, carbohydrates, and lipids
2. Understand the chemical principles that dictate the structure, function, and behaviour of
molecules in biological systems
3. Become familiar with metabolic pathways and the transfer, flow, and generation of energy
through these pathways
4. Gain basic laboratory skills in biochemical techniques
Prerequisites: Biol 1017, 1105, 1205 and Chem 2421 with grade ≥ C
Course Weight: 4 credit hours
Important dates: https://www.unb.ca/secretariat/academic-governance/academic-
dates/undergraduate-dates2324.html
Communication Guidelines: Instructors and TAs can be contacted by email. They will try to
respond to you within 24 hours, however this may not always be possible if they have received a
large volume of emails within a short period. In addition, instructors and TAs may not reply to
emails on evenings and weekends. Therefore, it is your responsibility to ensure that you give
the instructor and TAs plenty of time to address your questions – last-minute emails before
assignment due dates or midterms/exams may not be answered. The instructor and TAs may also
make use of the D2L Brightspace discussion forum to communicate with students.
In all interactions students, instructors, and TAs must treat one another with respect and dignity.
All in-person, virtual, and electronic communication must be free of discrimination and
harassment (https://www.unb.ca/humanrights/_assets/documents/discriminationpolicy.pdf).
Course Evaluation:
Item Weight Date/Due Date
(% of total grade)
Labs (20%)
Pre-lab Assignments 5% Before lab
Lab Reports 15 % One week after lab (see table below)
Lectures (80%)
Midterm 1 20%*
Midterm 2 20%*
Final Exam 40%* TBD

*This course uses a flexible evaluation* The weight of the final exam will be a minimum of
40% of the final grade. However, if the student performs better on the final exam than on the
midterm exam(s), half of the weight of the midterm exam(s) (10%) will be transferred to the
final exam. Therefore, each midterm is worth a minimum of 10% of the final grade and the final
exam will be weighted 40, 50, or 60%, using the combination of midterm and final exam marks
that gives the student the highest final grade. If a midterm is missed due to valid illness,
compassion, or other circumstance, an alternate date for a midterm will be scheduled. If students
require a deferral of the final exam, they must consult with the Registrar’s Office.
Grading Scale:
Letter Grade Grade Points Percentage grade
A+ 4.3 ≥94
A 4.0 Excellent 87-93
A- 3.7 80-86
B+ 3.3 76-79
B 3.0 Good 72-75
B- 2.7 68-71
C+ 2.3 64-67
C 2.0 Satisfactory 60-63
D 1.0 Less than Satisfactory 50-59
F 0.0 <50
WF 0.0 “withdrawal failure”
Examinations: Midterm exams will take place during lecture hours (50 minutes in duration; see
course schedule below). Final exam (3 hours in duration) will be scheduled by the Registrar.
Midterm and final exams will consist of a combination of true or false, multiple choice, fill in the
blank, matching, short answer, and long answer questions. Midterm 2 and the Final Exam will be
cumulative but will emphasize material not covered in previous assessment(s).
The exams will only cover lecture material. There are no required readings for this course,
however below there are suggested textbooks that may help your understanding of lecture
content. Any materials covered in lab sessions that are not covered in lecture are not included in
the midterm or final examinations.
Each exam is preceded by a review session held during class hours; these review sessions are not
an obligation for the instructor. In the event of the university being officially closed on the day of
a review lecture, or if the review class cannot be held for any other reason, the following exam
will still be held on its originally scheduled date. That is, even if the review lecture is cancelled
due to university closure or for any other reason, the exam will still proceed as scheduled.
In this event, the instructor may add additional office hours to accommodate student questions.
Midterm exams are held in-class. In the event the university is officially closed on the day of a
scheduled exam, or the exam is not held for any other reason, the exam will be held in the next
available class.
Textbook and Course Materials: There is no mandatory textbook required for this course. The
lecture content is derived primarily from these two textbooks which therefore provide good
additional learning resources for the course:
▪ Tymoczko JL, Berg JM, Gatto GJ, Stryer, L. Biochemistry: A Short Course, 4th Edition
▪ Nelson DL, Cox MM. Lehninger Principles of Biochemistry, 8th Edition
A PDF version of lecture slides will be made available prior to the start of each lecture. Lectures
will not be recorded, and no recorded audio or video of the lectures will be provided. It is the
responsibility of each student to attend lectures which will incorporate some interactive elements
(e.g., in-lecture polling questions). Lecture attendance is strongly recommended, however is not
mandatory and no grades will be assigned for participation in interactive lecture materials.
It is also strongly recommended that students bring a calculator, paper, and writing utensils
to each lecture. Many of the interactive polling questions will likely require these materials and
will facilitate full participation and engagement in the lectures.
Accessibility Accommodations: Please contact the Student Accessibility Center
(https://www.unb.ca/saintjohn/studentservices/accessibility/) to set up necessary
accommodations for any assignment or test that is required for this course. Please also advise the
instructor if you require any accessibility accommodations. Academic accommodations for
students with disabilities are provided by the Student Accessibility Centre. If you are a student
with a disability and would like to discuss potential accommodations, you are encouraged to
contact Ken Craft, Student Accessibility Centre Coordinator. Ken can be reached at
kcraft@unb.ca or 648-5690.
Lecture Schedule:
Date Lecture # Topic
Mon, Jan 8 1 Course Introduction
Wed, Jan 10 2 Molecular Interactions
Fri, Jan 12 3 Water and Acid-Base Chemistry
Mon, Jan 15 4 Amino Acids Part 1
Wed, Jan 17 5 Amino Acids Part 2
Fri, Jan 19 6 Amino Acids Part 3
Mon, Jan 22 7 Protein Structure
Wed, Jan 24 8 Introduction to Enzymes
Fri, Jan 26 9 Reaction Energetics
Mon, Jan 29 10 Enzyme Kinetics Part 1
Wed, Jan 31 11 Enzyme Kinetics Part 2
Fri, Feb 2 12 Regulation of Enzyme Activity
Mon, Feb 5 13 Nucleic Acids
Wed, Feb 7 14 DNA Replication
Fri, Feb 9 Midterm Review Session
Mon, Feb 12 MIDTERM 1 Lectures 1-12
Wed, Feb 14 15 Gene Expression Part 1 – Transcription
Fri, Feb 16 16 Gene Expression Part 2 – Translation
Mon, Feb 19 Family Day – No Class
Wed, Feb 21 17 Techniques in Molecular Genetics
Fri, Feb 23 18 Fatty Acids and Lipids
Mon, Feb 26 19 Structure and Function of Membranes Part 1
Wed, Feb 28 20 Structure and Function of Membranes Part 2
Fri, Mar 1 21 Carbohydrates
Mon, Mar 4 Reading Week – No Class
Wed, Mar 6 Reading Week – No Class
Fri, Mar 8 Reading Week – No Class
Mon, Mar 11 22 Introduction to Metabolism Part 1
Wed, Mar 13 23 Introduction to Metabolism Part 2
Fri, Mar 15 Midterm Review Session
Mon, Mar 18 MIDTERM 2 Cumulative with focus on Lectures 13-23
Wed, Mar 20 24 Glycolysis, Fermentation, and Krebs Cycle Part 1
Fri, Mar 22 25 Glycolysis, Fermentation, and Krebs Cycle Part 2
Mon, Mar 25 26 Glycolysis, Fermentation, and Krebs Cycle Part 3
Wed, Mar 27 27 Oxidative Phosphorylation
Fri, Mar 29 Easter Holiday – No Class
Mon, Apr 1 Easter Holiday – No Class
Wed, Apr 3 28 Fatty Acid and Lipid Metabolism
Fri, Apr 5 29 Nitrogen Metabolism
Mon, Apr 8 Exam Review Session 1
Wed, Apr 10 Exam Review Session 2
**Schedule is subject to change, but the core of the material that is covered will be the same**
Lab Schedule:
This course consists of three labs. The class will be divided into two groups and each group will
alternate lab weeks throughout the term. A pre-lab assignment will be due at the start of the
lab and a post-lab report must be submitted online on Thursday before midnight of the
week following your lab (see table below).
Lab # Group Date Topic Assignment Due Date
A Jan 18 Jan 25
1 Determination of Protein Concentration
B Jan 25 Feb 01
A Feb 15 Separation and Identification of Amino Feb 22
2
B Feb 22 Acids by Paper Chromatography Feb 29
A Mar 14 Mar 21
3 Carbohydrate Metabolism in Yeast
B Mar 21 Mar 28

Pre-Lab assignment (5% Final Grade): Before the lab you must complete the pre-lab
assignment found on D2L. The assignment is based on the information included in the lab
manual from D2L. This report is due at the start of the lab session: you will need to submit
your assignment to the teaching assistants when you arrive to the lab. A mark of zero will be
recorded for any pre-lab assignment not submitted at 2:30 pm.

Lab reports (15% Final Grade): Each lab will be followed by a post-lab assignment. The
assignment will consist of questions, and/or assignments using analytical software (e.g., Excel,
ImageJ); your name and student number must be clearly indicated on the assignment. These
assignments will be submitted online to the course website, one week after completing your
lab date (by midnight on the following Thursday). Unless an extension has been approved in
advance, any lab report received after the deadlines indicated will be reduced in value at a rate of
10% per day late (weekend included); no assignments will be accepted past midnight on the
Thursday following the due date.

Looking After Your Mental Health: There are several services on campus that are here for
you. Please use this link to find the services offered on campus for student health and wellness:
https://www.unb.ca/saintjohn/studentservices/health/. Do not hesitate to contact your instructor
or TA if you are experiencing any issues affecting your mental health and they can help direct
you to appropriate campus resources.

Plagiarism and Cheating: Plagiarising someone else’s work and cheating will not be tolerated.
This includes submitting work that is similar or identical to someone else’s, submitting a false
excuse for a missed exam, or knowingly aiding or abiding in any of these offences. Direct
copying from or paraphrasing of a published source, another student’s work or any course
materials is considered plagiarism. If you are suspected of plagiarism, you will be given a zero
for the assignment or midterm in question and, depending on the degree of the offense, will be
reported to the Registrar. The University of New Brunswick responds to plagiarism and cheating
based on the degree of the offence. This can be anything from a failing grade on the plagiarised
work to being expelled from the university. For more information, please see the Undergraduate
Calendar, Section B, Regulation VIII.A. It is the student’s responsibility to know the regulations.
https://www.unb.ca/academics/calendar/undergraduate/current/regulations/universitywideacade
micregulations/viii-academicoffences/index.html.

*The content of this syllabus is subject to correction or change if required*