NUCLEUS|NUCLEAR PORE|TRANSCRIPTION|RNA LOCALIZATION|RNA DEGRADATION|MEDIATOR COMPLEX|CHROMATIN

‘Molecular Mechanisms of Gene Expression and Regulation’ will convey a broad vision of the contribution of molecular biology to our knowledge of...

Molecular Mechanisms of Gene Expression and Regulation (BIOC0020)

‘Molecular Mechanisms of Gene Expression and Regulation’ will convey a broad vision of the contribution of molecular biology to our knowledge of gene regulation in diverse organisms. It will show how molecular biology, when used in conjunction with other biological disciplines (e.g. biochemistry cell biology, genetics) is steadily revealing the mechanisms of previously intractable problems (e.g. control of gene expression). Critical analysis of original experimental data, will be covered in depth, providing the intellectual framework for students to be able to discuss the design of experiments and to justify any conclusions that can be drawn.

After taking this module your knowledge and understanding of molecular biology should have been extended to the point where you can:

Understand up-to-date principles of experimental design.
	Comprehend the experimental approaches and ideas presented in original scientific papers and reviews.
	Keep abreast of developments in the most topical areas of biology through reading the molecular biological literature
	Critically analyse, appreciate and interpret scientific data and ideas.
Indicative lecture list (based on 2021/22 syllabus)

The nucleus, the nuclear pore and transport in and out of the nucleus

Phase separation and RNA localization

IMP1/ZBP1 - molecular mechanism of RNA localization

An Introduction to chromatin and chromatin modification

Regulation of gene expression by microRNA - molecular mechanism

RNA methylation, regulation of RNA stability and translation

Chromatin modification and gene expression

Cas9-A bacterial immune system

Cas9-DNA Repair and genome editing

Cas9-Applications and recent developments

Gene expression in prokaryotes

RNA splicing and alternative splicing