Course: History of Biochemistry

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Course title History of Biochemistry
Course code KBC/HIBCU
Organizational form of instruction Lecture
Level of course Bachelor
Year of study not specified
Semester Summer
Number of ECTS credits 2
Language of instruction Czech
Status of course Compulsory-optional
Form of instruction Face-to-face
Work placements This is not an internship
Recommended optional programme components None
Lecturer(s)
  • Šebela Marek, prof. Mgr. Dr.
Course content
1. Forerunners of modern biochemistry in the ancient times (Aristoteles, Galenus, Demokritos, Dioscorides, Hippokrates, Leukippos, Thalés from Milet, St. Cosmas and Damian). 2. Forerunners of modern biochemistry in the middle ages and in the 16th-19th centuries (Avicenna, Bacon, Boerhaave, Darwin, Hagecius, Hayy?n, Harvey, van Leeuwenhoek, Lomonosov, Kelley, Mattioli, Paracelsus, Purkyně, Al-Razi and other Arabian and Persian physicians). 3. Amino acids and peptides (Anfinsen, Banting/ Best, Hopkins, Macleod, Merrifield, Ochoa, Paulescu, Tuppy, Waksman, Wieland). 4. Proteins, their structure and function (Corey, Edman, Fenn, Haldane, Hofmeister, Kendrew, Kjeldahl, Laemmli, Linderstr?m-Lang, Lowry, Neurath, Perry, Porath Raman, Gopalasamudram Ramachandran a Sasisekharan, Richardson, Sanger, Shimomura/Tsien, Svedberg, Tanaka, Tisselius, Uhlenhuth). 5. Enzymy and their function, coenzymes, vitamins (Arber, Bertrand, Buchner, Burk, Cleland, Dam, Dixon, Drummond, Elvehjem, Funk, Hill, Klenow, Koshland, Kuhn, Lineweaver, Luria, Menten, McCollum, Michaelis, Mullis, Prasad, Theorell, Warburg). 6. Chemical reactions in living organisms (Gibbs, Helmholtz, Ludwig, Miller/Urey, Oparin, Pasteur, Soerensen). 7. Saccharides, lipids, nucleic acids; their structure and role (Astbury, Butlerov, Crick, Fischer, Franklin, Fraenkel-Conrat, Gilbert, Hoppe-Seyler, Chargaff, Katz, Landsteiner, Miescher, Nirenberg, Perutz, Pauling, Prelog, Watson, Wilkins). 8. Promary and secondary metabolisms. Metabolomics. Significance of glycolysis, gluconeogenesis and the pentose phosphate pathway (Brown, Cori, Doudoroff, Embden, Entner, Harden, Hansen, Henius, Zheng Ji, Kluyver, Mayerhof, Parnas, Somogyi). 9. Pyruvate dehydrogenase reaction and the formation of acetyl coenzyme A. Significance of the citric acid cycle (Belousov, Krebs, von Szent-Györgyi de Nagyrápolt, Neuberg). 10. Redox potential. Respiratory chain, cellular respiration. Chemiosmotic theory of ATP synthesis. Proton gradient and proton-motive force. Uncouplers of oxidative phosphorylation (Boyer, Green, Mitchell, Racker). 11. Principles of protein degradation. Principles of the degradation of carbon skeletons of amino acids. Epinephrine and hormonal regulation. Detoxification of ammonia (von Fürth, Wöhler, Stern, Vinogradskij). 12. Degradation and biosynthesis of fatty acids. Ketone bodies, steroids. Degradation of nucleic acids (Bloch, Butenandt, Knoop, Ruzicka, Sigwart). 13. Cell cycle. DNA replication. Transcription and transcriptome. Proteosynthesis. Posttranslational modifications (Alberts, Belozersky, Berg, Gamov, Griffith, Hoagland, the Kornbergs, Krebs, Mendel, Grunberg-Manago, Monod, Okazaki, Spirin). 14. Photosynthesis, light and dark phases (Calvin, de Duvé, Hatch/Slack, Hill, von Liebig, Timiryazev) 15. Personalities of Czech and Slovak biochemistry (Balling, Horbaczewski, Hořejší, Koštíř and successors, Kováč, Morávek and successors, Pačes, Pecháň, Šícho, Šilink, Úlehla)

Learning activities and teaching methods
Lecture
  • Attendace - 26 hours per semester
  • Preparation for the Course Credit - 20 hours per semester
Learning outcomes
The goal is to provide students with another view to the basic themes from the lectures in biochemistry (KBC/BCH) in the context of discoverers and their personal fates.
Students will learn about the development of biochemistry in 20th century and gain information about the most significant discoveries.
Prerequisites
It is important to have the knowledge gained from successful completion of the course KBC/BCH Fundamentals of biochemistry (or KBC/UBCH Introduction to Biochemistry in the case of students of Bioinformatics).

Assessment methods and criteria
Seminar Work

For completion of the course, it is necessary to submit a seminar work on current or historical discoveries in the field of biochemistry and successful passing of a colloquium with the lecturer at the end of the term. Attendance at lectures is also a condition for fulfillment, a maximum of two unexcused absences are tolerated.
Recommended literature
  • Elektronická encyklopedie Wikipedia.
  • Friedberg , E.C. (2016). Emperor of Enzymes: A Biography of Arthur Kornberg, Biochemist and Nobel Laureate ). Singapore.
  • Friedberg, E. C. (2014). A Biography of Paul Berg: The Recombinant DNA Controversy Revisited. Singapore.
  • Jennings, K.R., Ed. (2012). A History of European Mass Spectrometry. Charlton, Chichester.
  • Lagerkvist, U. (2005). The Enigma of Ferment: From the Philosopher's Stone to the First Biochemical Nobel Prize. Singapore.
  • Loeckx, R. (2017). Cold War Triangle: How Scientists in East and West tamed HIV. Leuven.
  • Nedham, J., Ed. The Chemistry of Life. Lectures on the History of Biochemistry.
  • Nedham, J., Ed. (2008). The Chemistry of Life. Lectures on the History of Biochemistry. Cambridge.
  • Norrby, E. (2013). Nobelovy ceny za přírodní vědy. Praha.
  • Pól, J. a Volný, M., Eds. (2012). Počátky a historie československé hmotnostní spektrometrie. Praha.
  • Rao, C. N. R.; Rao, I. (2016). Lives and Times of Great Pioneers in Chemistry (Lavoisier to Sanger). Singapore.
  • Sklotoová, R. (2010). Nesmrtelný život Henrietty Lacksové. Praha.
  • Štrbáňová S. Počátky biochemických přístupů v kvasné chemii v Čechách. Dějiny věd a techniky 9.
  • Štrbáňová S. Počátky biochemie na pražské lékařské fakultě. Dějiny věd a techniky 9.


Study plans that include the course
Faculty Study plan (Version) Category of Branch/Specialization Recommended year of study Recommended semester
Faculty: Faculty of Science Study plan (Version): Bioinformatics (2021) Category: Informatics courses 2 Recommended year of study:2, Recommended semester: Summer
Faculty: Faculty of Science Study plan (Version): Teaching Training in Chemistry for Secondary Schools (2019) Category: Pedagogy, teacher training and social care - Recommended year of study:-, Recommended semester: Summer