Principles of Genetics (BIOL 222) – Spring 2017
Sec 02 – 10:30 AM M/W/F – Newton 209
Sec 03 – 11:30 AM M/W/F – Newton 209
Instructor:
Dr. Josie Reinhardt: ISC 349, (585)245-5413, [email protected]
Office Hours: Mondays 9:00-10:00, Tuesdays 10:00-11:00, Fridays 1:00-2:00, or by
appointment
Tutors:
Thomas Hurysz ([email protected])
Ooha Kambhampati ([email protected])
Ryan Lane ([email protected])
Textbook:
Genetics: Analysis and Principles (5th edition) by Robert J. Brooker
Publisher: McGraw Hill, ISBN:978-0073525341
Principles of Genetics provides a comprehensive introduction to the field of genetics. In this
course, we will investigate genetic phenomena at many levels of biological complexity, from
single molecules to populations of free-living organisms. Throughout, we will emphasize how
scientific experimentation across these interconnected fields of study contributes to a larger
understanding of genetics.
Course Goals / Learning Objectives
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Understand principles of heredity, including analysis of simple and complex traits
Understand the molecular basis and function of the genome and its products
Describe, analyze, and interpret key experiments that contributed to our present
understanding of genetics
Describe and understand the purpose of current experimental approaches in genetics, and
technical and societal limits of their use
Understand how genetic mutations cause observable differences within and between
species, including human disease
Acquire skills and knowledge necessary for advanced study in biology, including
genetics/genomics, molecular and cellular biology, and evolutionary biology.
Course policies
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Bring a simple calculator to all exams (no cell-phones or laptops are allowed during the
exams).
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I will use Top Hat (www.tophat.com) to assess student comprehension in class. Bring an
internet-enabled device to lectures (laptop or cell-phone or tablet). If you don’t have
such a device, you must let me know during the first week of class! You can find the Join
Codes for Top Hat on Canvas.
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Midterm exams must be taken on the day they are scheduled in the syllabus, so please
check your schedule carefully. If you have three or more final exams scheduled for the
same day, please inform me during the first 2 weeks of class. Make-up exams are
allowed only for significant unanticipated medical or family emergencies.
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Students with Disabilities: SUNY Geneseo will make reasonable accommodations for
persons with documented physical, emotional, or cognitive disabilities. Accommodations
will be made for medical conditions related to pregnancy or parenting. Students should
contact Dean Buggie-Hunt in the Office of Disability Services ([email protected] or
585-245-5112) and myself to discuss needed accommodations as early as possible in the
semester.
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Homework policy: Students are encouraged to study and work together on practice
problem sets and homework. However, students must turn in their own copy of all
homework, written in their own words. Directly plagiarizing (copying) others’ work is a
violation of SUNY Geneseo’s policy on Academic Dishonesty. To ensure fair and timely
feedback for student work, late homeworks will receive a 20% deduction for each day
past the due date. On the day that assignments are returned graded, or the 5th day
(whichever comes first), assignments receive a 0 and will not be graded.
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Extra Credit: You may attend a seminar on a science, math, or health-related topic and
turn in a ½ page summary of the talk for extra credit on Canvas. I give 2 points of extra
credit towards your homework grade for each – you may turn in one EC assignment per
homework (so 5 in total), Note - you can’t get more than the maximum 75 points for
homework.
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Pre-Biology/Pre-Biochemistry: Students entering Geneseo after the Fall of 2013 (either
as incoming freshman or as transfer students) and wishing to become
Biology/Biochemistry majors are 'pre-majors' in Biology/Biochemistry. To be able to
declare a major in Biology/Biochemistry pre-majors must first earn at least a C+
average (2.3 GPA) in their first two required biology lecture courses taken at
Geneseo. Although you can repeat courses if you withdraw or earn a D / E, you cannot
repeat courses with a C- or C and earning these grades in a ‘premajor course’ makes it
difficult to achieve a C+ average and to become a Biology/Biochemistry major.
Course evaluation:
A total of 600 points are possible:
300 points for Midterm Exams (100 per exam)
75 points for Homeworks (15 per homework)
25 points for Tophat
200 points for the Final Exam (50 points new material, 150 points cumulative)
Grading Scale:
The following scale will be used to calculate final grades. Student point totals or grading scheme
may be adjusted to reflect course difficulty or section differences at the instructor’s discretion.
B+ 87.0-89.9% C+ 77.0-79.9%
A 93.0-100%
B 83.0-86.9% C 73.0-76.9% D 60.0-69.9% E <60%
A- 90.0-92.9% B- 80.0-82.9% C- 70.0-72.9%
Course Schedule and recommended readings - SUBJECT TO CHANGE
Reading & Assignments
Unit 1: Genetic Inheritance - Mendel and beyond
18-Jan week 1
Introduction to Genetics
1.1-1.3
20-Jan
Mendelian genetics I
2.1,2.2,2.4,2.5
23-Jan week 2
Mendelian genetics II
2.3
25-Jan
Meiosis and Sexual Reproduction
8.1, 3.1, 3.2, 3.4, fig 3.13
27-Jan
The chromosome theory of inheritance, sex linkage
3.6, 4.5, 4.6
30-Jan week 3
Extensions to Mendelian inheritance
4.1-4.4, 4.7-4.9 HW1 due
1-Feb
"Non-Mendelian" Inheritance
p. 102, 5.3-5.4
3-Feb
Linkage and Recombination
6.1-6.2
6-Feb week 4
Genetic mapping in Eukaryotes I
6.3-6.4
8-Feb
10-Feb
13-Feb week 5
15-Feb
Genetic mapping in Eukaryotes II
22.3, 709-711
Genetic mapping in Prokaryotes
7.1-7.3 HW2 due
Recap and Review
exam I
covers Jan 18-Feb 10
Unit 2: The structure and function of the Genetic Material
17-Feb
DNA as the genetic material
9.1
20-Feb week 6
Structure of DNA and RNA I
9.2-9.7
22-Feb
24-Feb
27-Feb week 7
Structure of DNA and RNA II
9.7, 10.3, 10.5
DNA replication I
11.1-11.4
DNA replication II
11.5
1-Mar
Transcription I
12.1-12.2
3-Mar
Transcription II
12.3-12.6
6-Mar week 8
Translation & Genetic code
13.1 - 13.3, 13.6
8-Mar
Mutation and Variation I
18.1, 18.2, 18.3
10-Mar
Mutation and Variation II
8.2, 8.3, 8.4 HW3 due
20-Mar week 9
Mutation and Variation III
ch 8.5, 8.6
Unit 3: Genes as machines - Gene regulation, Analysis of Genomes, and Biotechnology
22-Mar
Review, Intro to Bacterial Gene Regulation
14.1, 14.2
24-Mar
exam II
covers Feb 17-Mar 20
27-Mar week 10
Gene Regulation - Bacterial
14.5
29-Mar
Gene Regulation in Eukaryotes I - Expression
15.1-15.2
31-Mar
Gene Regulation in Eukaryotes II - Epigenetics
15.3, 16.1, 16.3
3-Apr week 11
Gene Regulation in Eukaryotes III - RNAi
16.4
5-Apr
Genomic Analysis - DNA isolation
20.1, 20.2
7-Apr
Genomic Analysis - DNA sequencing
20.3, 22.5
10-Apr week 12
Genomic Analysis - Gene expression
23.1 HW4 due
12-Apr
Genomic Analysis - Bioinformatics
23.3
14-Apr
Applications of Biotechnology I - Transgenics
21.1 - 21.3
17-Apr week 13
19-Apr
Applications of Biotechnology II - CRISPR
Assigned Reading
exam III
covers Mar 22 - Apr 17
Unit 4: Genetics of populations and species
21-Apr
24-Apr week 14
26-Apr
28-Apr
1-May week 15
4-May
10-May
Population Genetics I
26.1
Population Genetics II
26.2-26.4
Human population genetics - migration
26.5, Assigned reading
Human cancers - selection in action
24.5 EC due, HW 5 due
Evolution of HIV - co-evolution of a virus and its host
17.1-17.2
FINAL EXAM - SECTION 02 / 10:30 section (8:00 AM)
comprehensive
FINAL EXAM - SECTION 03 / 11:30 section (3:30 PM)
comprehensive