Molecular cell research

Course goals

Learning objectives and skills:
By the end of the course, you will be able to independently start scientific research. Specifically, you will be able to:

• independently study chapters from the book "Molecular Biology of The Cell" by Alberts,
• analyze primary literature,
• write a 'review-report' about a scientific article,
• clone a construct in silico,
• set up and independently carry out a research project,
• analyze data from your own experiment,
• present the results of the research project in writing,
• draft a research project application in accordance with NWO (Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research) guidelines,
• think critically, collaborate and consult.

 

Skills	Part of the course	Explicitely examined?
Writing	x	x
Presenting	x	x
Data handling	x	x
Practical research skills	x	x
General research skills	x	x
Cooperation	x
Critical thinking	x
Career orientation	x
Interdisciplinarity

Content

PLEASE NOTE: During this course, there are mandatory components that involve working with animal material.

Prerequisites: The course Molecular Biology (or Cell Biology, MBLS-101), the Cell ( or Genomes, Cells and Tissues, MBLS-204), and Molecular Genetic Research Techniques (MGOT) (or Molecular Biology & Biochemical Techniques, MBLS-202) are mandatory. If you are following the Neurobiology study path, the level 2 Neurobiology course is required.

Recommended: Metabolisme en Biochemie (or Membranes & Metabolism, MBLS-206)

Highly recommended: The course “Cellen en Weefsels” course (level 3). In case of an excess of registrations, students who have successfully completed this course will be placed first.

The capacity of this practical course is limited. The course Research Design and Analysis - Molecular and Cellular Biology (B-B3RDA21) is a full theoretical alternative. Students that followed RDA earlier will only be placed in this course if there are places left.

Study path: This course is part of the Cell Biology and Neurobiology interest direction.

Language: The course will be taught in English but some components can be done in Dutch if preferred by the student.

Content: The aim of this course is to expose you to all aspects of scientific research within the research themes of the Department of Cell Biology, Neurobiology and Biophysics (CNB, see website http://cellbiology.science.uu.nl/). The course consists of 2 parts.

In part 1, the staff members of the Department of Cell Biology, Neurobiology and Biophysics and a few related Cell biology groups on campus present their ongoing research. This includes attention to the underlying theory (mainly knowledge from the book "Molecular Biology of the Cell") as well as the most recent results and insights from their research. In addition, you will carry out a number of assignments, including writing a referee report about an article followed by a discussion with the author of this article. This part of the course concludes with a digital exam.

In part 2 of the course, you will conduct research in groups and write an application for funding a research plan. During the practical, you will clone a construct in a laboratory that will be used to study one of the department's themes. After cloning, the constructs will be transfected and a protein-protein interaction study will be conducted. The practical part concludes with writing a report in the form of an article.

Writing a grant application is supervised by an experienced Cell Biologist. The application is written in the format of applications for the "open program" for earth and life sciences of NWO. The final application is presented and defended before a committee of experts. The presentation, defense, and the written proposal are evaluated as a whole with a grade.

Teaching formats:

• During the lectures the group's staff members present the latest results of their research and the underlying theory.
• For the laboratory, you and a fellow student will design your mutation using e-learning modules. Then you will explore the various steps of the laboratory with labbudy before performing them during the lab. You will analyze the effect of your mutation using the results of the lab. You will include the results in a report.
• The research proposal will be a group assignment, where you will write a research proposal to obtain funding based on one of the research lines of the cell biology department.

Grading & Assessment:
Several components are evaluated during this course. The test from part 1 determines 30% , the research proposal 30%, the labreport 30% and the review-assignment 10% of the final grade. For all components, at least a 5.0 must be achieved.
Active participation and presence for the lectures, tutorial and the practicals is mandatory.

Study Material: Recommended: The book "Molecular Biology of the Cell" by Alberts