CHEM 315
CHEM 315 Seminar in Bioinorganic Chemistry
Professor: Rachel Narehood Austin
Office: 320 Dana
Phone: 786-6295
email: raustin@bates.edu
Office hours: Whenever I am at Bates and not inextricably
involved in something, I am happy to talk with you.
Textbook: Principles of Bioinorganic Chemistry; Lippard & Berg, © 1994 (Principles)
Other recommended texts
On Reserve: Bioinorganic Chemistry; Lippard, Bertini, Valentine,
Gray, © 1994
Available in my office: The Inorganic Chemistry of Life: The
Biological Chemistry of the Elements; Williams, Da Silva, ©
1991.
We will also use the August 6 1993 issue of Science, which is devoted to Bioinorganic chemistry and a prepublication copy of a review article by Holm, Kennepohl, and Solomon entitled "Structural and Functional Aspects of Metal Sites in Biology". (Copies of both will be provided by the instructor.)
Course objective: To develop an understanding of the role that metals play in biological systems and to appreciate the importance of fundamental principles of inorganic chemistry in explaining these functions.
Catalog Description:
The role that metals play in biological systems is examined,
building upon an understanding of metal chemistry established
in inorganic chemistry. Metals in electron-transfer proteins,
small-molecular transport and storage proteins, and
reduction-oxidation catalysts are studied. The role of metals in
medicine and environmental toxicology is also examined.
Students will present and discuss selected topics, in a seminar
format, drawing from the primary literature and selected
textbooks.
Grading: Grades for this course will be assigned based on an assessment of in-class presentations, class participation, work on assigned homework problems, and a final paper in which the chemistry of one metal-dependent biological system (protein, nucleic acid, or a system with free metal ions) or the application of a spectroscopic technique to bioinorganic chemistry is researched and discussed in detail.
CHEM 315 COURSE SCHEDULE
Fall 1996
| Week | Topic | Reading |
| 1 (9 /4-9/6) | Introduction, overview | Chapter 1 (Principles), Science |
| 2 (9 /6-9 /13) | Inorganic chemistry essential for understanding biological systems | Chapter 2 (Principles) |
| 3 (9 /13-9 /20) | Biochemistry essential for understanding bioinorganic chemistry | Chapter 3 (Principles) |
| 4 (9 /20- (9/27) | Physical Methods in Bioinorganic Chemistry | Chapter 4 (Principles) |
| 5 (9 /27-10/ 4) | Choice, Uptake, and Assembly of Metal-Containing Units in Biology | Chapter 5
(Principles) Review article |
| 6 (10 /4-10 /11) | Control of metal ion concentration in cells (metal toxicity, metal-dependent signaling) | Chapter 6 (Principles) |
| 7 (10 /11-10/ 21) | The role of metal ions in determining the structure of biomolecules | Chapter 7 (Principles) |
| 8 (10 /21-10/ 25) | Electron-Transfer Proteins | Chapter 9 (Principles) |
| 9 (10 /25-11/ 1) | Electron-Transfer Proteins | supplemental reading |
| 10 (11 /1-11 /8) | Atom and Group Transfer Chemistry | Chapter 11 (Principles) |
| 11 (11 /8-11 /15) | Substrate Binding and Activation by Nonredox mechanisms | Chapter 10 (Principles) |
| 12 (11 /15-11/ 22) | Tuning building blocks of bioinorganic chemistry | Chapter 12 (Principles) |
| 13 (12 /2-12 /6) | Frontiers of Bioinorganic Chemistry | Chapter 13 (Principles), final papers, supplemental readings |