CourseSource: Resources

Teaching Tools and Strategies

2127

views

348

downloads

0

comments

DNA Detective: Genotype to Phenotype. A Bioinformatics Workshop for Middle School to College.

Advances in high-throughput techniques have resulted in a rising demand for scientists with basic bioinformatics skills as well as workshops and curricula that teach students bioinformatics concepts. DNA Detective is a workshop we designed to...

Courses: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Bioinformatics Genetics Plant Biology

geneticsbioinformaticsDNAgenotypephenotypegenegene annotation

Lesson

1786

views

229

downloads

0

comments

Bioinformatics is a BLAST: Engaging First-Year Biology Students on Campus Biodiversity Using DNA Barcoding

In order to introduce students to the concept of molecular diversity, we developed a short, engaging online lesson using basic bioinformatics techniques. Students were introduced to basic bioinformatics while learning about local on-campus species...

Courses: Bioinformatics Introductory Biology

geneticsorganismal biologybioinformaticstaxonomyDNA Barcodingspecies concepts

Lesson

2909

views

501

downloads

0

comments

A Kinesthetic Modeling Activity to Teach PCR Fundamentals

Most molecular biology and biological sciences students understand that the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is used to amplify DNA. However, we have found that some students experience conceptual misunderstandings, a lack of detailed comprehension...

Courses: Genetics Science Process Skills

PCR

Lesson

1784

views

614

downloads

0

comments

A Close-Up Look at PCR

The Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) is a fundamental laboratory technique that allows for the amplification of many copies of a desired DNA target sequence. Despite its prevalence, undergraduate students often have poor comprehension about the...

Courses: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Genetics Introductory Biology Science Process Skills

PCRDNA replication

Lesson

5508

views

1133

downloads

3

comments

Meiosis: A Play in Three Acts, Starring DNA Sequence

Meiosis is well known for being a sticky topic that appears repeatedly in biology curricula. We observe that a typical undergraduate biology major cannot correctly identify haploid and diploid cells or explain how and why chromosomes pair before...

Courses: Cell Biology Genetics Introductory Biology

recombinationmeiosisDNA sequenceCrossingoverchromosome structureHolliday junctionhomology

Lesson

5492

views

951

downloads

0

comments

A clicker-based case study that untangles student thinking about the processes in the central dogma

The central dogma of biology is a foundational concept that provides a scaffold to understand how genetic information flows in biological systems. Despite its importance, undergraduate students often poorly understand central dogma processes (DNA...

Courses: Genetics Introductory Biology

mutationtranscriptionphenotypecentral dogmatranslationDNA replication

Lesson

465

views

66

downloads

0

comments

Using Raw Sequence Data to Analyze Tumor Suppressor Mutations

Learning to identify DNA sequence variants from raw sequencing data (electropherograms) is a basic molecular biology skill with applications to basic research and clinical practice. Yet learning to map DNA sequence variants to functional regions...

Courses: Bioinformatics Genetics

bioinformaticsmutationDNAgenomic visualizationparts of a geneclinical consequencesraw data

Lesson

2008

views

381

downloads

0

comments

Integrating Manipulatives and Animations to Visualize Holliday Junctions

The complex molecular architecture of Holliday junctions is often challenging for undergraduate biochemistry students to conceptualize. In particular, they have difficulty translating from two-dimensional, linear representations shown in textbooks...

Courses: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Genetics

dna structureDNA damageDNA recombinationGene crossoverHolliday junction

Lesson

3048

views

478

downloads

0

comments

Targeting Misconceptions in the Central Dogma by Examining Viral Infection

Understanding the central dogma and how changes in gene expression can impact cell function requires integration of several topics in molecular biology. Students often do not make the necessary connections between DNA structure, transcription,...

Courses: Genetics Introductory Biology

datatranscriptionvirustranslationprotein functionmembrane transportPredictions

Lesson

5179

views

2488

downloads

0

comments

Exploring the Lytic and Lysogenic Life Cycles of Bacteriophages

The goal of this lesson is to introduce students to the lytic and lysogenic cycles of T4 and lambda bacteriophages, respectively, using student-centered pedagogies. Bacteriophages are viruses that infect bacteria and are either virulent or...

Courses: Microbiology

bacteriophagesLysogenic cycleLysogenyLytic cycle

Lesson

3439

views

60

downloads

0

comments

The Great Petunia Carnage of 2017: A Clicker Case Study Using Petunias to Describe the Effect of Genetic Modification on the Biochemistry of Flower Color and Phenotype in Plants

In this single class period case study, students examine the difference between genotype and phenotype by studying the mechanisms by which commercially available petunias have been bred to have different phenotypes (flower colors). Students review...

Courses: Genetics Introductory Biology Plant Biology

case studyGenetic ModificationsBiochemistry of Flower ColorGMO regulationsGenotype-Phenotype Connections

Lesson

3396

views

713

downloads

0

comments

Homologous chromosomes? Exploring human sex chromosomes, sex determination and sex reversal using bioinformatics approaches

Constructing a robust understanding of homologous chromosomes, sex chromosomes, and the particulate nature of genes is a notoriously difficult task for undergraduate biology students. In this lesson, students expand their knowledge of human...

Courses: Bioinformatics Genetics Introductory Biology Science Process Skills

bioinformaticsautosomehomologous chromosomeshomologous recombinationsex chromosomesex determinationsex reversal mutations

Lesson

3500

views

666

downloads

0

comments

A Hands-on Introduction to Hidden Markov Models

In this Lesson, we describe a classroom activity that demonstrates how a Hidden Markov Model (HMM) is applied to predict a eukaryotic gene, focusing on predicting one exon-intron boundary. This HMM lesson is part of the BIOL/CS 370...

Courses: Bioinformatics Genetics Science Process Skills

transcriptionexonintronsplicing

Lesson

330

views

43

downloads

0

comments

The Science and Ethics of Gene Drives: An Active Learning Lesson in Genetics

Coursework connecting biology to socially relevant issues and ethical questions can help students think about biology in interdisciplinary terms. Gene drives represent one topic involving both advanced biology concepts and societally relevant...

Courses: Genetics

bioethicsCRISPR/Cas9Genetic modificationGene drives

Lesson

891

views

125

downloads

0

comments

Student-Generated Analogies for Learning about Information Flow

Using analogies is a standard practice for both teaching and communicating ideas in science. Here we upend the traditional lesson, where the instructor provides a fully constructed analogy and explains it, by having the students develop a complex...

Courses: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Cell Biology Genetics Introductory Biology

critical thinkingcentral dogmaanalogical reasoning

Lesson

2081

views

395

downloads

0

comments

Metastatic Mastery: A Case and Game-Based Approach to Learning About Cancer Mechanisms

Mechanisms that contribute to the development of cancer are numerous and complicated, though most can be traced to a set of mutations in cell cycle regulatory genes that throw the process of cell division off balance. Communication of these...

Courses: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Genetics Introductory Biology

mutationcancertranscriptioncell cycletranslationOncogenesTumor-suppressorp53Transcription factor

Lesson

1978

views

873

downloads

0

comments

Exploration of the Human Genome by Investigation of Personalized SNPs

Students often shy away from tedious bioinformatics approaches to exploring their genomes. However, in our expanding digital world these skills are some of the most relevant and valuable. To increase students' interest in their own genomes, I...

Courses: Bioinformatics Genetics Science Process Skills

UCSC genome browsersingle nucleotide polymorphismGenome wide association studiesGenomic organization

Lesson

1198

views

158

downloads

0

comments

Central Dogma, Dictionaries, and Functions: Using Programming Concepts to Simulate Biological Processes

Technologies like next-generation sequencing, proteomics, and high-throughput phenotyping have transformed the way we do biology. There is a continued need for scientists with computational skills to analyze biological data while understanding the...

Courses: Bioinformatics

computationpythonJupyter notebookFunctionscentral dogmaDictionaries

Lesson

2917

views

334

downloads

0

comments

A Muscular Dystrophy Case Study Illustrating the Phenotypic Effects of Mutation

Mutations in genes can lead to a variety of phenotypes, including various human diseases. Students often understand that a particular mutation in a single gene causes a disease phenotype, but it is more challenging to illustrate complex genetic...

Courses: Developmental Biology Genetics

mutationProtein Structureethicscentral dogmahuman disease

Lesson

3394

views

1277

downloads

0

comments

A CRISPR/Cas Guide RNA Design In Silico Activity

CRISPR biotechnologies inspired by the Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeat RNA-guided nuclease adaptive bacterial immune system have revolutionized biology research and become ubiquitous tools for hypothesis and...

Courses: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Bioinformatics Cell Biology Genetics