COURSE TITLE

Biology 200; How Organisms Develop

PROFESSOR(S)

Rachel Fink, rfink@mtholyoke.edu
Amy Frary, afrary@mtholyoke.edu

LECTURE

MTuWF, 50 Mins

LAB

3 Hour Lab Required

TEXTS

Purves, WK, Orians, GH, Heller HC, Sadava, D. 2002. Life: the Science of Biology, 6th ed. Sinauer Associates Inc.

Wilt, F. and Hake, S. 2004. Principles of Developmental Biology. W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.

EXAMS & GRADING

Requirement

Point Value

Quiz

Exams (2 @ 100)

200

Final Exam

125

Laboratory Practical

Laboratory Work

175

Total Points Available

600

COURSE POLICIES

Lecture
The material for this course will be divided into three main units: How animals develop; How plants develop; and Molecular control of development. Specific topics to be covered include: Gametogenesis, meiosis, fertilization, embryogenesis in animals and plants... Cells and membranes... DNA - RNA - protein (gene expression)...Pattern formation in flies and flowers.

Exams
The format for exams will be mostly short essay, but we try to provide a range of question types. Laboratory material is fair game for questions! You will almost certainly be asked to devise experiments of your own, or analyze data sets given in the question. The final will be cumulative, will be scheduled, and will include a laboratory practical.

Laboratory
The laboratory is at the heart of this course. You will be working with live material almost every week, and there is NO substitute for watching an embryo develop before your very eyes! Your laboratory manual should be read each week before you come to lab: being prepared will make it more fun for everyone. Some weeks there will be written pre-labs to hand in at the start of lab. A looseleaf binder will help to hold everything together. YOU MUST DO EVERY LAB TO PASS THIS COURSE (this includes handing in ALL written laboratory work).

LAB SCHEDULE

Week	Topic
UNIT ONE: HOW ANIMALS DEVELOP
1	No Lab
2	Introduction to the laboratory; Lily tissue culture set-up
3	Sea urchins I: Fertilization and cleavage - Self-scheduled: lily preparation - Work on independent proposals for sea urchin experiments.
4	Sea urchins II: Independent investigation Due this week: in lecture independent urchin lab proposal; in lab = Cleavage lab report
5	Discussion of sea urchin independent experiments; Followup on Robl cloning lecture; Start fern cultures
6	Chick development Due this week in lab = urchin independent lab report
UNIT TWO: HOW PLANTS DEVELOP
7	Fern development Due this week in lab = fern drawings
8	Spring Break
9	Angiosperm development I: sporogenesis, gametogenesis; Meiosis Due this week: Bring completed meiosis assignment to lab; angiosperm drawings due in lab.
10	Angiosperm development II: embryogenesis, seeds Plant peas for light effect expt; Due in lab: drawings.
11	Plant growth regulators: Independent investigation Due this week: in lecture: proposal for plant independent experiment
UNIT THREE: MOLECULAR CONTROL OF DEVELOPMENT
12	Gene expression in germinating barley seeds Due this week in lab = plant independent lab report
13	Drosophila development: polytene chromosomes Due this week in lab = barley germination report

Last Modified: March 11, 2005