PHYSICAL PRINCIPLES OF BIOCHEMISTRY (GBCH 721)

Fall 1999

2 credits, Wednesdays 2:00 - 4:00 p.m.

E-mail: eha@bioc.tulane.edu, Telephone: (504) 587-7359

1. Introduction to THERMODYNAMICS with special emphasis on biological applications

Three Laws of Thermodynamics

Chemical Potential (Gibbs Free Energy) and its biochemical applications

Role of DNA in living cells viewed from a perspective of bioenergetics

Colligative Properties of solutions, the osmotic pressure

2. BONDING and INTERACTIONS among biomolecules

3. ADSORPTION equilibria and the phenomenon of SURFACE TENSION

4. The AQUEOUS ENVIRONMENT of Biomolecules

Solutes of Aqueous Solutions: non-electrolytes and electrolytes

Water: the solvent of biological solutions

Hydrophobic Bonding

Ionic Equilibria and Buffer Systems

5. Physico-chemical aspects of Biological MEMBRANES

6. Introduction to MASS SPECTROSCOPY

PRACTICE PROBLEMS will be utilized to illustrate the material covered in the course

SYLLABUS will be made available to students

BOOKS The recommended books are

* P.R. Bergethon and E.R. Simmons, Biophysical Chemistry (Molecules to Membranes), 1993, Springer-Verlag

* D. Eisenberg and D. Carothers, Physical Chemistry with Applications to Life Sciences, 1979, Benjamin/Cummins

* J. Stenesh, Core Topics in Biochemistry, 1993, Cogno Press

EXAMINATION SCHEDULE

Midterm Exam October 16 2:30 - 3:45 p.m. 100 Points

Final Exam* December (tba) 1:30 - 3:30 p.m. 150 points

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* Covers material not included in the mid-term exam and a review of the entire course content. Please note that no change of this date is possible.

List of Lecture Topics (approximate)

* First law of thermodynamics and the concepts of energy, enthalpy and temperature

* Second law of thermodynamics and the concept of entropy

* Third law of thermodynamics and its utility in absolute entropy calculations

* Gibbs Free Energy, a state function of great practical significance for biological systems

* Steady-state processes and the concepts of biochemical reversibility and irreversibility

* Special role of DNA in the homeostasis of living cells

* Osmotic pressure, a colligative property of biological relevance

* Interactions among biomolecules: covalent, ionic, van-der-Walls, hydrogen, etc. bonds

* Surface phenomena: adsorption equilibria and surface tension

* Solutes of aqueous solutions: electrolytes (weak and strong) and non electrolytes

* Structures of pure water and hydrocarbon solutions; the hydrophobic bond

* Ionic equilibria and buffer systems

* Structure of biological membranes; passive and active transport across membranes

* Principles of Mass Spectroscopy and its application in biological analyses

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