General Biochemistry Course

Lesson 1 • Atomic Structure and Chemical Bonding

Covers covalent, ionic, and hydrogen bonds as they occur in biomolecules. Provides the structural vocabulary needed to interpret molecular interactions throughout the course.

Lesson 2 • Thermodynamic Principles in Biology

Presents free energy, enthalpy, and entropy as predictors of reaction spontaneity. Establishes the thermodynamic framework used in metabolism and molecular assembly.

Lesson 3 • Water and Its Biological Roles

Examines water's unique physicochemical properties and their consequences for life. Connects solvent behavior to protein folding, membrane formation, and metabolite solubility.

Lesson 1 • Peptide Bond Formation and Peptide Chemistry

Describes the peptide bond's resonance character and its implications for backbone rigidity. Introduces peptide nomenclature and chemical reactivity used in sequencing.

Lesson 2 • Amino Acid Structure and Properties

Classifies the 20 standard amino acids by side-chain chemistry and charge. Links residue properties to protein solubility, reactivity, and folding behavior.

Lesson 3 • Protein Secondary and Tertiary Structure

Explains alpha helices, beta sheets, and loops as products of backbone hydrogen bonding. Connects tertiary folding forces to functional three-dimensional architecture.

Lesson 4 • Quaternary Structure and Protein Folding

Examines multi-subunit assemblies and the role of chaperones in folding. Introduces misfolding diseases as consequences of disrupted folding pathways.

Lesson 1 • Allosteric Regulation and Cooperativity

Presents allosteric enzymes as sigmoidal kinetics deviating from Michaelis-Menten behavior. Links cooperativity models to metabolic flux control.

Lesson 2 • Michaelis-Menten Kinetics

Derives the Michaelis-Menten equation and defines Km, Vmax, and kcat. Students apply these parameters to compare enzyme efficiency across conditions.

Lesson 3 • Principles of Enzyme Catalysis

Explains how enzymes lower activation energy through transition-state stabilization. Establishes active-site geometry and specificity as the basis for catalytic power.

Lesson 4 • Catalytic Mechanisms of Key Enzyme Classes

Analyzes serine proteases, kinases, and other mechanistic archetypes at the chemical level. Reinforces how active-site residues execute bond-making and bond-breaking steps.

Lesson 1 • Polysaccharides and Glycoconjugates

Examines starch, glycogen, cellulose, and glycoproteins as structural and storage polymers. Connects linkage type to physical properties and biological roles.

Lesson 2 • Pyruvate Fate and the TCA Cycle

Covers pyruvate dehydrogenase, acetyl-CoA entry, and the eight TCA cycle reactions. Quantifies electron carrier production feeding oxidative phosphorylation.

Lesson 3 • Monosaccharide and Disaccharide Chemistry

Describes stereochemistry, ring forms, and glycosidic bond formation in simple sugars. Establishes structural vocabulary for understanding complex carbohydrate function.

Lesson 4 • Glycolysis and Substrate-Level Phosphorylation

Traces the ten-step conversion of glucose to pyruvate with ATP and NADH accounting. Identifies regulated steps and their allosteric controls.

Lesson 1 • Membrane Structure and Dynamics

Presents the fluid mosaic model and lipid bilayer properties governing membrane function. Connects lipid composition to membrane fluidity and domain formation.

Lesson 2 • Fatty Acid Oxidation

Details beta-oxidation of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids with ATP accounting. Introduces ketone body formation during fasting as an extension of beta-oxidation.

Lesson 3 • Membrane Transport Mechanisms

Distinguishes passive diffusion, facilitated transport, and active transport energetics. Connects transporter and channel proteins to cellular homeostasis.

Lesson 4 • Fatty Acid and Lipid Synthesis

Contrasts fatty acid synthase with beta-oxidation in location, cofactors, and direction. Extends to triacylglycerol and phospholipid assembly and their regulation.

Lesson 1 • Electron Transport Chain Complexes

Describes the four respiratory complexes and their proton-pumping stoichiometries. Connects electron flow to the proton gradient that drives ATP synthesis.

Lesson 2 • Integration of Catabolic Pathways

Integrates glycolysis, TCA cycle, and oxidative phosphorylation into a unified ATP accounting. Compares aerobic and anaerobic energy yields across substrates.

Lesson 3 • ATP Synthase and the Chemiosmotic Theory

Presents Mitchell's chemiosmotic hypothesis and the rotary mechanism of ATP synthase. Quantifies the proton motive force components driving phosphorylation.

Lesson 4 • Electron Carriers and Redox Chemistry

Introduces standard reduction potentials and electron flow from NADH to oxygen. Establishes the thermodynamic basis for free energy release in the electron transport chain.

Lesson 1 • DNA Double Helix and Higher-Order Structure

Presents B-form DNA geometry, supercoiling, and chromatin organization. Connects topoisomerase activity to replication and transcription access.

Lesson 2 • RNA Processing and Maturation

Covers 5' capping, 3' polyadenylation, and pre-mRNA splicing in eukaryotes. Connects processing steps to mRNA stability, export, and translational efficiency.

Lesson 3 • DNA Replication Machinery

Details the replisome components and their coordinated roles in semiconservative replication. Emphasizes proofreading and mismatch repair as fidelity mechanisms.

Lesson 4 • Transcription: Initiation to Termination

Explains prokaryotic and eukaryotic RNA polymerase mechanisms from promoter recognition to termination. Highlights sigma factors and general transcription factors as regulatory elements.

Lesson 1 • Eukaryotic Transcriptional Regulation

Covers enhancers, silencers, transcription factor domains, and chromatin remodeling. Explains how combinatorial control generates cell-type-specific expression patterns.

Lesson 2 • Signal Transduction Pathways

Traces receptor activation through second messengers to transcriptional responses. Integrates kinase cascades and phosphatase regulation as reversible signaling switches.

Lesson 3 • Post-Translational Modification and Protein Degradation

Examines phosphorylation, ubiquitination, glycosylation, and proteolytic processing as regulators of protein activity. Connects the ubiquitin-proteasome system to protein quality control.

Lesson 4 • The Genetic Code and tRNA Biology

Decodes codon-anticodon relationships and explains aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase fidelity. Establishes the molecular link between nucleotide sequence and amino acid sequence.

Lesson 5 • Prokaryotic Gene Regulation

Analyzes operon models as paradigms for transcriptional control by repressors and activators. Connects environmental signals to rapid, reversible changes in gene expression.