MBT508 Topics in Molecular Biology

Instructors: Dr Jennifer Ann Harikrishna, Dr Lim Saw Hoon, Dr Yeo Chew Chieng, Dr Ng Kim Yong

This course aims to guide students towards a good understanding of topics and techniques of molecular biology selected from current literature. During the course, students will learn how to critically evaluate research papers and how to demonstrate this knowledge through clear and concise written and oral presentations.

The course will cover a wide range of the latest topics in molecular biology including biochemistry, plant, animal and microbial molecular biology and genomics. Class sessions will consist of students presenting recent key papers in molecular biology to the class and instructors following an initial demonstration by the course instructors. Each session will focus on a single topic area to give broader coverage of that topic and to stimulate discussion of the area. Each student will be randomly assigned 6 individual papers from a list provided at the start of the course and will make a twenty minute oral presentation, followed by 10 minutes of Q and A for each paper. Each oral presentation will be accompanied by a concise written report summarizing the key points of the paper presented in the context of the topic area.

The assessment component of this course will be based on evaluation of the assigned written and oral presentations and on participation in Q and A sessions. Marks will be given for clear visual and oral presentation and for exhibited depth of understanding of the topic. There will be no written examinations. Marks from the best 5 (of the 6) presentations by each student will contribute to the final grade.