Spring. The course has a limited number of places. The registration deadline for enrollment in the course is Thursday in week 2 for the spring semester/Thursday in week 33 for the autumn semester. You will receive confirmation of whether you received a spot in Studentweb no later than Tuesday the week after the deadline.

The first lecture/orientation meeting is compulsory, which means you will lose your spot if you do not attend class that day. The time of the first lecture/orientation meeting can be found in the schedule on the course website or on the ¿Mitt UiB¿ learning platform.

In this course, the students will get a theoretical and practical introduction into important methods and techniques in biochemistry and molecular biology. These include work with biochemical and molecular biological laboratory equipment, biological solutions and buffers, spectrophotometric analyses, enzymology and demonstrations of current research activities at the department. The students will learn the physical and chemical principles behind the analytical methods used.

Along with the practical aspects of the course, there will also be put particular emphasis on the design and planning of experimental work as well as documentation, critical evaluation including qualitative and quantitative analysis of the results. Laboratory safety aspects will also be a focus.

On completion of the course the student should have the following learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

The student

• can explain the principles of basic methods in experimental biochemistry and molecular biology (buffer theory, spectrophotometry and measurement of enzyme kinetics and gel electrophoresis)
• can interpret experimental data
• knows the general safety regulations for laboratory work in molecular biology

Skills

The student

• can apply basic methods in experimental biochemistry and molecular biology
• can use ordinary internet-based data bases for protein and nucleic acid analyses
• can plan experimental work based on a protocol
• can critically evaluate and discuss experimental results
• can follow general safety routines in the laboratory
• can write a formal lab-report
• can critically evaluate and correctly cite literature

General competance

The student

• can plan experimental work
•  is able to critically evaluate and discuss experimental results

All activities are mandatory including the introductory meeting, lectures, seminars and exercises. Completed activities are valid for 6 semesters.

The first lecture/orientation meeting is compulsory.