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Syllabus ( MBG 427 )

   Basic information
Course title: Organelle Dynamics
Course code: MBG 427
Lecturer: Dr. Merve TUZLAKOĞLU ÖZTÜRK
ECTS credits: 5
GTU credits: 3 ()
Year, Semester: 2025, Fall
Level of course: First Cycle (Undergraduate)
Type of course: Departmental Elective
Language of instruction: English
Mode of delivery: Face to face
Pre- and co-requisites: "none"
Professional practice: No
Purpose of the course: The main objective of the course is to introduce the biological processes related to the structure and formation of membrane-enclosed organelles as well as membrane-less organelles, which have been the focus of interest in modern cell biology in recent years.
As well as to describe recent advances in elucidating the mechanisms by which membrane-less organelles cause various human diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, amyloidosis, neurodegenerative diseases, diabetes and genetic diseases.
   Learning outcomes Up

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

  1. To be able to define organelles that are not surrounded by membrane in the cell.

    Contribution to Program Outcomes

    1. To be able to define general concepts and problems related to Molecular Biology and Genetics and to produce solutions.
    2. To be able to define the structure-function relationship at the molecular level in cells and organisms.
    3. To be able to work individually, make independent decisions and participate actively in multidisciplinary group studies.
    4. To be able to follow current scientific and technological innovations with the awareness of continuous learning and to apply them in the field.
    5. To be able to drive hypotheses using existing knowledge, designing and conducting experiment for problem solving and make correct interpretation of the results obtained from the experiment.

    Method of assessment

    1. Written exam
    2. Seminar/presentation
  2. Grasp the mechanisms that form membrane-less organelles.

    Contribution to Program Outcomes

    1. To be able to define general concepts and problems related to Molecular Biology and Genetics and to produce solutions.
    2. To be able to define the structure-function relationship at the molecular level in cells and organisms.
    3. To be able to work individually, make independent decisions and participate actively in multidisciplinary group studies.
    4. To be able to follow current scientific and technological innovations with the awareness of continuous learning and to apply them in the field.
    5. To be able to drive hypotheses using existing knowledge, designing and conducting experiment for problem solving and make correct interpretation of the results obtained from the experiment.

    Method of assessment

    1. Written exam
    2. Seminar/presentation
  3. To be able to interpret the relationship between the formation dynamics and diseases of membraneless organelles.

    Contribution to Program Outcomes

    1. To be able to define general concepts and problems related to Molecular Biology and Genetics and to produce solutions.
    2. To be able to define the structure-function relationship at the molecular level in cells and organisms.
    3. To be able to work individually, make independent decisions and participate actively in multidisciplinary group studies.
    4. To be able to follow current scientific and technological innovations with the awareness of continuous learning and to apply them in the field.
    5. To be able to drive hypotheses using existing knowledge, designing and conducting experiment for problem solving and make correct interpretation of the results obtained from the experiment.

    Method of assessment

    1. Written exam
    2. Seminar/presentation
   Contents Up
Week 1: Membrane-bound organelles
Week 2: Introduction to liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS)-Biomolecular condensates
Week 3: Membraneless nuclear organelles-1 (Nuclear speckles, paraspecles, nucleous)
Week 4: Membraneless nuclear organelles-2 (Nuclear stress body, Cajal body, germ granule, PML-body)
Week 5: Ribosomes
Week 6: P-granules-I
Week 7: Mid-Term Exam-P-granules-II
Week 8: Stress granules
Week 9: Modulators of membraneless oragnelles
Week 10: LLPS in microbial cells
Week 11: Techniques and methods used to study LLPS
Week 12: Cellular studies of liquid-liquid phase separation
Week 13: Role of membraneless organelles in diseases
Week 14: Revision
Week 15*: -
Week 16*: FİNAL EXAM
Textbooks and materials: 1. Functionally Relevant Macromolecular Interactions of Disordered Proteins;ISBN 978-3-03936-521-0; 2020
2. Intrinsically Disordered Proteins and Chronic Diseases; ISBN978-3-0365-1263-1; 2021
Recommended readings: Alberti S, Carra S. Quality Control of Membraneless Organelles. J Mol Biol. 2018 Nov 2;430(23):4711-4729. doi: 10.1016/j.jmb.2018.05.013. Epub 2018 May 11. PMID: 29758260.
  * Between 15th and 16th weeks is there a free week for students to prepare for final exam.
Assessment Up
Method of assessment Week number Weight (%)
Mid-terms: 7 40
Other in-term studies: 0
Project: 0
Homework: 0
Quiz: 0
Final exam: 16 60
  Total weight:
(%)
   Workload Up
Activity Duration (Hours per week) Total number of weeks Total hours in term
Courses (Face-to-face teaching): 3 14
Own studies outside class: 3 14
Practice, Recitation: 0 0
Homework: 0 0
Term project: 0 0
Term project presentation: 0 0
Quiz: 0 0
Own study for mid-term exam: 2 7
Mid-term: 2 1
Personal studies for final exam: 3 9
Final exam: 2 1
    Total workload:
    Total ECTS credits:
*
  * ECTS credit is calculated by dividing total workload by 25.
(1 ECTS = 25 work hours)
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