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List of currently offered undergraduate classes of relevance to Bioengineering
CH E 102: Biomaterials and Biosurfaces (Israelachvili, 3 units)
Fundamentals of natural and artificial biomaterials and biosurfaces with emphasis on
molecular level structure and function and the interactions of biomaterials and surfaces with
the body. Design issues of grafts and biopolymers. Basic biological and biochemical systems
reviewed for non-biologists. Not open for credit to students who have completed ChE 121.
Recommended preparation: Basic physical chemistry, chemistry, physics, thermodynamics
and biology.
CH E 125: Principles of Bioengineering (Mitragotri, 3 units)
Applications of engineering principles to biological and medical systems. Introduction to
drug delivery, tissue engineering and modern biomedical devices. Design and applications of
these systems are discussed.
CH E 154: Engineering Approaches to Systems Biology (Doyle, 3 units)
Applications of engineering tools and methods to solve problems in systems biology.
Emphasis is placed on integrative approaches that address multi-scale and multi-rate
phenomena in biological regulation. Modeling, optimization, and sensitivity analysis tools
are introduced. Prerequisites: ChE 170 and Math 5A-B-C.
CH E 170: Molecular and Cellular Biology for Engineers (Shell, 3 units)
Introduction to molecular and cellular biology from an engineering perspective. Topics
include protein structure and function, transcription, translation, post-translational
processing, cellular organization, molecular transport and trafficking, and cellular models.
Prerequisites: ChE 120A-B-C, ChE 140A, and Chem 109C. Not open for credit to students
who have completed ChE 172.
CH E 171: Introduction to Biochemical Engineering (Daugherty, 3 units)
Introduction to biochemical engineering covering cell growth kinetics, bioreactor design,
enzyme processes, biotechnologies for modification of cellular information, and molecular
and cellular engineering.
ME 128: Design of Biomedical Devices (Laguette, 3 units)
Introductory course addresses the challenges of biomedical device design, prototyping and
testing, material considerations, regulatory requirements, product documentation, and ethics.
Prerequisites: ME 10, 14, 15, and 16; open to ME majors only
ME 146: Molecular and Cellular Biomechanics (Valentine, 3 units)
Course introduces fundamental concepts in molecular and cellular biomechanics. Will
consider the role of physical, thermal and chemical forces, examine their influence on cell
strength and elasticity, and explore the properties of enzymatically-active materials.
MATRL 135: Biophysics and Biomolecular Materials (Safinya, 3 units)
Structure and function of cellular molecules (lipids, nucleic acids, proteins, and
carbohydrates). Genetic engineering techniques of molecular biology. Biomolecular
materials and biomedical applications (e.g., bio-sensors, drug delivery systems, gene carrier
systems). Prerequisite: Physics 5 or 6C or 25
MCDB 133: Molecular and Cellular Immunobiology (Sears, 5 units)
Introduction to the current concepts of immunology. Emphasis on immunoglobulin structure
and function, cell-cell cooperation in the immune response, and the role of major
histocompatibility complex and cytokines in regulating immune responsiveness.
Prerequisite: MCDB 101A with a grade of C or better
List of currently offered Graduate classes of relevance to Bioengineering
BMSE 201A: Protein Structure and Function (Plaxco, 2 units)
Traces the physical interactions by which sequence-specific polypeptides attain a unique
functional native state. Fold design, fold predictions, and protein folding kinetics are also
discussed (Prerequisite: graduate standing)
BMSE 202/CH E 202: Biomaterials and Biosurfaces (Israelachvili, 2 units)
Fundamentals of natural and artificial biomaterials and biosurfaces with emphasis on
molecular level structure and function and the interactions of biomaterials and surfaces with
the body. Design issues of grafts and biopolymers. Basic biological and biochemical systems
reviewed for nonbiologists. Prerequisites: consent of instructor.
BMSE 203: Protein Engineering and Design (Reich, 3 units)
Rational design of protein structure, activity, and stability. Current methods and applications
of protein engineering including protein evolution, unnatural amino acids, and combinatorial
methods. Prerequisites: consent of instructor.
BMSE 215: Biophysical Thermodynamics (Plaxco, 2 units)
An overview of those parts of chemical thermodynamics relevant to the study of
biomolecules and biological systems. Topics include fundamental thermodynamics,
experimental and theoretical tools and the thermodynamics of biopolymer structure
formation. Prerequisite: undergraduate course in physical chemistry (e.g., Chemistry 113AB-C).
BMSE 216B: Diffraction of Biological Molecules (Staff, 2 units)
Single-crystal macromolecular crystallography methods; crystal growth, geometric and
physical basis of diffraction, approaches to phasing and refinement. X-ray and neutron
solution scattering. Prerequisite: one year of undergraduate biochemistry (e.g., MCDB
108A-B-C), one quarter of undergraduate physical chemistry (e.g., Chemistry 142A-B-C,
Chemistry
113A).
BMSE 217: Electrostatics of Biopolymers (Pincus, 2 units)
Electrostatics of highly charged surfaces in contact with a polar solvent with application to
biopolymers (e.g. DNA, f-actin). Prerequisite: knowledge of elementary ideas and methods
of electrostatics and statistical mechanics.
BMSE/CHEM 244: Informational Macro- and Supra- Molecules (Jaeger, 2 units)
Selected topics at the interface of chemistry and biology: informational molecular coding,
molecular machines, self-assembling and self-replicating molecular systems, evolution and
selection of molecules with binding of catalytic properties, and biopolymer based materials;
special emphasis on cutting-edge technologies. Prerequisites: Consent of instructor
BMSE/EEMB 247: Quantitative Methods in Biology (Briggs, 3 units)
A review of quantitative methods required to develop models of biological and ecological
systems. Topics illustrated through computer exercises. Recommended: one year of calculus
or consent of instructor
BMSE 250: Bionanotechnology (Fygenson, 2 units)
Introduction to macromolecular assemblies and force generation strategies. Topics may also
include but are not limited to: conformations and behavior of protein polymers; nucleic acid
superstructures and membranes; structure, motility and mechanism of linear and rotary motor
proteins; and macromolecular switches. Recommended preparation: background in
biochemistry and molecular biology.
BMSE 251: Biopharmaceutical Process Engineering (Daugherty, 2 units)
An introduction to the design bioprocess for large-scale production of biopharmaceuticals.
Emphasis is placed upon biopharmaceutical products, protein expression systems, host cell
optimization, and reactor selection and design. Prerequisite: Math 5A or equivalent;
background in biochemistry.
BMSE 252: Principles of Bioengineering (Mitragotri, 2 units)
An overview of various aspects of bioengineering including modeling of physiological
functions, biomedical devices, drug delivery, and tissue engineering.
BMSE 253: Analytical Biotechnology (Soh, 3 units)
Develops fundamental understanding behind modern methods of biotechnology. Topics
include theoretical treatment of the double layer, electrophoresis, polymerase chain reaction,
modern optics, and fluorescence. In addition, case studies of contemporary emerging trends
are discussed. Prerequisites: Graduate standing. Recommended preparation: MEE 291A
BMSE/CH E 255: Methods in Systems Biology (Doyle, 3 units)
Fundamentals of dynamic network organization in biology (genes, metabolites). Emphasis on
mathematical approaches to model and analyze complex biophysical network systems.
Detailed case studies demonstrating successes of systems biology. Basic biological systems
reviewed for non-biologists. Prerequisites: prior course work in cellular biology and
mathematics; consent of instructor
BMSE/MATRL 272: Mechanical Force and Biomolecules (Saleh, 3 units)
Explores single-molecule biophysics and the role of mechanical force in biomolecular
behavior. Emphasis is placed on modern experimental techniques and the effects of
mechanical stress on DNA conformation, protein unfolding, and force-generation by motor
proteins. Recent literature is used throughout. Prerequisites: none
BMSE/MATRL 276A: Biomolecular Materials I: Structure and Function (Safinya, 3 units)
Survey of classes of biomolecules (lipids, carbohydrates, proteins, nucleic acids). Structure
and function of molecular machines (enzymes for biosynthesis, motors, pumps).
Prerequisites: consent of instructor
BMSE/MATRL 276B: Biomolecular Materials II: Applications (Safinya, 3 units)
Interactions and self-assembly in biomolecular materials; chemical and drug delivery
systems; tissue engineering; protein synthesis using recombinant nucleic acid methods;
advanced materials development; and non-viral gene therapy. Prerequisites: Physics 135 or
Matrl 276A