In this project a team of two biologists and two organic chemists is integrating the laboratories for two of their courses, Cell Biology and Organic Chemistry II. Students working in interdisciplinary teams plan and execute the synthesis of a compound related to a known inhibitor of the enzyme histone deacetylase. This enzyme tends to be expressed more actively in cancer cells than in their normal counterparts, so discovery of potent inhibitors might lead to new chemotherapeutic drugs. Once the student team has synthesized and characterized the potential inhibitor, they will test it for inhibition of growth of cultured animal cells, an indicator of cell toxicity. Students from several teams will benefit from learning of the results of other teams in the class, and interesting findings will be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at conferences. The model of integrating courses in different departments through project laboratories is one that will interest faculty and students at other institutions.
