The program begins with a series of four molecular-based laboratories in General Biology. In these labs students acquire hands-on experience in three areas of molecular biology: They learn about genome organization by isolating and examining onion DNA, they manipulate the genome with restriction endonucleases, and they are introduced to genes and gene products by culturing sensitive and antibiotic resistant bacterial strains. In a variety of upper division courses progressively more advanced concepts of molecular biology are presented with the use of increasingly sophisticated techniques.
