Biology

The Natural Sciences Department offers both a Bachelor of Science and a Bachelor of Arts in Biology. A Master of Arts in Teaching Biology is available in collaboration with the School of Education and Leadership. Degrees in the Department lead directly to employment, graduate study, or entrance into professional schools in medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, veterinary medicine, allied health, or education. The Department offers a selection of courses satisfying Core Curriculum Requirements and encourages students in other majors to pursue a minor in the Natural Sciences.  By choosing elective courses with their advisor, Biology majors can concentrate their studies in Cell and Molecular Biology, Bioinformatics, Organismal Biology, Ecology and Environmental Science, or Forensic Science.

Enrollment in the prerequisite courses for the major: BY001A/B, CH002A/B, are limited to declared biology majors, or students in the Post Baccalaureate Pre Medical Program.  All courses in the categories: Major Requirements and Electives in Major Tracks to be 100/400 numbered courses; no lower- division courses can be used to satisfy those requirements.

All incoming freshman intending to major in an area of biological science must take the placement examinations for: Biology, Chemistry, and Mathematics.  Having declared their major, a prospective biology student must achieve a score of 80%, or better on the placement examination; if that level is not attained, the student must take BY005 or its equivalent and earn a B or better before being allowed to take further biology courses.  AP biology courses, or examinations, will not be considered as substitutes.  Transfer students must submit proof of successful (B or better) completion of a course equivalent to BY005 or take the biology placement examination.

 

Bachelor of Science: Biology

In addition to major requirements, students must meet Core Curriculum Requirements and General Degree Requirements.
Prerequisites		Units
BY001A/B	General Biology	8
CH002A/B	General Chemistry	8
CH117A/B	Organic Chemistry	8
MA015	Trigonometry and Analytic Geometry	4
MA020A or MA022 or MA102	Calculus I (4) Applied Calculus (4) Statistics (3)	3-4
PH002A/B or PH004A/B	General Physics Physics for Scientists	8
Total Prerequisites		39-40
Major Requirements		Units
BY100	Developmental Biology	4
BY102	Human Physiology	5
BY114	Genetics	4
BY116	General Microbiology	5
BY142 or CH150A	Immunology Biochemistry	4
Upper-division electives in Biology approved by the advisor		8
Total Major Requirements		30
Other Degree Requirements* and General Electives * Other degree requirements include Core Curriculum Requirements and General Degree Requirements (e.g., Career Development, U.S. History).		54-55
Total Unit Requirement		124
Biology Elective Courses
BY109	Contemporary Environmental Issues (3-4)
BY132	General Ecology (4)
BY138	Environmental Toxicology (4)
BY140	Invertebrate Zoology (4)
BY141	Vertebrate Zoology (recommended) (4)
BY149L	Laboratory Assistant (1-3)
BY152	Cellular and Molecular Biology (4)
BY154	Molecular Biology for Computer Scientists (3)
BY198	Research (1-3)
BY199	Independent Study in Biology (1-3)
BY199H	Honors Thesis Research (2-4)
CH105	Chemical Analysis and Instrumental Methods (5)
CH132	Physical Chemistry for Life Sciences (4)
CH150A	Biochemistry (4)
CH150B	Biochemistry (4)
NS105	Introduction to Nutrition (3)
SM085/185	Natural Sciences Seminar (1)
Future medical, dental, veterinary medicine, or graduate students are advised to take PH004AB and MA020A. Biology majors are encouraged to fulfill the Career Development requirement with an appropriate internship. Students anticipating graduate study should consult the individual schools to which they intend to apply for specific undergraduate course requirements.

Bachelor of Arts: Biology

In addition to major requirements, students must meet Core Curriculum Requirements and General Degree Requirements.
Prerequisites		Units
BY001A/B	General Biology	8
CH002A/B	General Chemistry	8
CH117A/B	Organic Chemistry	8
MA014	College Algebra	3
MA102	Statistics	3
PH002A/B	General Physics (recommended)
Total Prerequisites		30
Major Requirements		Units
BY100	Developmental Biology	4
BY102	Human Physiology	5
BY114	Genetics	4
BY116	General Microbiology	5
BY142 or CH150A	Immunology Biochemistry	4
Upper-division electives in Biology approved by the advisor		8
Total Major Requirements		30
Other Degree Requirements* and General Electives * Other degree requirements include Core Curriculum Requirements and General Degree Requirements (e.g., Career Development, U.S. History).		64
Total Unit Requirement		124

Minor Requirements: Biology

Required Courses		Units
BY001A/B	General Biology	8
CH001 or	Introductory Chemistry	3
CH002A/B	General Chemistry (recommended)	8
Upper-division units in Biology, approved by Department Chair		12

Biology Courses

Courses may be taken as lecture only (three units) or laboratory only (one unit) with permission of instructor. All courses are open to non-majors who have fulfilled the prerequisites.

BY001A/401A General Biology (4)
Prerequisite: High School Biology.
Three hours lecture, three hours laboratory. General Biology is a foundation course dealing with cellular and molecular biology, with emphasis on structure and function of cells as the basic unit of life, including cellular metabolism, enzyme energetics, molecular genetics, Mendelian genetics, and concepts of speciation and evolution. Laboratory introduces basic laboratory techniques, light microscopy, enzyme kinetics, calorimetry, and population genetics.

BY001B/401B General Biology (4)
Prerequisite: High School Biology.
Three hours lecture, three hours laboratory. Focuses on the study of microorganisms, fungi, higher plants and animals, their diversity and unity, structure, development, physiology, and classification. Laboratory develops observational skills using prokaryotes and eukaryotes.

BY004 Human Biology (3)
Prerequisite: High School Biology.
Three hours lecture. Covers the basic structure and function of the human body. Surveys structure of cells, anatomy and physiology of several organ systems (e.g. reproductive, circulatory, nervous, muscular, immune), human genetics, nutrition, and our relationship with the environment. Scientific method and principles of biology are emphasized. May include laboratory demonstrations and activities.

BY005 Introduction to Biology (3.5)
Three hours lecture, one and one-half hours laboratory. Provides a general introductory study of plants and animals. Required for liberal studies majors.

BY010/110/410 An Introduction to the Diverse World of Plants (4)

Prerequisite: BY001A/B

This course is an introduction to plant systematics including vascular plant classification, diversity and evolutionary relationships.  Discussion entails the structural components of vascular plants and how plant structure relates to function, development, environment, evolution, and human use of plants.  The course briefly encompasses the major physiological and metabolic processes of plants with a survey of photosynthesis and plant metabolism, mineral nutrition and ion uptake, water relations, transport processes, and regulation of plant growth and development.

BY024/124 Forensic Science (4)
Three hours lecture. Focuses on the mysterious and exciting world of forensic science and forensic psychology, with an emphasis on the techniques, skills, tools, and procedures used in the discovery process and their limitations. The nature of physical evidence is studied, along with the limitations that technology, knowledge, and human behavior impose. Class discussions cover DNA analyses, fingerprint, hair, fiber, and bullet comparisons, footwear impressions, crime-scene search and investigation as well as discussion of the psychological domains of eyewitness testimony, the malleability of memory, the fallibility of judgments, and decision-making.

BY100/400 Developmental Biology (4)
Prerequisites: BY001A/B.
Three hours lecture, three hours laboratory. Covers development of living organisms from the fertilized egg to establishment of organ systems. Topics include fertilization, gastrulation, neurulation, regulation of development, cell commitment, morphogenesis, induction, and laying down of organ systems. Laboratory includes morphological observations and individual experimental projects.

BY101 Human Anatomy (4)
Prerequisite: BY001A/B.
This is the study of the structure of the human body, including muscles, bones, heart, brain, ear, eye, and other systems, as well as a short look at development of the fetus. Lab work entails dissection of the cat and study of the human skeleton.

BY102/402 Human Physiology (5)
Prerequisites: BY001A/B and CH002A/B.
Three hours lecture, three hours laboratory, one hour seminar. Focuses on functional aspects of the human organism at the subcellular, cellular, and tissue levels and on causes and effects at organ level. Topics include nerve impulse transmission, muscle contraction, circulatory, respiratory, digestive, immune, and endocrine systems. Laboratory includes use of oscilloscope, computerized measurements of cardiac, muscle, and respiratory function, biochemical assays, and basic histology. Results are discussed in seminar.

BY109 Contemporary Environmental Issues (3-4)
Prerequisites: Math Placement Level 2 and permission of instructor.
Three hours lecture, one hour laboratory. Surveys Earth's biomes and gives an overview of where humans live, with a concentration on how human activities affect biomes. Major themes are population growth and concomitant demands on energy and resources. Addresses pollution and consumer society links with the crisis of biodiversity loss. Optional laboratory exemplifies the dominant issues in the course topics by means of field studies and selected site visits.

BY114/414 Genetics (4)
Prerequisites: BY001A/B and CH002A/B.
Three hours lecture, three hours laboratory. Focuses on the physical and chemical basis of heredity. Topics include: Mendelian genetics; mapping; structure, organization, and replication of DNA; mutation; transcription, translation, and regulation; and extrachromosomal inheritance and population genetics. Laboratory may include Mendelian and population genetics, cytogenetics, DNA analysis, electrophoresis, PCR, and mapping techniques.

BY116/416 General Microbiology (5)
Prerequisites: BY001A/B, CH002A/B.
Three hours lecture, six hours laboratory. Comprises the study of microorganisms and viruses, including the structure, physiology, genetics, systematics, and evolution of bacteria, fungi, protista, and parasitic metazoans. Emphasizes medical, veterinary, and agricultural microbiology, along with microbial ecology and industrial microbiology.

BY132/432 General Ecology (3-4)
Prerequisites: BY001B or BY109, Mathematics Placement Level 2 and either PH002A or PH009 or CH002A or CH001 or permission of instructor. Lecture and laboratory. Investigates Earth's physical structure and place in the solar system, global climate patterns, evolution of biomes, energy flow, and biotic and abiotic components of ecosystems. Also investigates cycling of chemical elements in ecosystems and trophic relationships within ecosystems. Presents selected ecosystems exemplify unifying concepts of ecology. Discusses the impact of human activity on ecosystems. Laboratory concentrates on field study of concepts.

BY138/438 Environmental Toxicology (4)
Prerequisites: BY001A/B, CH002A/B and BY132 or permission of instructor.
Three hours lecture, three hours laboratory. Examines toxins in the environment due to natural causes and human effects. Covers sampling and survey techniques, risk assessment, and legal regulations.

BY140/440 Invertebrate Zoology (4)
Prerequisites: BY001A/B.
Three hours lecture and three hours laboratory, and field trips. This course emphasizes the evolution and diversity of invertebrates. Topics will include the phylogeny of Parazoa and Eumetazoa and the phyla within the derived clades of the Eumetazoa, as well as their life-histories, and functional morphology.

BY141/441 Vertebrate Zoology (4)
Prerequisites: BY001A/B recommended.
Three hours lecture, three hours laboratory. Emphasizes the unique structural and functional adaptations of vertebrates. Focuses on the anatomy and physiology of representative vertebrates including Agatha, cartilaginous and bony fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. Laboratory includes dissection of lamprey, dogfish shark, and cat as representative vertebrates provides for study of functional anatomy.

BY142/442 Immunology (4)
Prerequisites: BY001A/B, CH002A/B.
Three hours lecture, three hours laboratory. Covers cellular immune response, biochemical mechanisms of immunity, immune disorders, hypersensitivities, and genetics of immunity. Laboratory introduces techniques including electrophoresis, immunoelectrophoresis, in vitro systems, ELISA, and plaque assay.

BY149L/449L Laboratory Assistant (1-3)
Prerequisites: BY001A and permission of instructor.
Provides an opportunity for Natural Science majors to earn credit assisting instructors. Three units may be used as upper-division units in the major.

BY152/452 Cellular and Molecular Biology (4)
Prerequisites: BY001A/B and CH117A/B and CH150 or BY114 or permission of instructor.
Three-hours lecture, three hours laboratory. Focuses on the structural and biochemical basis of cellular function. Emphasizes cell substructure, cell membranes, cell-surface phenomena, and the storage and transfer of biological information at the biochemical level. Laboratory presents methods of biotechnology.

BY154/454 Molecular Biology for Computer Scientists (3)

Prerequisite: A college level biology course or permission of the instructor.

The field of bioinformatics is interdisciplinary, requiring knowledge of biology and computer science.  This applied course for computer science majors is intended to fill the conceptual gaps that may exist in the areas of protein structure and function, protein synthesis, the genetic code, gene expression, gene sequencing, genetic engineering, and evolutionary biology.  Successful completion of this course will allow a computer science major to understand and use gene sequence databases in bioinformatics application.  Cross-listed with CS154.

BY156/456 Programming for Biologists (3)

Cross-listed with CS156.   See Computer Science listings for course description.

BY158/458 Bioinformatics I (4)

Prerequisites: One Statistics course from MA102 or MA122, and one prerequisite course from BY154 or CS156, or permission of instructor.

This is an introductory course in Bioinformatics.  The course focuses on using various sequencing methodologies and algorithms, software tools, and packages in order to experiment and design protein sequence alignment and modeling from DNA and protein sequences.  Students are introduced to the public DNA and protein databases and to common techniques and software tools used for protein analysis and modeling.  Biology students and Computer Science students work in teams searching, classifying, constructing, comparing, analyzing, and interpreting sequences of proteins. 

BY198/498 Research (1-3)
Prerequisites: BY001A/B.
Provides practical experience with biological research carried out under close supervision of a faculty member. Includes experimental design, library research, laboratory work, and presentation of results. May be repeated for credit.

BY199 Independent Study in Biology (1-3)
Provides an opportunity for individual study or research under the direction of an instructor. See Undergraduate Policies and Procedures section on Independent Study.

BY199H Honors Thesis Research (2-4)
Provides a research opportunity for undergraduates who have completed all requirements for the biology major and have demonstrated outstanding promise.

CD198 Cooperative Education-Internship in Life Science (1-3)
Provides students with the opportunity to gain career-related experience. See Career Development listings for course description.