Bio4241 - Advanced Topics in Genetics

Bio4241 - AdvAnCed GeneTiCs

       e-mail: scarr@mun.ca
      Memorial University of Newfoundland
      Course notes for Principles of Genetics

This course is an extension of Bio2250 to advanced topics in experimental classical & modern genetics

Bio4241, Winter 2026 semester
        Course Syllabus
        Presentation rubric
        Lectures Tu Th 0900-1015, ED-4034
        Lab          Wed 1400-1700, CSF-2307

Introduction to Advanced Topics in Genetics

06 Jan: A History of DNA to 1953

07 Jan LAB: Orientation & Organization

13 & 15 Jan: Advanced Topics in Mutagenesis

SNP variation

Spontaneous & Induced Mutagenesis

Radiation Genetics: High-Energy mutagenesis

Ames Test: Environmental mutagenesis

Suppressor mutations: "Two wrong make a right"

14 Jan lab: Luria & Delbruck (1943). Mutations of bacteria from virus sensitivity to virus resistance. Genetics 28:491.
- [PDF of original] [PDF of presentation] Posted 13 Jan
02 Feb: Lecture Topics

Student Presentations
    See the Nobel e-Museum for biographies, summaries & other resources
    See PubMed at NCBI for papers
    Historical material & animations at Cold Spring Harbor Labs DNA Learning Center

Date	Topic	MSS	PDF of MS	Presentation
07-Jan	"DNA: The Secret of Photo 51"
14-Jan	Foundations of Molecular Biology	Luria & Delbruck (1943). Mutations of bacteria from virus sensitivity to virus resistance. Genetics 28:491.	[Original MS]	[Presentation]
21-Jan	Who discovered the structure of *DNA* ?	NOVA: "DNA: The Secret of Photo 51"	[Original MS]	[Discussion]
28-Jan	Structure of DNA	Watson & Crick (1953). Molecular structure of nucleic acids, Nature 171: 737-738	[Original MS]
	Model Building	Wilkins, Stokes & Wilson (1953). Molecular structure of deoxypentose nucleic acids, Nature 171:738-740	[Original MS]	[Presentation]
	X-Ray Crystallography	Franklin & Gosling (1953). Molecular configuration in sodium thymonucleate, Nature 171:740-741	[Original MS]
04-Feb	Cancer Genetics: first studies	Knudson (1971). Genetics and cancer: statistical study of retinoblastoma. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 68: 820-823.	[Original MS]	[Presentation]
		Knudson (2005). A personal sixty-year tour of genetics and medicine. Ann Rev Hum Genet 6:1-14	[Original MS]
05-Feb	Lecture: Genetic Engineering
10-Feb	Lecture: Biotechnology & Genomics
11-Feb	Cracking the Code	Nirenberg & Mathaei (1961). The dependence of cell-free protein synthesis in E. coli... Proc Natl Acad Sci 47:1588 Nirenberg et al. (1966). The RNA code and protein synthesis. Cold Spring Harbor Symp Quant Biol 31: 11-24.	[Original MS] [Original MS]	[Presentation]
11-Feb	Modes of DNA replication	Meselson & Stahl (1958). The replication of DNA in Escherichia coli. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 44: 671-682.	[Original MS]	[Presentation]
	Techniques of analytical ultracentrifugation	Meselson & Stahl (1958) Figure 4
12-Feb	DARWIN DAY: Guest Speaker
17-Feb	Lecture: "*Cracking the Code*";
18-Feb	"*Chimps & Humans are 99% similar*"	King & Wilson (1975). Evolution at two levels in humans and chimpanzees. Science 188:107-116.	[Original MS]	[Presentation]
18-Feb	DNA Forensics	Gill et al. (1994). Identification of the remains of the Romanov family by DNA analysis. Nature 316:76-79.	[Original MS]	[Presentation]
19-Feb	Lecture: TBA
22-26 Feb	No lectures or labs	No lectures or labs
04-Mar	Midterm: 0900 Tues, 04 Mar [Sample questions]	$ϕ$ X174 mapping exercise	[Original MS]	[Presentation]
11-Mar	Golden Rice [Regis];	*"Golden Rice"* [Regis];	[Original MS]	[Presentation]
11-Mar	Bio-Engineering of Insulin	Bio-Engineering of Insulin
18-Mar	DNA Sequencing: Sanger to NGS	DNA Sequencing [Sanger];	[Original MS]	[Presentation]
18-Mar	Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)	PCR [Mullis]
25-Mar	CRISPR	CRISPR: Le-Cong et al. (2013). CRISPR-Cas systems. Science 339,819	[Original MS ]	[Presentation]
01-Apr	No Lab	No Lab

Introduction to Transposable Elements "Jumping Genes"

SMC: "The Big ORF Theory"; RandomORF [online app]; "Things Fall Apart:" New perspectives on Apis evolution

Part II: Lecture Topics Include:

[] Quantitative Genetics
[] Gibson (2015) Chap 01: Conceptual Foundations of Genetics

[] Paleogenetics: Origins of Human Genetic Diversity [PDF of presentation]
[] Linkage Analysis: Hamer et al. 1993. Science 261:321-327 [PDF of original] [PDF of presentation]
[] Gibson (2015) Chap 01: Conceptual Foundations of Genetics, cont'd

[] Chap 02: The Human Genome [PDF of presentation] [posted]
[] Screening of "Do You Really Want to Know?" (2012) [IMDB info] [Notes on Huntington Disease]
[] Chap 03: Human Evolution [PDF of Presentation] [posted]

[] Chap 04: Normal Variation [link to Presentation] [posted]

[] Chap 06: Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) [link to Presentation] [posted]

[] Nat'l Acad Sci Report on GMO Crops, Part 1 [Link to PDF Presentation] [posted]
[] NAS Report on GMO Crops, Part 2 [Link to PDF Presentation] [posted

Last updated 22 Feb 2026
For Eowyn & Matilda.