BIOL444 - Molecular Evolution of Physiological Functions

This course is designed for students who are interested in understanding how physiological functions are achieved. Taking advantage of the recent explosion in genetic data and high-resolution protein structure analysis across organisms, the course focuses on the evolution of physiological functions at the genetic, structural, circuit and organismal levels. Examples include the co-evolution of toxins and toxin resistance between hunter and prey, the evolution of substance transport across cell membranes, intracellular signaling cascades, intercellular communication, distributed and centralized nervous systems, neural circuits controlling physiological functions such as feeding, locomotion and visual information processing. Students are expected to learn 1) basic physiological processes, their origin and adaptation, 2) modern genetic, structural and physiological techniques, 3) to critically evaluate research findings, 4) to present scientific papers, and 5) to write a research report.