Category Archives: BIO 181

Lecture 4.6: Electron Transport and Oxidative Phosphorylation Overview Krebs, Lipmann and others were able to work out where the carbon dioxide originated during oxidative metabolism. But the key question still lingered–it’s oxidative metabolism, so where is the oxygen used? The … Continue reading →

Lecture 4.5: Krebs Cycle Overview Glycolysis occurs in all cells, and therefore can lay claim to being the heart of energy metabolism in all cells. However, it’s ability to transfer energy from organic compounds to ATP is very limited. Most … Continue reading →

Lecture 4.4: Glycolysis Overview The average cell contains about 2 billion ATP molecules. At rest, it “burns” (oxidizes) about 100 million per second. That gives it a reserve of about 20 seconds before the ATP is used up completely. If … Continue reading →

Lecture 4.2: Introduction to Metabolism Overview Human beings are walking, talking biochemical reactors. We are part of this universe. We cannot, therefore, violate the laws that govern this universe. Among these inviolable proscriptions are the laws of thermodynamics, which ban … Continue reading →

Lecture 4.1: Membranes and Membrane Transport Overview An essential step in the evolution of life was the compartmentalization and confinement of biochemical reactants so that metabolic reaction sequences could occur efficiently. Membranes provide the solution to the problem. Very simple … Continue reading →

Lecture 2.8: Hardy-Weinberg Overview Can we predict evolution? The answer is, maybe surprisingly, yes. Increasing numbers of researchers–including me–are working to predict the course of evolution in tumors under treatment. But can you tell if something is evolving? The answer … Continue reading →

Lecture 2.5: Exceptions to Mendelian Patterns Overview Traits that obey Mendel’s principles, which are quite creatively called Mendelian traits, are rare, which is one reason why Mendel had such a difficult time propagating his ideas during his lifetime. Here we … Continue reading →

Lecture 2.3: Independent Assortment Overview In the second half of Mendel’s seminal paper he begins to look at how multiple traits are passed together. He begins with the 2 simple seed traits–shape and color. His observations lead him to the … Continue reading →

Lecture 2.2: Mendel’s Principle of Segregation Overview In the previous lecture, we outlined Mendel’s observations. But if that’s all Mendel did, very few people would have ever heard of him, whereas today he is rightfully one of the most famous … Continue reading →