BCH 590E Enzyme Kinetics and Mechanisms
Spring 2006
North Carolina State University
T H 10:15 am - 11:30 am , 128A Polk Hall

Email : WebCT Vista for BCH 610E/810E
Office Hours : T H 2:00 - 4:00 pm
Prerequisites : BCH 451, BCH 455/555 or equivalent
Credits : 3 h

Text : Structure and Mechanism in Protein Science by Alan Fersht;
1999; W.H. Freeman and Company; ISBN 0-7167-3268-8.

Purpose of the Course

This course is designed to provide a funda me ntal understanding of enzy me kinetics and the chemical and physical properties of enzy me catalysis and specificity. Principles of enzy me catalysis will be presented with particular emphasis on experi me ntal design and interpretation. Special topics will include steady state and pre-steady state kinetics, transition state theory, coenzy me s, inhibition, and reaction me chanisms. Once this course has been completed, the student will have a firm foundation regarding enzy me kinetics that will permit critical reading and evaluation of the scientific literature.

Expectations

Since this class is a graduate level course in biochemistry (and is open to advanced senior-level undergraduate students), each student is expected to attend class, read the material, and complete any assignments. Exceptions to the grading rules (such as unfinished work assignments or missed exams) require prior communication with the instructor and official, university-accepted, written documentation for excused absences (refer to http://www.ncsu.edu/policies/academic_affairs/pols_regs/REG205.00.4.php).

WebCT Vista

WebCT Vista will be used to post the course syllabus, course material, some important calendar dates, and for class related email. Only registered students of the class have access to the WebCT Vista site for the course. To gain access to the site, go to http://vista.ncsu.edu and login using your Unity ID and Password. If you have problems logging into WebCT Vista or using WebCT Vista, use the online help, call the WebCT Vista Help Desk at 515-HELP, email help@ncsu.edu, or ask the instructor.

Exams

There will be two in-class exams and a final exam. Each in-class exam will contribute 25% towards the final course grade, and the final will contribute 30%. The in-class exams will consist of short answers, essay questions, and may include a take-ho me component that will be due on the next class period. The final exam will be comprehensive and may contain a take-ho me component that will be handed out the last day of class and due at the ti me of the final exam.

Exam 1: T Feb. 14 10:15-11:30 am
Exam 2: T Mar. 28 10:15-11:30 am
Final Exam: T May 9 8-11 am

Problem Sets

Problem sets will be handed out periodically, particularly for the kinetics part of the class. It is your responsibility to work through the problems. The problem sets will not be graded. An answer key will be provided a few weeks after the problems have been assigned.

Research Manuscript

The research manuscript for the class (20% of the course grade) will be a report that should be a short communication based on the format adopted by the journal Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. The student will be presented with a series of experiments and the collected data. Each student will need to analyze the data according to the techniques presented in-class in order to derive the kinetic parameters. The manuscript should include a summary, an introduction with appropriate literature citations, a brief methods section, a results section (including figures and/or tables), and a discussion with appropriate literature citations. It is not necessary to represent all of the raw data that is provided nor is it necessary to reproduce the entire presentation of the procedures of the methods used to collect the data. At the halfway point of the course, the raw data and appropriate material will be assigned. At this stage of the class, each student will have mastered a sufficient amount of material and thus be able to begin to effectively work on the manuscript. Papers are due as indicated in the syllabus and must be submitted in both electronic (Word.doc file) and hardcopy (paper) form.

Grading

The course grade will be based on the two in-class exams (25% each), the final exam (30%), and the research manuscript (20%). Additional work and readings may be assigned, but these activities will not be graded. The grading scale will follow the one established by the university (refer to http://www.ncsu.edu/policies/academic_affairs/pols_regs/REG205.00.13.php) as follows: A+(98-100%), A (94-97%), A-(91-93%), B+(88-90%), B(84-87%), B-(81-83%), C+(78-80%), C(74-77%), C-(71-73%), D+(68-70%), D(64-67%), D-(61-63%), F (= 60%). Depending on the exam results, the grades may have to be curved. The curving will only help your grade. For example, a 78% may be curved to a B, but an 83% will not be curved to a C.

Calendar of Events (approximate):

*Based on the topic covered, additional handouts will be provided.