Summary Course Description

This course and its accompanying laboratory ( MCDB 4630 ) provide an introduction to vertebrate embryology and to current knowledge about the molecular, cellular, and genetic basis of animal development. Although this course focuses on vertebrates, we will discuss some invertebrate systems as well. The Web site for this course is http://www.Colorado.EDU/MCDB/MCDB4620/.

Lectures: The classes are 12:30-1:45 pm, T TH Education 220. A syllabus is posted on the home page. The lectures will be given by Drs. Jennifer Knight, Kevin Jones, and Brian Parr as indicated on the schedule.

Office hours: Due to an unusually heavy teaching load this semseter, Dr. Knight will have office hours IN LAB, or by appointment. TA's will have additional office hours, TBA.

Laboratory: The laboratory is a separate 2-credit course ( MCDB 4630) that is a co-requisite with this lecture course. Dr. Knight is also in charge of this course. You will have one four-hour laboratory session per week, beginning the SECOND WEEK of classes.

Textbooks and Required Supplementary Materials: The text for this course is Developmental Biology, 6th edition, by S. Gilbert. This book includes traditional and contemporary approaches to the study of development, as we do in this course. Required lecture notes will be available in advance on the Web site, and will generally be available at least 2 days prior to the lecture. Figures for the lectures will also be made available on the home page. Both will be in PDF format. For the discussions (more below), journal articles will be available by clicking on the link from the home page.

Reading: The reading indicated for each lecture is intended to help you understand the topics discussed in the lectures, the lecture notes, and the discussion classes and covered in the problem sets. These are the topics on which the exams and quizzes will be based. Textbook reading assignments will cover material you should learn but may also include some material we think is less important. Lecture notes generally will be more detailed for topics that are not covered well in the textbooks. Additional suggested supplementary readings will be taken from current journals and will be made available on the web site.

Prerequisites: The prerequisites for this course are MCDB 3120 (Cell Biology) and MCDB 3400 (Molecular Genetics) or MCDB 3500 (Molecular Biology), or equivalent courses elsewhere.

Grading: Discussion Classes, Problem Sets, Quizzes:
Grading will be based on a point system, with 500 total points for the course, distributed as follows:

Quizzes	25 points
Problem sets	75 points
Discussion/group work	120 points
In class exams	180 points
Cummulative Final Exam	100 points

Quizzes. To encourage you to come to class prepared, we will give a quiz at the beginning of every class period (except on exam, review session or discussion days) worth 1 or 2 points. These quizzes will consist of a single question about the lecture material posted on the web page for that day. There will not be a quiz on the first day of class.

Problem Sets. During the term you will be asked to turn in three take-home problem sets, each worth 25 points. These problems are intended to aid you in keeping up with the material. You may work together on these questions, using your lecture notes, text, or any other reference material to answer the problems, but what you turn in must be in your own words. The format will be a combination of short answer and longer questions, intended to take 1 to 2 hours to complete. Problem sets will be posted on the web page one week before they are due. Due dates are shown on the syllabus.

Discussions. For each of four classes during the semester, indicated on the syllabus, we will assign a paper from the developmental biology literature for you to read and provide you with a list of specific questions about the paper several days in advance of the class. You will be assigned to a group of 3-4 students in lab during the first week of labs. We would like you to discuss the paper with members of your group, and then write answers to the questions and turn them in at the beginning of class. These answers will be worth 20 points .

You may have these answers graded in either one of two ways. If your group as a whole elects to do so, you may collaborate on the answers and turn in just one set for the group; each of you will then receive whatever grade is assigned. Alternatively, you may answer the questions individually in your own words (after discussion with the group), and receive an individual grade for your answers.

In the Discussion classes, we ask that you sit together with your lab group. When the paper is posted (on the Website), we will assign one aspect of the paper (background, goals of the research, figures, tables, methods, conclusions, etc.) to each group. You will have to read the whole paper to answer the written questions described above, but you as a group should pay special attention to your assigned part of the paper, and be sure that you understand it well enough to explain it to others. Then choose a spokesperson from the group. In class, we will go through the paper one aspect at a time and call on the spokesperson for each group to explain it, with help from other group members if necessary. Each member of the group must serve as the spokesperson at least once during the semester. Additional discussion will follow: be prepared to answer other questions not on the list. This presentation will be worth 10 points for each member of the group, depending on the performance of the spokesperson and the group as a whole.

Exams. There will be three exams on dates shown in the syllabus. Each of these is worth 60 points. The cummulative exam will cover all the material from the course, and will be worth 100 pts. The final is on Dec 13, from 1:30-4 pm.