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Biotechnology for industries using plants and plant products. The principles and applications of advanced cell biology, plant tissue culture and genetic engineering. Use of natural products in industry.
At the beginning of this course, students will be introduced to the basic principles and applications of plant tissue culture research as well as the biology of cultured plant cells. The connections between developmental processes and plant biotechnological applications will be discussed. An overview of genetic engineering of plants, its potential use and public concerns will follow. In the following section of the course, research advances on aspects of plant hormone biology and the translocated signals involved in flowering will be covered; metabolic engineering of secondary metabolic pathways will be introduced. In the final section of the course, research into the biology and importance of plant cell walls will be examined. Students have the opportunity to participate in a plant tissue culture research project and interact with the experts at a local plant breeding company to gain a better understanding of how biotechnology tools are being used in plant breeding. In addition, all students are required to prepare both a written and an oral scientific presentation based on a library-based research project.
As a student in this course, I will develop the ability to:Access and utilise the scientific literature on plant biotechnology and genetic engineering of plants. (assessment task: library-based research assignment)Synthesise primary scientific literature to provide necessary background and context for understanding and interpreting experimental data. (assessment task: lab-based research project)Have a better understanding of the concepts and associated research progress from selected advanced topics in plant development and their connections to biotechnology. (assessment task: final exam)Transferable Skills RegisterAs a student in this course, I will develop the following skills:Synthesising information. In many science jobs it is necessary to read the literature on a topic and write a literature review. We will discuss literature searching and the essential elements of a sound literature review.Designing experiments, collecting and analysing data: This is an important skill for research in governmental and non-governmental organisations. An integral part of the lab sessions is to facilitate the development of these skills.Reporting findings: Clear written and oral communication skills are essential for most professional careers. We will discuss the elements of effective presentations of findings from experimental work and library-based research.
This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attributes specified below:
Critically competent in a core academic discipline of their award
Students know and can critically evaluate and, where applicable, apply this knowledge to topics/issues within their majoring subject.
BIOL254 or BIOL253/BCHM253 or BIOL231/BCHM202
It is compulsory to wear a lab coat in the laboratory and can be purchased at the beginning of the year.Where to purchase your lab coats and safety glassesPLEASE NOTE YOU NOW COLLECT FROM THE NEW ERNEST RUTHERFORD BUILDING.To purchase: buy a receipt from the Copy Centre, 2nd floor, Puaka-James Hight building, (payment by eftpos and credit card only – lab coats $32, glasses $10), 9.00 am - 4.00 pm, Monday to Friday.Receipts may then be exchanged in the atrium inside the southern entry to the Ernest Rutherford Building, 8.30 – 10 am and 1.30 – 2.30 pm, Monday to Friday for the first two weeks of the semester.After the first two weeks they can be collected from Ernest Rutherford Room 130 (Chemical Store).
David Leung
Paula Jameson
Reijel Gardiner
No textbook has been recommended to be purchased. Relevant library resources and reading materials will be suggested to the students during lectures.
Library portalLearn Site Course Outline
It is compulsory to wear a lab coat in the laboratory.
It is essential that you are aware that plagiarism is considered a very serious offence by the Academic community, the University and the School of Biological Sciences. Plagiarism is defined as taking content from another work or author and presenting it, without attribution, as if it is your own work. Content here includes text (sentences or major parts of sentences), display items (graphs and tables), and overall structure (the detailed sequence of ideas). Plagiarism includes:• re-use of previous assignments (even if each individual sentence has been rephrased to say the same thing in different words, if the overall structure is re-used) • copying of another student’s work (with or without their consent)• the unreferenced use of published material or material from the internet e.g. cutting and pasting of paragraphs or pages into an essay.For most pieces of in-term assessment you will be given information concerning the use of direct and indirect quotes from previously published work. If you are in any doubt about appropriate use of published material, please speak with a member of academic staff. If you are still unsure what plagiarism is, then seek advice.It is a School policy that courses may request you submit work electronically for subsequent analysis of originality using Turnitin. Students agree that by taking courses in BIOL, required papers may be subject to submission for textual similarity review to Turnitin.com for the detection of plagiarism. All submitted papers will be included as source documents in the Turnitin.com reference database solely for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of such papers. Use of the Turnitin.com service is subject to the Terms and Conditions of Use posted on the Turnitin.com site.
A+ 90% or aboveA 85 – 90A- 80 – 84B+ 75 – 79B 70 – 74B- 65 – 69C+ 60 – 64C 55 – 59C- 50 – 54A restricted pass (R) may be awarded to those who are close to a pass (i.e. an overall score of 48-49.9%) AND who have achieved at least a 40% overall score in both in-course assessment and tests/exams. If an R grade is awarded you gain credit for the course but cannot continue into papers that require this course as a pre-requisite. NB. The R grade is only available at 100 and 200 level - it cannot be awarded for third year papers. Failing grades: D 40-49 E 0–39
What if I have written more than the word or page limit?If there is a word limit on an assignment, it is usually there to stop you doing too much work and to encourage you to write succinctly. It also makes things easier to assess. You can be up to 10% over without too much worry, but if the length increases beyond that your mark may suffer due to failure to follow the requirements. If you find yourself way over the word limit have a chat to the lecturer concerned about how to trim your assignment to an acceptable length.
Reports and assignments should be handed in on time. Extensions may be granted if you have a valid reason. If you require an extension, you should request one from the course co-ordinator (or the lecturer responsible for marking the work), with as much notice as possible. Please do this BEFORE the deadline for the assignment. If you have been given an extension you should hand the work DIRECTLY to the course coordinator (do not put it in the drop box as it may not be cleared after the due date).If an extension has not been granted:• work must be handed in by the due date to gain full credit• work handed in up to 7 days after the deadline will be marked, but the marks will be discounted 25% before they are recorded to the student's credit• any work handed in more than 7 days after the deadline date will not be marked or earn credit.
If you feel that illness, injury, bereavement or other extenuating circumstances beyond your control have prevented you from completing an item of assessment worth 10% or more of total course assessment or if these circumstances affected your performance in such assessments, you should apply for Special Consideration. Applications for Special Consideration should be submitted via the Examinations Office website http://www.canterbury.ac.nz/regulations/general/general_regs_aegrotat.shtml and notify the course co-ordinator within five days of the assessment or its due date. If this is for medical reasons you should visit a doctor within 24 hours of the assessment (application form available on-line or from the Student Health Centre). The Special Consideration provisions are intended to assist students who have covered the work of a course but have been prevented by illness or other critical circumstances from demonstrating their mastery of the material or skills at the time of assessment – they do not excuse you from doing the assessment within a reasonable time agreed with the course co-ordinator. You should expect to be required to submit additional work if you miss a major assignment (e.g. a field trip for which a major write-up is required). In rare cases you may not be able to complete an assessment or attend a field trip, because of involvement in international or national representative sport or cultural groups. In such cases you should also apply for Special Consideration. Please review the Special Considerations policy because very few kinds of activities will be eligible for consideration (e.g. holiday trips, birthday parties etc. are not given special status in the University policy).Students prevented by extenuating circumstances from completing the course after the final date for withdrawing, may apply for Special Consideration for late discontinuation of the course. Applications must be submitted to the Examinations Office within five days of the end of the main examination period for the semester.For further details on Special Consideration applications, please refer to the Examinations Office website http://www.canterbury.ac.nz/regulations/general/general_regs_aegrotat.shtml.
In BIOL, we require a satisfactory level of achievement in both the theoretical aspects of the discipline and in practical activities. This means you must attend all class activities and submit all items of assessment unless you have a very good reason not to (e.g. medical reasons). A student must attain an average score of at least 40% for in-course assessments (e.g. assignments, reports) and an average score of at least 40% in the exam and/or test, AND score at least 50% overall for the course, to be awarded a passing grade. See course outline for clarification of the assessment items included in each category and ask the coordinator if you are still unsure.
We welcome constructive feedback at all times – help us to make this a valuable course for you. We endeavour to remain approachable at all times. If you would rather give feedback anonymously, please use the on-line course survey or talk to lab demonstrators, or your class rep (who will all report back to the staff-student liaison committee that includes a representative from each of the undergraduate classes). Class representatives will be selected from each class at the start of course.
If you feel you have not been fairly treated during this course, please raise the issue with the lecturer or course co-ordinator in the first instance. Other avenues include your class rep., who can raise issues anonymously, or the UCSA education coordinator.
All assignments should be placed in the designated collection box in the foyer of the 2nd floor of the School of Biological Sciences (near the main office), unless directed otherwise by the course co-ordinator. All assignments must be accompanied by a cover sheet signed by you stating that the submitted work is not plagiarised. Cover sheets are available on top of the collection boxes, or you can download one from the Biology website (under Undergraduate). In addition, you may also be asked to submit your work electronically (via Learn) for analysis in Turnitin. You will be given instructions on how to do this in the assignment handout. Marked assignments can be collected from the Secretaries' Office between the hours 9.30-10.30am and 1.30-2.30pm, unless directed otherwise by the course co-ordinator. Teaching staff will endeavour to return work as soon as possible, and should contact you if there are likely to be any delays that will prevent return within the maximum 4-week timeframe.
Domestic fee $865.00
International fee $3,788.00
* All fees are inclusive of NZ GST or any equivalent overseas tax, and do not include any programme level discount or additional course-related expenses.
For further information see School of Biological Sciences .