A Central Molecular Biology Laboratory for Curriculum Enhancement of Undergraduates

建议项目：建立一个中央分子生物学设施。这项计划的目标是建立一个中央的、最先进的分子生物学实验室，以加强来自大学各个系的学生的学习经验，包括生物、化学和临床实验室科学。为了让我们的学生在毕业后具有竞争力并丰富他们的社区，他们需要掌握最先进的技术知识。该项目是为了获得必要的设备来教授核酸研究方法和重组DNA技术。该实验室将建立完善的DNA和RNA分析，如南方和北方杂交，基因组和染色体外限制性片段长度多态性，基因库和聚合酶链反应。该设备将用于生物学课程的分子生物学入门教学，临床检验科学课程的高级细菌学教学，化学课程的生物化学教学。在分子生物学入门课程中，学生将学习DNA操作的基本技术，并完成一个从基因库中克隆细菌基因的项目。在高级细菌学中，学生将使用限制性片段长度多态性和Southern blot杂交以及聚合酶链反应方法识别特定的细菌种类。在生物化学课程中，学生将利用分子生物学实验室获得人类DNA指纹识别（特别是用PCR检测VNTR多态性和用PCR检测A~插入多态性）、B-DNA的限制性位点定位和南方杂交、一般DNA限制性位点研究以及甲基化对DNA限制性位点分析的影响的实践经验。这个项目不仅会提高大学本科生的学习水平，还会进一步造福社区，因为我们的招生中还包括中学教师证书的学生，他们将把他们的知识带到当地的学校。此外，我们的许多科学和技术毕业生成为高中科学教师。为了增加项目的影响，pi还建议提供分子生物学研讨会，以证明将这些技术纳入现有科学课程的便利性。以下两个目标受众将被解决：(1)地区高中教师和(2)德州农工大学科珀斯克里斯蒂分校和地区2年制和4年制机构的同事，他们目前还没有使用这些技术。

PROPOSED PROJECT: To set up a central molecular biology facility. The objective of this project is to set up a central, state-of-the-art molecular biology laboratory to enhance the learning experience of students from various departments at the university, including, Biology, Chemistry, and Clinical Laboratory Science. In order for our students to be competitive after graduation and to enrich their communities, they need to have a working knowledge of state-of-the-art technology. The project is to acquire the necessary equipment to teach methods of nucleic acid studies and recombinant DNA techniques. The laboratory will be set up to perfoun DNA and RNA analysis, such as Southern and Northern blot hybridizations, genomic and extrachromosomal restriction fragment length polymorphism, gene banks and polymerase chain reaction. The equipment will be used in Biology program for teaching Introductory Molecular Biology, in Clinical Laboratory Science for teaching Advanced Bacteriology, and in Chemistry for Biochemistry. In Introductory Molecular Biology, the students will be taught the basic techniques in DNA manipulation and will be given a project of cloning a bacterial gene from a gene bank. In Advanced Bacteriology, the students will identify specific bacteria species using restriction fragment length polymorphism and Southern blot hybridization as well as polymerase chain reaction methods. In Biochemistry students will use the molecular biology laboratory to obtain hands-on experience with human DNA fingerprinting (specifically VNTR polymorphism detection by PCR and A~ Insertion polymorphism detection by PCR), restriction mapping and southern hybridization of B-DNA, general DNA restriction studies, and to study the effects of methylation on DNA restriction analysis. This project would not only enhance the learning of the undergraduates at the university, its will further benefit the community because our enrollment also include secondary school teacher certificate students who will bring their k nowledge to the local schools. In addition, many of our science and technology graduates become high school science instructors. To increase the impact of the project, the PIs also propose to provide molecular biology workshops to demonstrate the ease of incorporation of the techniques into an existing science curriculum. The following two target audiences would be addressed: (1) area high school teachers and (2) colleagues at Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi and area 2-year and 4-year institutions who are currently not using the techniques.