Courses

The listing of a course description here does not guarantee a course’s being offered in a particular semester. Please refer to the published schedule of classes on the Student Link for confirmation a class is actually being taught and for specific course meeting dates and times.

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  • CAS BI 530: Forest Ecology
    Prerequisites: CASBI107 and CASBI303 or CASBI306, or consent of instructor. The major biotic and abiotic factors influencing forest ecosystem composition, structure, and function. Role of solar radiation, hydrology, soils, succession, and management of forest ecosystems. Includes New England case study. Three hours lecture plus discussion. Meets with CAS GE 530. Effective Spring 2023, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Oral and/or Signed Communication, Scientific Inquiry II, Research and Information Literacy.
  • CAS BI 531: Ichthyology: Behavior, Ecology, and Evolution of Fish
    A comprehensive introduction to fish biology and systematics. Emphasis on phylogenetic relationships, ecology, and behavior. Labs include morphological studies of specimens and behavioral studies of live fishes. This course is a prerequisite for the field course. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Scientific Inquiry II, Creativity/Innovation. Effective Fall 2021, this course no longer carries any Hub units.
  • CAS BI 535: Translational Research in Alzheimer?s Disease
    An introduction to translational research focused on the search for new therapeutic targets in Alzheimer's disease. Emphasis on the development of cellular and animal models for preclinical research, and on past and current clinical trials in Alzheimer's patients. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Oral and/or Signed Communication, Ethical Reasoning, Research and Information Literacy.
    • Ethical Reasoning
    • Oral and/or Signed Communication
    • Research and Information Literacy
  • CAS BI 539: Coral Reef Dynamics: Shallow Waters, Deep Time
    Tropical reefs-- diverse, complex, and ancient-- exhibit lawful cycles of growth, degradation, and regeneration. Explore these through observations on the Belize Barrier Reef in fossil reef environments and through laboratory experiments. Insights are applied to reef conservation in today's changing world. Also offered as CAS EE 539. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Scientific Inquiry II, Creativity/Innovation.
    • Scientific Inquiry II
    • Creativity/Innovation
  • CAS BI 541: Coral Reef Resilience and Restoration
    Caribbean coral reefs have fallen into ruin. Students develop methods to restore reef health by applying genomics, life history theory, landscape ecology and climatology. This course is an advanced follow-on to CAS BI/ES 539 (Coral Reef Dynamics), and includes field work in Belize. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Oral and/or Signed Communication, Research and Information Literacy.
    • Oral and/or Signed Communication
    • Research and Information Literacy
  • CAS BI 542: Neuroethology
    An in-depth study of the neural mechanisms underlying natural behaviors in animals, integrating perspectives from behavioral ecology and neurobiology. Behaviors that are central to fitness will be studied in detail, including the sensory and motor bases of prey detection, predator avoidance, communication, courtship, navigation, and migration. A wide variety of non- model organisms such as honey bees, owls, bats, and crickets will be discussed. Lectures are integrated with student-led discussions of relevant research papers. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Oral and/or Signed Communication, Scientific Inquiry II, Research and Information Literacy.
    • Scientific Inquiry II
    • Oral and/or Signed Communication
    • Research and Information Literacy
  • CAS BI 545: Neurobiology of Motivated Behavior
    Neural circuits and neuroendocrine mechanisms controlling reproductive, parental, and affiliative behaviors, decision making, ingestive behaviors and metabolism, circadian rhythms, pain perception, and reward in animals, with an emphasis on vertebrates. Lectures are integrated with student-led discussions of relevant research papers. Also offered as CAS NE 545.
  • CAS BI 546: Marine Megafaunal Ecology: Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary and Surrounding Waters
    Marine macrofauna: whales, seals, seabirds, fishes, turtles, jellies, and people in Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. Evolution, food webs, and distributional ecology; physical and human influences on foraging and movement behavior. Student research builds ecosystem-based science for Sanctuary management. Effective Fall 2019, this course is part of a Hub sequence.
    • Part of a Hub sequence
  • CAS BI 547: Marine Invertebrates of the New England Coast
    Explores the diversity of marine invertebrates, including body plans, feeding biology, reproductive strategies, and developmental programs. Field biodiversity surveys and laboratory studies on invertebrates from coastal New England habitats, especially salt marshes and coastal embayments. Part of the Marine Semester. Cannot be taken for credit in addition to CAS BI 569.
  • CAS BI 548: Marine Microbial Ecology: Exploring Marine Microbes through Microscopy
    Microorganisms are the most abundant form of life in the ocean. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) is a critical tool that uses sequencing to develop a deeper sense of specific microbe roles in an ecosystem. This project-based course weaves together scientific background, analytical tools, and data processing and analysis. Students gain insight into the complexity and importance of marine microbial communities. With lab-based FISH projects, students design and conduct an adaptive set of experiments. Through computational data analysis, students turn raw data into usable results. Effective Fall 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Oral and/or Signed Communication, Research and Information Literacy.
    • Oral and/or Signed Communication
    • Research and Information Literacy
  • CAS BI 550: Marine Genomics
    Covers the evolution of genomes, the architecture of gene networks, and the connection between genotype and phenotype in marine organisms, as well as the technical development of modern genomics. Student research projects utilize modern genomics experimental approaches. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Teamwork/Collaboration.
    • Teamwork/Collaboration
  • CAS BI 551: Biology of Stem Cells
    Views on stem cell research range from assumptions of a potential cure for most diseases to fears that it will depreciate the value of human life. This course equips students with the science that underlies this discussion, including the biological properties of stem cells and the experimental hurdles to utilization in regenerative medicine.
  • CAS BI 552: Molecular Biology 1
    Synthesis, structure, function, regulation of macromolecules (DNA, RNA, protein). Prokaryotic and eukaryotic molecular biology. Topics include: replication, repair, recombination, transcription, translation, 5-methylcytosine, transcription factors, DNA looping (enhancer- promoter, insulator, etc.), histone modification/chromatin remodeling, non-coding RNA. Discussion of genetic and recombinant DNA techniques, including CRISPR/Cas9.
  • CAS BI 553: Molecular Biology 2
    This course focuses on eukaryotic gene regulation. Course topics include genome organization and DNA rearrangement, RNA interference and noncoding RNAs, gene editing, mouse transgenic approaches, signal transduction pathways, chromatin structure, and cell cycle. Research articles will be discussed.
  • CAS BI 556: Drug Discovery in Neuroscience
    The process of drug discovery is complex especially when a drug is intended to treat a neurological disease. This discussion-heavy course examines the specific challenges of modern neuroscience drug discovery, including: target selection, pharmacodynamics, animal models, and clinical trials. Effective Fall 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Digital/Multimedia Expression, Scientific Inquiry II, Creativity/Innovation.
    • Scientific Inquiry II
    • Digital/Multimedia Expression
    • Creativity/Innovation
  • CAS BI 558: Coastal Biogeochemistry
    Examines coastal energy flow and nutrient cycling in the context of human impacts. Links between local and global scales are emphasized. Course is part of the Marine Semester and involves field and laboratory work. Also offered as CAS ES 558. Effective Fall 2019, this course is part of a Hub sequence.
    • Part of a Hub sequence
  • CAS BI 560: Systems Biology
    Examines critical components of systems biology, including design principles of biological systems (e.g., feedback, synergy, cooperativity), and the generation and analysis of large-scale datasets (e.g., protein- protein interaction, mRNA expression).
  • CAS BI 561: Proteostasis in the Biology of Neurodegenerative Diseases
    A hands-on class focusing on the mechanisms that control protein homoestasis, and on the approaches that we can use to study how it may change in conditions associated with neurodegenerative diseases. The class mimics, as much as possible, a real research environment, as students carry out experiments throughout the semester, learn how to develop and test new hypotheses, and also share knowledge through weekly readings and presentation of research articles inherent to the topics of the class. Effective Fall 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Scientific Inquiry II, Creativity/Innovation, Research and Information Literacy.
    • Scientific Inquiry II
    • Research and Information Literacy
    • Creativity/Innovation
  • CAS BI 565: Functional Genomics
    This paper- and problem-based course focuses on functional genomics topics such as genetic variation, genome organization, and mechanisms of transcriptional and post-transcriptional gene regulation. Up-to-date methods include NGS, genome editing, ChIP-seq, chromatin accessibility assays, transcriptomics, and proteomics. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Oral and/or Signed Communication, Writing-Intensive Course, Critical Thinking.
    • Oral and/or Signed Communication
    • Critical Thinking
    • Writing-Intensive Course
  • CAS BI 566: DNA Dynamics in Disease
    What goes wrong to cause disease? In this course we examine diseases caused by problems in basic cellular processes including mitosis, meiosis, and DNA repair. We focus on past and current research that has led to the understanding of the mechanisms contributing to disease. Content is delivered through active, engaging lectures where you analyze data from past and current research papers, and think critically to answer questions. Paper discussion days include an in- depth analysis of one primary literature article that is central to the field. Effective Fall 2022, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Scientific Inquiry II, Critical Thinking, Research and Information Literacy.
    • Scientific Inquiry II
    • Critical Thinking
    • Research and Information Literacy

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