商品簡介
Biotechnology is one of the fastest growing scientific fields and is very promising in the coming 21st century going along with new advances in genomics. New products made based on discoveries through research and development continue to transform the way we live. Because biotechnology makes use of living organisms or their products for the benefit of humans and the environment, it has several sub-disciplines depending on the type of research organism or system being studied. Whatever the source organism or system, it remains an experimental science where most research is performed in the laboratory. It is therefore vital that future biotech scientists become familiar with up-to-date experimental methods, experimental designs, and data analyses. Employers, both in industry and academia, have a preference for scientists who have good hands-on laboratory experience, can work as part of a team, good critical thinking complemented by good communication skills. This lab manual is designed to enhance those skills by adopting an inquiry-based self-directed active learning approach to learning in the lab.
To implement an active learning approach, advanced study assignments (pre-lab and post-lab questions) are listed for each lab protocol to help students prepare for each laboratory session and apply knowledge to solve its related problems. These self-directed study sections will encourage students to extend their knowledge from simply performing experiments to a higher level of critical thinking and troubleshooting. It is important that students prepare in advance so that they can clearly understand the protocols and concepts while they are performing the experiments. Data tables are provided to aid in data collection, and step-by-step procedures for data analysis are described in details. The concepts and principles behind each experiment are explained in the introduction part, and sometimes additional background information on specific details is provided at the end of the protocol. In order to understand how an experiment works, it is important to know what materials and equipments are used. The reagents and microbiological strains required for each experiment are listed at the beginning of each experiment. Overall, the text format provides a student group-based intensive and individual lab experience.
Throughout the lab exercises we have students work with the two most widely used model organisms,E. coli and S. cervisae, because not only are they much easier and safer to handle compared to other organisms, but are also applicable to diverse cellular and molecular biology experiments. We often mentioned specific brand names of reagents because we have had satisfactory experiences with those products, however, comparable products from competitor companies can also be used allowing the users to work within their budget or personal preferences. To facilitate preparedness and instruction, we have provided detailed notes for instructors in Appendix I section. We also have included laboratory schedules outlining the individual experiments used in each lab session. These schedules will be helpful especially when instructors want to choose certain experiments tailored to their own needs at their discretion. In Appendix II, we have included a lab math practice problem set for the students to master the basic laboratory mathematics skills because these skills are crucial for success in experiments conducted by technicians and bench scientists. In order to increase the utility of the lab manuals, we included the information on distributor's addresses for microbiological strains and plasmids used in the lab exercises in Appendix III. In addition, we will provide all the answers to the pre-lab and post-lab assignment questions as a separate instructor's companion to each lab manual. This will encourage instructors to purchase the manual as well as help grade the assignments.
作者簡介
Seung-Beom Hong is a Visiting Assistant Professor of Biotechnology at the University of Houston-Clear Lake in Houston, TX, USA.
M. Bazlur Rashid is an Associate Professor of Biology and Biotechnology and former Program Chair of Biotechnology at the University of Houston-Clear Lake in Houston, TX, USA.
Lory Z. Santiago-Vazquez is an Associate Professor of Biotechnology at the University of Houston-Clear Lake in Houston, TX, USA.
