636-0002-00L  Synthetic Biology I

SemesterSpring Semester 2014
LecturersS. Panke, J. Stelling
Periodicityyearly recurring course
Language of instructionEnglish


AbstractTheoretical & practical introduction into the design of dynamic biological systems at different levels of abstraction, ranging from biological fundamentals of systems design (introduction to bacterial gene regulation, elements of transcriptional & translational control, advanced genetic engineering) to engineering design principles (standards, abstractions) mathematical modelling & systems design.
ObjectiveAfter the course, students will be able to theoretically master the biological and engineering fundamentals required for biological design to be able to participate in the international iGEM competition (see Link).
ContentThe overall goal of the course is to familiarize the students with the potential, the requirements and the problems of designing dynamic biological elements that are of central importance for manipulating biological systems, primarily (but not exclusively) prokaryotic systems. Next, the students will be taken through a number of successful examples of biological design, such as toggle switches, pulse generators, and oscillating systems, and apply the biological and engineering fundamentals to these examples, so that they get hands-on experience on how to integrate the various disciplines on their way to designing biological systems.
Lecture notesHandouts during classes.
LiteratureMark Ptashne, A Genetic Switch (3rd ed), Cold Spring Haror Laboratory Press
Uri Alon, An Introduction to Systems Biology, Chapman & Hall
Prerequisites / Notice1) Though we do not place a formal requirement for previous participation in particular courses, we expect all participants to be familiar with a certain level of biology and of mathematics. Specifically, there will be material for self study available on Link as of mid January, and everybody is expected to be fully familiar with this material BEFORE THE CLASS BEGINS to be able to follow the different lectures.
2) The course is also thought as a preparation for the participation in the international iGEM synthetic biology summer competition (Link, Link). This competition is also the contents of the course Synthetic Biology II. Link