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Graduate Course Descriptions

*Course descriptions from the 2017 - 2018 Virginia Tech Graduate Catalog

 

BIOL 5024 - Population and Community Ecology

Population dynamics, interspecific interactions, succession, and diversity of plants and animals. Quantitative approaches emphasized. Ecology course required. II 

  • Credit Hour(s): 0 OR 4
  • Lecture Hour(s): 0 OR 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lab, Lecture

 

BIOL 5034 (FREC 5034) - Ecosystem Dynamics
Application of the systems perspective to functional characteristics and dynamics of ecosystems: energy flow, biogeochemical cycling, and stability/resilience in the response to environmental change. Computer simulation of ecosystem response to change. Pre: Graduate Standing. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 4
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lab, Lecture, VB, Online Lecture
  • Prerequisite(s): (MATH 2015 (UG), CS 1014 (UG)) OR (MATH 2015, CS 1014)

 

BIOL 5064 (ALS 5064) (PPWS 5064) (BCHM 5064) - Seminar in Molecular Cell Biology and Biotechnology
Review and discussion of current problems and literature in molecular cell biology and biotechnology by students, VPI&SU faculty and outside speakers. Students give formal presentations of research results or current literature. May be taken on pass-fail basis. Students enrolled in the MCBB Ph.D. option will be required to give one formal presentation on an A-F basis. Graduate status in participating MCBB departments required. I,II 

  • Credit Hour(s): 1
  • Lecture Hour(s): 1
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 5074 - Stream Ecology
Application of ecological principles to running water environments. Recitation: critical assessment of contemporary literature and research themes associated with stream ecosystems. Graduate standing required. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 0 OR 4
  • Lecture Hour(s): 0 OR 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lab, Lecture

 

BIOL 5094 - Methods in Biogeochemical Analysis
Quantitative methods in the analysis of air, water, soil and sediment samples for biogeochemical properties and proceses. Sample collection, preparation, instrument calibration, operation and trouble-shooting, quality assurance and reporting of biogeochemical data. Pre: Graduate Standing. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 2
  • Lecture Hour(s): 1
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture, Online Lecture

 

BIOL 5104 - Advanced Developmental Biology
Morphological, physiological and molecular events in embryological and developmental systems, including regulation at the level of transcription, translation, and enzyme or hormone activation. Review of the current literature. Pre-requisite: Graduate standing required. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 4
  • Lecture Hour(s): 4
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 5114 - Advanced Global Change Ecology
Human alterations of climate, landscapes and biogeochemical cycling influence ecological structure and functioning at the global scale. Such changes have the potential to disrupt natural and managed ecosystems with potentially significant biological and economic impacts. This course will examine the influences of these global changes on ecosystem processes and biodiversity, drawing on paleo-and contemporary examples. Current and future potential feedbacks between biological systems and the global environment will also be addressed. Pre: Graduate standing. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 4
  • Lecture Hour(s): 4
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture, Online Lecture

 

BIOL 5134 - Advanced Evolutionary Genetics
Genetic variation, agents of change in gene frequencies, molecular evolution, mechanisms of speciation, ecological speciation. Comparison of theoretical models with natural and laboratory populations. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 4
  • Lecture Hour(s): 4
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture, Online Lecture

 

BIOL 5154 - Exercises in Grantsmanship
All aspects of obtaining grant funding in the sciences. Grant writing, ethics, development of proposals for national funding agencies, the peer review system, and participation in a mock grant panel meeting. Pre-requisite: Graduate Standing required. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 5174 - Graduate Seminar
Offered in the major subdisciplines of biology. I,II 

  • Credit Hour(s): 1
  • Lecture Hour(s): 1
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 5184 - Prokaryot Recombinant Proteins
Concepts of bacterial recombinant protein expression, purification, and handling. Protein bioinformatics resource and the functional characterists of proteins with biochemical and biophysical techniques. Discussion of research articles related to class topics. Pre-requisite: Graduate Standing required. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture
  • Prerequisite(s): BCHM 4115

 

BIOL 5304 - Plant Stress Physiology
Analysis of physiological responses of agricultural and native plants to environmental stresses such as extremes of temperature, availability of water and nutrients, and presence of air pollutants. Emphasis on linking stress caused changes in carbon gain, water loss, nutrient utilization, and energy balance with changes in growth. Laboratory to introduce equipment and research approaches used in greenhouse and field studies. II 

  • Credit Hour(s): 4
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lab, Lecture

 

BIOL 5334 - Advanced Chemical Ecology
Chemical interactions between organisms with emphasis on the plant biosphere. Fundamental concepts, theories, and general methodology of chemical ecology; mechanisms of chemically-mediated interactions between plants and other organisms; effects of global change on chemical interactions; and engineering of natural chemical defenses in sustainable agriculture. Pre: Graduate standing. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 5404 - Neuroethology
Overview of Neuroethology, the study of the neural basis of animal behavior. Topics include: organization of the nervous system, control and coordination of movement, sensory transduction, visual and auditory prey detection and recognition, visual communication, matched filters/predictive coding of sensory information, learning templates, computational maps, sensory integration, behavioral plasticity, spatial cognition, neural plasticity, and lateralization of neural function. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 5424 (GBCB 5424) (CS 5424) - Computational Cell Biology
Use of mathmatical models (nonlinear ordinary differential equations and stochastic processes) and simulation algorithms to explore the complex feedback circuits that control the behavior of living cells. Concepts and techniques from dynamical systems theory, bifurcation analysis, numerical methods, SBML (systems biology makeup language) and Matlab programming. Applications in gene regulatory networks, cell cycle contol, circadian rhythms, cell signaling. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture
  • Prerequisite(s): MATH 5515

 

BIOL 5434 - Behavioral Endocrinology
Overview of the hormonal basis of animal behavior. Topics: include: sex differences in behavior, male and female reproductive behavior, parental behavior, aggressive and other social behaviors, stress, affective disorders, learning and memory, homeostasis, and biological rhythms. Graduate standing required. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 5564 - Advanced Infectious Disease Ecology
Advanced overview of the principles of infectious disease dynamics from ecological and evolutionary perspectives. Examines a variety of wildlife hosts and disease-causing agents. Selective coverage of specific host and pathogen models to illustrate underlying principles of wildlife disease emergence, maintenance, and spread, as well as connections between wildlife and human health. Pre-requisite: Graduate Standing required. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 5624 - Advanced Microbial Genetics
Molecular genetics of bacteria and their associated plasmids and phages. Review of reserch from the current literature for methodology and standards of data anylysis. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 4
  • Lecture Hour(s): 4
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture, Online Lecture

 

BIOL 5634 - Microbial Physiology
The study of the structure, function and metabolic activities of prokaryotic microorganisms. Topics covered include cell composition and growth, metabolic unity and diversity, patterns of regulation, transport mechanisms, environmental sensing and response and cellular differentiation processes. Students will give presentations and critically analyze current literature in the field. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 4
  • Lecture Hour(s): 4
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 5664G - Advanced Virology
Classification, structure, replication, and pathogenesis of viruses of animals, plants and bacteria. Epidemiology, prevention, and treatment. Pre-requisite: Granduate Standing required. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 5674 - Advanced Pathogenic Bacteriology
Characteristics of bacteria that cause human disease, nature of infectious processes, virulence factors, epidemiology, resistance, immunization. Review of publications in the current literature related to data and statistical analysis and methods. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 4
  • Lecture Hour(s): 4
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture, Online Lecture

 

BIOL 5734 - Advanced Inflammation Biology
Cellular and molecular pathways controlling human responses to inflammatory challenges. Regulation of immune cells during inflammation. Interaction of host cells and tissues with environmental risk factors that cause inflammation. Pathogenesis of inflammatory diseases including cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, multi-organ failure, neurological diseases and sepsis. Therapeutic intervention of inflammatory diseases. Discussion of current literature. Integrative approached to study of inflammation will be critically evaluated and synthesized. Pre-requisite: Graduate Standing required. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 4
  • Lecture Hour(s): 4
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 5824G - Advanced Bioinformatic Methods
Application of bioinformatics methods in biological research. Methods to access bioinformatics data. Theory and methods for analysis fo DNA sequences, and analysis of complex data sets including whole denome sequences and gene expression data. Use of standard bioinformatics software and databases. Pre: Graduate Standing. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Lecture Hour(s): 2
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lab, Lecture, VB, Online Lecture

 

BIOL 5834G - Advanced Practical Analysis of Protein Structure and Function
Application of biophysical and biochemical methods to characterization of protein structure and function, macromolecular interactions and conformational changes. Strategies, experimental design, practical considerations, troubleshooting, data analysis. Pre: Graduate Standing. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Lecture Hour(s): 2
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lab, Lecture, VB, Online Lecture

 

BIOL 5844 - Advanced Proteomics and Biological Mass Spectrometry
Introduction to mass spectrometry (MS) instrumentation and advanced proteomic methods for systems biology applications. Peptide mass fingerprinting, tandem MS, quantitation, phospho/glyco proteomics, and bioinfomatics tools for evaluation and interpretation of mass spectrometry data. Includes three 4-hour lab sessions. Pre-requisite: Graduate Standing required. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 4
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 5854G - Advanced Cytogenetics
Structure and function of eukaryotic chromosomes, with emphasis on (i) use of model systems to study specific chromosomes substructures or functions; (ii) techniques used to indentify and classify both normal and aberrant chromosomes; and (iii) diseases caused by defective chromosome structure and/or function. Pre-requisite: Graduate Standing required 

  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 5884 - Molecular Biology of the Cell
Current concepts of the molecular organization of animal and plant cells. Topics include membrane structure and function, organelle biosynthesis and function, intracellular signaling, the cytoskeleton, the cell cycle, tissue formation and modern experimental methodologies. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture
  • Prerequisite(s): (BIOL 3774 (UG) OR BCHM 4116 (UG)) OR (BIOL 3774 OR BCHM 4116)

 

BIOL 5974 - Independent Study

  • Credit Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Lecture Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Independent Study

 

BIOL 5984 - Special Study

  • Credit Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Lecture Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 5994 - Research and Thesis

  • Credit Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Lecture Hour(s): 
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Research

 

BIOL 6004 - Topics in Ecology and Systematics
Reading and discussion in a specific area of ecology and systematics. Topic will vary, and course may be taken for credit more than once. Background in ecology or systematics required. I,II 

  • Credit Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Lecture Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 6014 - Topics in Evolutionary Biology
Readings and discussion in a specific area of evolutionary theory, ecological genetics, or molecular evolution. Topics will vary, and course may be taken for credit more than once. Background in genetics and population biology required. II 

  • Credit Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Lecture Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 6064 - Topics in Freshwater Ecology
Readings and discussion in a specific area of freshwater ecology, including species interactions, and community level functions. Topics will vary, and course may be taken for credit more than once. II 

  • Credit Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Lecture Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture
  • Prerequisite(s): BIOL 4004

 

BIOL 6084 - Topics in Cell and Developmental Biology
Readings and discussion of a focused area of cellular and developmental biology, including cell signaling, cell cycle, differentiation and morphogenesis, cytoskeletal regulation and cell death. Topics vary each semester and course may be repeated with different content up to a maximum of 12 credits. Graduate standing required. 

  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture
  • Prerequisite(s): BIOL 5884 OR BIOL 4104 (UG) OR BIOL 4104

 

BIOL 6404 - Topics In Vertebrate Biology
Readings and discussion in a specific area of vertebrate biology. Topic will vary, and course may be taken for credit more than once. Background in vertebrate biology required. I,II 

  • Credit Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Lecture Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 6704 - Topics in Immunology
Readings and discussion in a specific area of immunology. Topic will vary and course may be taken for credit more than once. II 

  • Credit Hour(s): 3
  • Lecture Hour(s): 3
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture
  • Prerequisite(s): BIOL 4704 (UG) OR BIOL 4704

 

BIOL 6984 - Special Study

  • Credit Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Lecture Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Lecture

 

BIOL 7994 - Research and Dissertation

  • Credit Hour(s): 1 TO 19
  • Lecture Hour(s): 
  • Level: Graduate
  • Instruction Type(s): Research