BIOL 150 - Genetic Engineering and Society

FDR: SL
Credits: 4
Planned Offering: Spring 2013 and alternate years

No prerequisites. Intended for non-science majors. Humans have manipulated genes for thousands of years to make better crops and to domesticate animals. But in the last century the ability to transfer genes from one organism to another (“genetic engineering”) has dramatically changed our understanding of biology and our lives. In this course, we explore the nuts and bolts of genetic engineering and a small sampling of its applications, including developing drugs and vaccinations, enhancing crops, testing for genetic diseases, and genetic testing in the courtroom. These applications introduce ethical considerations for us to debate. In addition, we use molecular-biology tools to carry out our own genetic engineering projects with spider silk genes, which have potential for multiple medical and industrial applications. Students culminate the term by making a sales pitch to biotech companies to buy their spider-silk genes. Laboratory course. Ayoub.