C-L: ENVIRON 243;

1.0 course or 3 units;

NS

Prerequisites: One semester of organic chemistry or consent of instructor.

Instructor: Celia Bonaventura

Structure, function and evolution of copper and iron based respiratory proteins in response to environmental oxygen levels and physiological needs. Lectures and readings on the balance between pathways for metabolic oxygen utilization and alternative disease-causing pathways involving oxidative and nitrosative reactions. Interactive molecular graphics and student presentations supplement text and lectures. Covers molecular adaptations, circulation, allostery, reaction kinetics and thermodynamics, reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, gene expression, blood pathogens, malaria, sickle cell anemia.