Biophysical Methods

3 credits · Graduate

This course provides an overview of nine prominent methods used in biochemistry, cell biology and structural biology. They are: optical spectroscopy, fluorescence, light microscopy, ligand binding, kinetics, mass spectrometry, magnetic resonance, electrophysiology and cryoelectron microscopy. The goal is to provide students with sufficient background knowledge to allow them to read and understand papers in the primary literature that employ one or more of these methods. Each method is taught by an instructor who employs the method in their own research. Grade is based on problem sets, quizzes and a final presentation to the class of a paper that uses a method of the student's choice.