MOLECULAR APPROACHES FOR CROP IMPROVEMENT

Prerequisites & course information

Requisites: ( BIOCHEM 501 or 507 ) and ( GENETICS 466 or 467 ); or graduate/professional standing Course Designation: Core GenEd - Natural Science & Wellness Breadth - Biological Science Level - Advanced L&S Credit - L&S Liberal Arts and Science Grad 50% - Counts toward 50% graduate coursework requirement Repeatable for Credit: No Last Taught: Spring 2026 Learning Outcomes: 1. Critically read scientific journal articles. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 2. Evaluate and discuss scientific results as reported in journal articles. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 3. Describe how discoveries in basic science lead to practical developments that drive crop improvement. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 4. Describe the following molecular methods: Genome Sequencing, plant transformation, Gene Silencing, CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing, base-editors, and other genome manipulation methods based on CRISPR-Cas9. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 5. Utilize the following bioinformatics tools: BLAST searching, EFP Browser, and gRNA design tools transformation, Gene Silencing, and CRISPR-based gene editing. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 6. Demonstrate communication skills to multiple audiences. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 7. Develop critical thinking skills to design experiments and peer review of scientific papers. Audience: Graduate Learning Outcomes: 1. Critically read scientific journal articles. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 2. Evaluate and discuss scientific results as reported in journal articles. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 3. Describe how discoveries in basic science lead to practical developments that drive crop improvement. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 4. Describe the following molecular methods: Genome Sequencing, plant transformation, Gene Silencing, CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing, base-editors, and other genome manipulation methods based on CRISPR-Cas9. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 5. Utilize the following bioinformatics tools: BLAST searching, EFP Browser, and gRNA design tools transformation, Gene Silencing, and CRISPR-based gene editing. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 6. Demonstrate communication skills to multiple audiences. Audience: Both Grad & Undergrad 7. Develop critical thinking skills to design experiments and peer review of scientific papers. Audience: Graduate