BIOL-1406 Cellular and Molecular Biology


Charles Bernhard

Credit Fall 2025


Section(s)

BIOL-1406-022 (19782)
LEC TuTh 3:00pm - 4:20pm RRC RRC8 8306.00

LAB Th 4:30pm - 7:20pm RRC RRC8 8315.00

Course Requirements

Required Texts and Materials

  1. Lab gear 1: Safety glasses/goggles with Z87.1 rating You can buy these at the ACC bookstores or even cheaper at HEB, Home Depot, Walmart, Amazon, etc.
  2. Lab gear 2: Closed-toe shoes. If you drive to campus, consider keeping a pair in your trunk if possible.
  3. Broadband internet connection
  4. Choose 1 of the 2 textbook options below (pick a or b):
    1. Free Biology 2e from OpenStax™ (“OS” in the schedule): https://openstax.org/details/books/biology-2e
    2. Biology (10th, 11th, or 12th edition), Campbell et al. Pearson publishing Co. (“C” in the schedule) Available in Online bookstores, ACC/ University Co-Op or other bookstores. Latest edition or additional materials from this book are not needed. Cheaper used, electronic, and international edition books are encouraged.
  5. BIOL 1406 Lab Manual is available for free on Blackboard. Please use the version I post on Blackboard. There are multiple versions we will NOT use.

Readings

BIOL 1406-022 T/Th RRC Course Schedule - Bernhard – Fall 2025

Students are expected to SET PERSONAL DEADLINES for themselves, so it is never attempted to complete all assignments on Sunday in any given week.

Unit

Week

Date

Day

Lecture*

Reading**

Campbell Biology (= C)

OpenStax Biology 2e (= OS) 

Lab

Thurs 4:30-7:20

RRC8 8315

1

1

August 26

Tuesday

L0 - Syllabus, intros, and Q&A

C: 1

OS: 1, 18.1

Lab 0 - Excel Activity in RRC Accelerator

1

1

August 28

Thursday

L1 - Intro to Biology

1

1

August 31

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday***:

1) Orientation assignment (see beginning of syllabus)

2) Exam #0 Respondus Monitor practice exam

3) Discussion board post #1 (with 2 thoughtful replies)

4) Ch 1 Homework

5) Ch 18.1 Homework

6) Lab 0 post-lab

1

2

September 2

Tuesday

L2 - Chemical Context of Life

C: 2

OS: 2.1

Lab 1 - Collecting & Analyzing Data & Lab Safety

1

2

September 4

Thursday

L3 - Water and Life

C: 3

OS: 2.2

1

2

September 7

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 1 post-lab

2) Discussion board post #3 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

3) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

4) Preview next week’s material

1

3

September 9

Tuesday

L4 - Carbon & the Molecular Diversity of Life

C: 4

OS: 2.3

Lab 2 - Preparing Solutions

1

3

September 11

Thursday

(Wed, Sep 10: Last day to drop w/o W)

L5 - Biomolecules (Carbohydrates)

C: 5

OS: 3

1

3

September 14

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 2 post-lab

2) Ch 2 Homework

3) Choose special topic partner (Discussion board post #2)

Additionally, successful students will:

3) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

4) Preview next week’s material

1

4

September 16

Tuesday

L6 - Biomolecules (Lipids & Proteins)

C: 5

OS: 3

Lab 3 - pH & buffers

1

4

September 18

Thursday

Catch up on Material

 

1

4

September 21

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 3 post-lab

2) Ch 3 Homework

3) Discussion board post #4 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

4) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

5) Preview next week’s material

1

5

September 23

Tuesday

Unit 1 Lecture Exam

 

Lab 4 - Microscopes & Cell Structure

2

5

September 25

Thursday

L7 - Tour of the Cell

C: 6

OS: 4

2

5

September 28

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 4 post-lab

2) Ch 4 Homework

3) Discussion board post #5 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

4) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

5) Preview next week’s material

2

6

September 30

Tuesday

L8 - Membranes and Cell Communication

C: 7, 11

OS: 5, 9

Lab 5 - Diffusion & Osmosis

2

6

October 2

Thursday

L9 - Introduction to Metabolism

C: 8

OS: 6

2

6

October 5

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 5 post-lab

2) Ch 5 Homework

3) Ch 6 Homework

4) Discussion board post #6 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

6) Discussion board post #7 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

4) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

5) Preview next week’s material

2

7

October 7

Tuesday

L10 - Cellular Respiration and Fermentation

C: 9

OS: 7

Lab 6 - Factors Affecting Enzyme Activity

2

7

October 9

Thursday

L11 - Photosynthesis

C: 10

OS: 8

2

7

October 12

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 6 post-lab

2) Ch 8 Homework

3) Ch 7 Homework

4)       Discussion board post #8 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

5) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

6) Preview next week’s material

2

8

October 14

Tuesday

Catch up on Material

 

Thurs: Lab Exam 1

2

8

October 16

Thursday

Unit 2 Lecture Exam

 

2

8

October 19

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

  1.       Relax, you earned it.

Additionally, successful students will:

2) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

3) Preview next week’s material

3

9

October 21

Tuesday

L12 - Cell Cycle and Mitosis

C: 12

OS: 10

Lab 7 - Thin Layer Chromatography

3

9

October 23

Thursday

L13 - Meiosis and Sexual Life Cycles

C: 13

OS: 11

3

9

October 26

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 7 post-lab

2) Ch 10 Homework

3) Ch 11 Homework

4) Discussion board post #9 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

5) Discussion board post #10 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

6) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

7) Preview next week’s material

3

10

October 28

Tuesday

L14 - Chromosomal Basis of Inheritance

C: 14, 15

OS: 12, 13

Lab 8.1 - Purification of GFP & BFP

3

10

October 30

Thursday

L15 - Molecular Basis of Inheritance

C: 16

OS: 14

3

10

November 2

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Ch 12 Homework

2) Ch 14 Homework

3) Lab 8.1 post-lab

4) Discussion board post #11 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

5) Discussion board post #12 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

6) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

7) Preview next week’s material

3

11

November 4

Tuesday

Catch up on Material

 

Lab 8.2 SDS-PAGE

3

11

November 6

Thursday

Lecture Exam 3

 

4

11

November 9

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

2) Lab 8.2 post-lab

4) Special topic partner presentation (bonus for early submission)

Additionally, successful students will:

5) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

6) Preview next week’s material

4

12

November 11

Tuesday

Veteran’s Day (Holiday; no class)

 

Lab 8.3 - SDS-PAGE Analysis

Special topic partner presentations during lab starting today

4

12

November 13

Thursday

L16 - Gene to Protein

C: 17

OS: 15

4

12

November 16

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 8.3 post-lab

1) Ch 15 Homework

3) Special topic partner presentation 

Additionally, successful students will:

4) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

5) Preview next week’s material

4

13

November 18

Tuesday

L17 - Regulation of Gene Expression

C: 18

OS: 16

Lab 9.1 - GMO foods PCR
Special topic partner presentations

4

13

November 20

Thursday

L18 – Viruses

(Final Withdrawal date Thurs, Nov 20)

C: 19

OS: 21

4

13

November 23

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 9.1 post-lab

2) Ch 16 Homework

3) Ch 21 Homework

Additionally, successful students will:

5) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

6) Preview next week’s material

4

14

November 25

Tuesday

Unit 1 Review

Unit 2 Review

Special topic partner presentations (if needed)

 

No Lab

4

14

November 27

Thursday

Thanksgiving (Holiday; no class)

 

4

14

November 30

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Monday instead:

Additionally, successful students will:

1) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

2) Preview next week’s material

4

15

December 2

Tuesday

L19 - Biotechnology pt 1

C: 20

OS: 17

Lab 9.2 - Agarose Gel Electrophoresis & Analysis

4

15

December 4

Thursday

L20 - Biotechnology pt 2

C: 20

OS: 17

 

15

December 7

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Ch 17 Homework

2) Lab 9.2 post-lab

3) Discussion board post #13 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

1) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

2) Preview next week’s material

4

16

December 9

Tuesday

Unit 3 Review

 

Thurs: Lab Exam 2 

4

16

December 11

Thursday

Comprehensive Final Exam

 

 

16

December 14

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

*This schedule is tentative.  Changes will be announced on Blackboard.

**C = Campbell Biology, OS = OpenStax Biology 2e, Do not read both, choose one.

***Students are expected to SET PERSONAL DEADLINES for themselves, so it is never attempted to complete all assignments on Sunday in each week.


Course Subjects

BIOL 1406-022 T/Th RRC Course Schedule - Bernhard – Fall 2025

Students are expected to SET PERSONAL DEADLINES for themselves, so it is never attempted to complete all assignments on Sunday in any given week.

Unit

Week

Date

Day

Lecture*

Reading**

Campbell Biology (= C)

OpenStax Biology 2e (= OS) 

Lab

Thurs 4:30-7:20

RRC8 8315

1

1

August 26

Tuesday

L0 - Syllabus, intros, and Q&A

C: 1

OS: 1, 18.1

Lab 0 - Excel Activity in RRC Accelerator

1

1

August 28

Thursday

L1 - Intro to Biology

1

1

August 31

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday***:

1) Orientation assignment (see beginning of syllabus)

2) Exam #0 Respondus Monitor practice exam

3) Discussion board post #1 (with 2 thoughtful replies)

4) Ch 1 Homework

5) Ch 18.1 Homework

6) Lab 0 post-lab

1

2

September 2

Tuesday

L2 - Chemical Context of Life

C: 2

OS: 2.1

Lab 1 - Collecting & Analyzing Data & Lab Safety

1

2

September 4

Thursday

L3 - Water and Life

C: 3

OS: 2.2

1

2

September 7

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 1 post-lab

2) Discussion board post #3 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

3) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

4) Preview next week’s material

1

3

September 9

Tuesday

L4 - Carbon & the Molecular Diversity of Life

C: 4

OS: 2.3

Lab 2 - Preparing Solutions

1

3

September 11

Thursday

(Wed, Sep 10: Last day to drop w/o W)

L5 - Biomolecules (Carbohydrates)

C: 5

OS: 3

1

3

September 14

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 2 post-lab

2) Ch 2 Homework

3) Choose special topic partner (Discussion board post #2)

Additionally, successful students will:

3) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

4) Preview next week’s material

1

4

September 16

Tuesday

L6 - Biomolecules (Lipids & Proteins)

C: 5

OS: 3

Lab 3 - pH & buffers

1

4

September 18

Thursday

Catch up on Material

 

1

4

September 21

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 3 post-lab

2) Ch 3 Homework

3) Discussion board post #4 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

4) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

5) Preview next week’s material

1

5

September 23

Tuesday

Unit 1 Lecture Exam

 

Lab 4 - Microscopes & Cell Structure

2

5

September 25

Thursday

L7 - Tour of the Cell

C: 6

OS: 4

2

5

September 28

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 4 post-lab

2) Ch 4 Homework

3) Discussion board post #5 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

4) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

5) Preview next week’s material

2

6

September 30

Tuesday

L8 - Membranes and Cell Communication

C: 7, 11

OS: 5, 9

Lab 5 - Diffusion & Osmosis

2

6

October 2

Thursday

L9 - Introduction to Metabolism

C: 8

OS: 6

2

6

October 5

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 5 post-lab

2) Ch 5 Homework

3) Ch 6 Homework

4) Discussion board post #6 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

6) Discussion board post #7 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

4) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

5) Preview next week’s material

2

7

October 7

Tuesday

L10 - Cellular Respiration and Fermentation

C: 9

OS: 7

Lab 6 - Factors Affecting Enzyme Activity

2

7

October 9

Thursday

L11 - Photosynthesis

C: 10

OS: 8

2

7

October 12

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 6 post-lab

2) Ch 8 Homework

3) Ch 7 Homework

4)       Discussion board post #8 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

5) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

6) Preview next week’s material

2

8

October 14

Tuesday

Catch up on Material

 

Thurs: Lab Exam 1

2

8

October 16

Thursday

Unit 2 Lecture Exam

 

2

8

October 19

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

  1.       Relax, you earned it.

Additionally, successful students will:

2) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

3) Preview next week’s material

3

9

October 21

Tuesday

L12 - Cell Cycle and Mitosis

C: 12

OS: 10

Lab 7 - Thin Layer Chromatography

3

9

October 23

Thursday

L13 - Meiosis and Sexual Life Cycles

C: 13

OS: 11

3

9

October 26

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 7 post-lab

2) Ch 10 Homework

3) Ch 11 Homework

4) Discussion board post #9 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

5) Discussion board post #10 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

6) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

7) Preview next week’s material

3

10

October 28

Tuesday

L14 - Chromosomal Basis of Inheritance

C: 14, 15

OS: 12, 13

Lab 8.1 - Purification of GFP & BFP

3

10

October 30

Thursday

L15 - Molecular Basis of Inheritance

C: 16

OS: 14

3

10

November 2

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Ch 12 Homework

2) Ch 14 Homework

3) Lab 8.1 post-lab

4) Discussion board post #11 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

5) Discussion board post #12 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

6) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

7) Preview next week’s material

3

11

November 4

Tuesday

Catch up on Material

 

Lab 8.2 SDS-PAGE

3

11

November 6

Thursday

Lecture Exam 3

 

4

11

November 9

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

2) Lab 8.2 post-lab

4) Special topic partner presentation (bonus for early submission)

Additionally, successful students will:

5) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

6) Preview next week’s material

4

12

November 11

Tuesday

Veteran’s Day (Holiday; no class)

 

Lab 8.3 - SDS-PAGE Analysis

Special topic partner presentations during lab starting today

4

12

November 13

Thursday

L16 - Gene to Protein

C: 17

OS: 15

4

12

November 16

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 8.3 post-lab

1) Ch 15 Homework

3) Special topic partner presentation 

Additionally, successful students will:

4) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

5) Preview next week’s material

4

13

November 18

Tuesday

L17 - Regulation of Gene Expression

C: 18

OS: 16

Lab 9.1 - GMO foods PCR
Special topic partner presentations

4

13

November 20

Thursday

L18 – Viruses

(Final Withdrawal date Thurs, Nov 20)

C: 19

OS: 21

4

13

November 23

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Lab 9.1 post-lab

2) Ch 16 Homework

3) Ch 21 Homework

Additionally, successful students will:

5) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

6) Preview next week’s material

4

14

November 25

Tuesday

Unit 1 Review

Unit 2 Review

Special topic partner presentations (if needed)

 

No Lab

4

14

November 27

Thursday

Thanksgiving (Holiday; no class)

 

4

14

November 30

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Monday instead:

Additionally, successful students will:

1) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

2) Preview next week’s material

4

15

December 2

Tuesday

L19 - Biotechnology pt 1

C: 20

OS: 17

Lab 9.2 - Agarose Gel Electrophoresis & Analysis

4

15

December 4

Thursday

L20 - Biotechnology pt 2

C: 20

OS: 17

 

15

December 7

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

1) Ch 17 Homework

2) Lab 9.2 post-lab

3) Discussion board post #13 (with at least 1 thoughtful reply)

Additionally, successful students will:

1) Study for upcoming Lecture Exam and Lab Exam

2) Preview next week’s material

4

16

December 9

Tuesday

Unit 3 Review

 

Thurs: Lab Exam 2 

4

16

December 11

Thursday

Comprehensive Final Exam

 

 

16

December 14

Friday - Sunday

Due by 11:59 PM on Sunday:

*This schedule is tentative.  Changes will be announced on Blackboard.

**C = Campbell Biology, OS = OpenStax Biology 2e, Do not read both, choose one.

***Students are expected to SET PERSONAL DEADLINES for themselves, so it is never attempted to complete all assignments on Sunday in each week.


Student Learning Outcomes/Learning Objectives

COURSE RATIONALE

Biology 1406 is a major’s level course for those who wish to pursue careers in biology, biotechnology, the health sciences, and other related fields. There are four units that will be explored during the semester: 

 

1) The chemistry of living organisms including the structure of atoms and molecules, pH, the macromolecules of living organisms, and energetics, enzymes and enzymatic pathways. 

 

2) The structure and function of cells including the differences between prokaryotes and eukaryotes, the eukaryotic organelles and biological membranes and intercellular communication.

 

3) Nucleic acids including mitosis and meiosis, DNA structure and replication, RNA transcription and translation, and gene regulation.

 

4) DNA technology, viruses, Mendelian genetics, molecular genetics, and Darwinian evolution. 

 

Skills Requirements

Reading, writing, and mathematics proficiency determined by the COMPASS or ASSET test, by the statewide THEA test, or by providing an official transcript from another college.

 

Course Prerequisites

One year of high school chemistry or one semester of college chemistry and two years of high school algebra or MATD 0390 required.

 

Student Learning Outcomes / Course-Level

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to 

  • Identify the 4 classes of macromolecules, their monomers, and their functions in cells.
  • Describe the structures and functions of cell organelles.
  • Discuss energy transfer, enzyme function and the pathways of cellular respiration and photosynthesis.
  • Describe prokaryotic binary fission, the eukaryotic cell cycle, mitosis and meiosis.
  • Identify DNA structure and replication, transcription, translation and gene expression.
  • Solve problems in Mendelian genetics, including multiple alleles and X-linkage along with the Laws of Segregation and Independent Assortment.
  • Describe modern biotechnological techniques and their impacts on society.

 

Program-Level Outcomes

As a required course for an Associate of Science in Biology, students will be able to:

  • Compare the structure and function of cells.
  • Describe the chemical basis of life including the importance of water, gases and macromolecules.
  • Explain energy movement, enzyme structure and function, respiration and photosynthesis.
  • Illustrate DNA structure and replication, protein synthesis, mutations and genetic analysis.

 

General Education Objectives

As a Core Curriculum course, students completing this course will demonstrate competence in:

  • Critical Thinking - Gathering, analyzing, synthesizing, evaluating and applying information. 
  • Interpersonal Skills - Interacting collaboratively to achieve common goals.
  • Quantitative and Empirical Reasoning - Applying mathematical, logical and scientific principles and methods.

Written, Oral and Visual Communication - Communicating effectively, adapting to purpose, structure, audience, and medium. 


Office Hours


Published: 07/24/2025 14:39:33