1. West Virginia University Summer Institute 2012 Group 1 General Biology & Microbiology

2. Group 1: General Biology & Microbiology
Andrea Beyer
Virginia Commonwealth University
Samantha Jusino
West Virginia University
Michael Lague
The Richard Stockton College of NJ
DeLacy Rhodes
Michelle Withers (Facilitator)
Melissa Zwick

3. Target audience
Introductory biology for majors
First few weeks of class
Prior student knowledge
Scientific process
Basic chemistry/basic math skills
Cells
Pre-test knowledge
Four major classes of macromolecules
Basic structures of macromolecules
Polar, non-polar, hydrophobic, hydrophilic

4. Goal:
Understand the different roles that lipids play in the cell membrane.
Learning Outcomes:
Illustrate the characteristics of lipids that make them the choice molecules for membranes.
Predict membrane characteristics based on changes in lipid composition.

5. Omega-3 – A GOOD FAT!?!

6. Which one of the structures below would make up butter?
Butter is solid at room temperature, oil is liquid at room temperature.
Which one of the structures below would make up butter?
Glycerol
Fatty acid
Add picture of butter and oil
Triglycerides A B

7. Which one of these is saturated?B

8. Omega-3 – Polyunsaturated fat

9. Barrier between inside and outside of cell
Cell membrane
Barrier between inside and outside of cell
Selectively permeable due to membrane fluidity
Main structural component: phospholipids
Triglyceride
Phospholipid

10. Which of the following would occur at a much later time point?
Which of the following would occur immediately after the red cell and blue cell fuse?
Which of the following would occur at a much later time point? A. B.

11. If the membranes of the two fused cells are represented by the pictures on the right, match the time it would take to get from fusion to dispersal for each condition.
Shortest time
Intermediate time
Longest time A. B. C.
fusion
dispersal

12. A Fishy Dilemma
You are a scientist working for a new vitamin company. You have been tasked with finding a new source for omega-3 fatty acids from fish. You received the data shown below that summarizes the fatty acid content in 4 populations of fish.
Cold-adapted Marine Fish
Warm-adapted Marine Fish
Cold-adapted Freshwater Fish
Warm-adapted Freshwater Fish
Dey et al PNAS

13. A Fishy Dilemma
Based on what you know about temperatures and lipids, which fatty acid would you predict to be saturated? Unsaturated?
Does salt appear to have an effect on the presence of fatty acids in the fish? Explain how you know.
Which location produces the best fish for omega-3 harvest?

14. Why do we care about membrane fluidity?