Biochemistry Syllabus
Water: Water and its physicochemical properties, Physical properties of water and their role
in biology. Concepts of pH, ionic strength and buffers.
Forces that stabilize biomolecules: electrostatic and van der Waal’s interaction, hydrogen
bonding. Interactions with solvents, Hydrophobic effect.
Carbohydrates: Classification of carbohydrates; Occurrence, characteristics, structure and
functions of monosaccharides, disaccharides, oligosaccharides and polysaccharides; structure
and conformation of sugars; monosaccharides: stereoisomerism and optical isomerism;
chemical reactions of the functional groups; sugar derivatives; glycosaminoglycans;
proteoglycans; glycoproteins; bacterial cell wall polysaccharides; blood group
polysaccharides; glycobiology.
Carbohydrate Metabolism: Reactions, energetics and regulation of glycolysis; Feeder
pathways for glycolysis; Fate of pyruvate under aerobic and anaerobic conditions; Pasteur
effect; Pyruvate dehydrogenase complex and its regulation; Reactions, regulation and
amphibolic nature of TCA Cycle; Anaplerotic reactions; Glyoxalate cycle; Pentose Phosphate
Pathway; Gluconeogenesis; Cori cycle; Biosynthesis of lactose and sucrose; Glycogenesis
and Glycogenolysis; Control of glycogen metabolism; Maintenance of blood glucose levels.
Mitochondrial Electron Transport Chain and Oxidative Phosphorylation: Mitochondrial
Transport Systems; Nature, order and organization of the components of electron transport
chain; electron flow from NADH and FADH2 to O2; sites of ATP production; inhibitors of
electron transport chain; Coupling between oxidation and phosphorylation; Chemiosmotic
hypothesis of oxidative phosphorylation; Mechanism of ATP synthesis: Structure of proton-
translocating ATP synthase; Binding Change Mechanism for proton-driven ATP synthesis;
Uncoupling of oxidative phosphorylation; Control of oxidative phosphorylation.
Amino acids and Protein: Structural characteristics of a-helix, b-sheet and b-turn.
Ramachandran plot. Protein domains and domain architecture. Quaternary structure of
proteins. Structure, nomenclature, classification, acid-base behavior and chemical reactions
of amino acids; stereoisomerism and optical properties of amino acids; non-natural amino
acids;
Primary structure of proteins: An overview of protein structure; hierarchy of protein
structure; Ramachandran plot; Determination of primary structure of protein –
determination of N and C-terminal residue; Determination of amino acid composition of
protein and determination of sulfhydryl groups; location of disulfide bonds; Chemical
synthesis of peptides; Structure and function of some biologically important polypeptides.
Secondary and tertiary structure of proteins: Alpha helix and beta structure; Collagen
helix and other types of helical structures; Super secondary structures; Amino acid
sequence and three-dimensional structure; Domains; Forces stabilizing the secondary and
tertiary structure
Nucleotides: Structure and properties of purines and pyrimidine bases; structure and
functions of nucleotides. Conformation of Nucleic acids, Structural characteristics of A, B
and Z-DNA. 3D structure of t-RNA, ribozymes and riboswitches
Lipids: Classification of lipids; structures, nomenclature and properties of fatty acids;
structure, properties and functions of acylglycerols, plasmalogens, phospholipids,
sphingolipids, glycolipids, steroids, prostaglandins and eicosanoids; chemical composition
and biological role of lipoproteins; composition and functions of vegetable and fish oils,
structure and functions of fat-soluble vitamins.
Lipid Metabolism: Mobilization and hydrolysis of triacylglycerols; Fatty acid oxidation:
Franz Knoop’s experiment; β-oxidation of saturated, unsaturated and odd-chain fatty
acids; Peroxisomal β-oxidation; Minor pathays of fatty acid oxidation (α- and ω-
oxidations); Formation and utilization of Ketone bodies; Biosynthesis of saturated fatty
acids; Elongation and desaturation of fatty acids; Biosynthesis of triacylglycerols;
Regulation of fatty acid metabolism; Cholesterol biosynthesis and its regulation;
Biosynthesis of glycerophospholipids and sphingolipids; Breakdown of sphingolipids by
lysosomal enzymes; Formation of prostaglandins, prostacyclins, thromboxanes and
leukotrienes from arachidonic acid.
Hormones: General characteristics, classification, chemistry and functions of thyroid,
parathyroid, adrenal, pancreatic, gastric and reproductive hormones; hypothalamus and
pituitary; detection of hormones; hormone replacement therapy; pheromones.
Enzymology: Introduction to enzymes. Types of enzymatic reaction mechanisms, Michaelis-
Menten kinetics. Competitive, Non-competitive and Un-competitive inhibition. Bi-substrate
reaction kinetics. Allostery.
Thermodynamics: Laws of thermodynamics. Concepts of ∆G, ∆H and ∆S.
Chemical kinetics: Concepts of order and molecularity of a chemical reaction. Derivation of
first and second order rate equation, measurement of rate constants. Concept of activation
energy.
