A fully integrated undergraduate introductory biology and chemistry course with a community-based focus I: Vision, design, implementation, and development.

We describe a first-semester, integrated, introductory biology and chemistry course for undergraduates at Wellesley College in Wellesley, MA, USA. Our vision was to create a supportive learning community in which students could comfortably make connections between scientific disciplines as they learned necessary content for subsequent courses, further developed problem solving, communication, and laboratory skills, and meaningfully connected with other students and with faculty during their first semester in college. Through highlighting five guiding principles that are central to the course, we describe the integrated course structure and content as well as our efforts to build community, provide support, and engage students in building skills crucial to scientists.

An alternative laboratory designed to address ethical concerns associated with traditional TAS2R38 student genotyping.

The TAS2R38 alleles that code for the PAV/AVI T2R38 proteins have long been viewed as benign taste receptor variants. However, recent studies have demonstrated an expanding and medically relevant role for TAS2R38. The AVI variant of T2R38 is associated with an increased risk of both colorectal cancer and Pseudomonas aeruginosa-associated sinus infection and T2R38 variants have been implicated in off-target drug responses.