Biology (Sci): Exploration of the neurobiological basis of learning, from molecules to circuits, focusing on the synaptic, cellular and circuit-level processes that support learning, in the context of different brain regions and forms of learning.

Offered by: Biology

• Prerequisite(s): BIOL 306 or NEUR 310 or NSCI 200 and NSCI 201 or PHGY 311 or PHGY 314 or permission of instructor

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
• Instructors
  • Aparna Suvrathan, Per Jesper Sjostrom, Wayne Steven Sossin, Edward S Ruthazer, Michael Hendricks, Blake Richards, Yang Zhou

Biology (Sci): Introduction to communication between animals, including humans. Physical and phylogenetic constraints on the evolution of communication systems will be discussed. The approach to communication will draw from behavioural ecology, psychology, physiology and physics.

Offered by: Biology

• Fall
• 3 hours lecture
• Corequisites: BIOL 307 or equivalent and one of BIOL 306 or NEUR 310 or NSCI 200 or NSCI 201 or PHGY 311; or permission of instructor. Since all corequisites may not be offered in the same term, students are advised that they may have to plan their schedules so that they may register in these courses in the term prior to BIOL 507.

• Terms
  • This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): An overview of the molecular genetic tools used to investigate ecological and evolutionary processes in natural populations. The use of molecular tools in studies of population structure, parentage, kinship, species boundaries, phylogenetics. Special topics include conservation genetics, population genetics, and ecological genomics.

Offered by: Biology

• Restriction (s): BIOL 301, BIOL 304 and BIOL 308 or permission of instructor.
• Intended for both upper level undergraduates with knowledge of ecology, evolution, and genetics.
• Intended for graduate students interested in applying molecular tools in ecology, evolution, and environmental sciences.

• Terms
  • This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): The origin, maintenance and roles of biological diversity within ecological communities.

Offered by: Biology

• Fall
• 3 hours lecture/seminar
• Prerequisites: BIOL 308 or GEOG 350 or permission of instructor.

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
• Instructors
  • Andrew Gonzalez

Biology (Sci): Molecular genetics and molecular, cellular and developmental biology, including signal transduction, cell differentiation and function, genetic diseases in eukaryotes.

Offered by: Biology

• Fall
• Prerequisites: BIOL 300 and BIOL 303 or permission.

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
• Instructors
  • Hugh Clarke, David Dankort

Biology (Sci): The course will consider how gene action is determining the duration of life in various organisms focusing on the strengths and limitations of the genetic approach. The course will focus particularly on model organisms such as yeast, Caenorhabditis, Drosophila and mouse, as well as on the characterization of long-lived people.

Offered by: Biology

• Fall
• Prerequisites: BIOL 202 or BIOL 302; BIOL 300; or permission of instructor
• Three hours seminar

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
• Instructors
  • Siegfried Hekimi

Biology (Sci): Topics in the genetics and molecular genetics of unicellular, plant, invertebrate and vertebrate models systems.

Offered by: Biology

• Prerequisites: BIOL 202 or BIOL 302; BIOL 300; BIOL 303 recommended
• Fall course given every second year, alternating with BIOL 544; enrollment limited to 15 students

• Terms
  • This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): The emerging field of mechanobiology and mechanotransduction, and their relevance in the context of multicellular physiology in health and disease. The molecular and cellular foundations of mechanobiology are covered. Current literature on the topic will be discussed and presented by students. Identification of gaps in current knowledge and proposing research to address them.

Offered by: Biology

• Prerequisite: One 300-level cell biology course or equivalent, and/or instructor's permission
• Restrictions: Restricted to senior undergraduate in the BSc degree and graduate students who fullfill the prerequisites or to students approved by the instructor.

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
• Instructors
  • Arnold L Hayer

Biology (Sci): This course will focus on recent research employing genetic-based methods to examine the functional and structural properties of the nervous system. The focus will be on approaches for studying neural circuits and behavior in a range of model organisms. Topics will include recent technological advances, such as optogenetics for modifying and controlling neuronal activity, and animal models of neurological diseases. Students will critically analyze the application of these methods to current research through in-class discussion of primary literature, student presentations, and written assignments.

Offered by: Biology

• Prerequisite(s): BIOL 306 or permission of the instructors.

• Terms
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • Alanna J Watt, Michael Hendricks

Biology (Sci): Discussion of fundamental molecular mechanisms underlying the general features of cellular neurobiology. An advanced course based on lectures and on a critical review of primary research papers.

Offered by: Biology

• Fall
• 1.5 hours lecture, 1.5 hours seminar
• Prerequisite: BIOL 300 and BIOL 306 or permission

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
• Instructors
  • Kenneth E M Hastings, Corina Nagy, Peter Scott McPherson, Jean-Francois Poulin, Yang Zhou

Biology (Sci): 'Post-genomic' bioinformatics. Concepts behind large-scale computational analysis and comparison of genomes/proteomes (and beyond), and the implications for our understanding of the basic processes of molecular and cell biology and the evolution of those processes.

Offered by: Biology

• Fall
• 3 hours lecture
• Prerequisite: BIOL 301 or permission of instructor.
• Restriction: Not open to students who have taken or are taking BINF 511.

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
• Instructors
  • Paul M Harrison

Biology (Sci): Evolutionary ecology is the study of evolutionary change in natural populations. General predictive approaches in evolutionary ecology, including population genetics, quantitative genetics, optimality, and game theory will be examined. Emphasis will be placed on the mathematical underpinnings of each approach, particularly as they relate to classic and contemporary problems.

Offered by: Biology

• Fall
• Prerequisite: BIOL 304 and BIOL 308
• Restriction: U3 or permission.

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
• Instructors
  • Andrew Hendry

Biology (Sci): Foundational, cross-disciplinary skills in research and communication, including graduate student orientation, research integrity and ethics, equity, diversity and inclusion, science communication for a general audience, seminar critiques, elevator pitches, science writing for a general audience, finding/reading the literature, and peer review.

Offered by: Biology

• Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
• Instructors
  • Abigail Gerhold, Fiona M Soper

Biology (Sci): A study of the physical, chemical and biological properties of inland waters, with emphasis on their functioning as systems.

Offered by: Biology

• Fall
• 3 hours lecture
• Prerequisites: BIOL 206 and/or permission
• This course, involving two field weekends, has an additional fee of $353.32, which includes room and board and transportation. The fee is refundable during the period where a student can drop the course with full refund. The Department of Biology subsidizes a portion of the cost for this activity.

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
• Instructors
  • Irene Gregory-Eaves, Lars Lonsmann Iversen

Biology (Sci): Independent research work under the direction of the Thesis Supervisor and the Supervisory Committee.

Offered by: Biology

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): Independent research work under the direction of the Thesis Supervisor and the Supervisory Committee.

Offered by: Biology

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): Independent research work under the direction of the Thesis Supervisor and the Supervisory Committee.

Offered by: Biology

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): The oral Qualifying Examination is a formal evaluation of the candidate's ability to proceed to the attainment of the Ph.D. Candidates must submit a thesis proposal in advance of the exam.

Offered by: Biology

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): Doctoral candidates are required to give a public oral presentation of their major results before submitting a thesis.

Offered by: Biology

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): An overview of the molecular genetic tools used to investigate ecological and evolutionary processes in natural populations. The use of molecular tools in studies of population structure, parentage, kinship, species boundaries, phylogenetics. Special topics include conservation genetics, population genetics, and ecological genomics.

Offered by: Biology

• Restriction (s): BIOL 301, BIOL 304 and BIOL 308 or permission of instructor.
• Intended for both upper level undergraduates with knowledge of ecology, evolution, and genetics.
• Intended for graduate students interested in applying molecular tools in ecology, evolution, and environmental sciences.

• Terms
  • This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): Aquatic ecology and the major issues challenging the field.

Offered by: Biology

• Winter
• 3 hours seminar
• Prerequisite(s): BIOL 432 or BIOL 441 or permission of the instructor

• Terms
  • This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): Cognition refers to the processes of acquiring, retaining, and using information. In the wild, an organism relies on a wide variety of information to interact with its environment and these interactions affect its survival and reproduction. Focus on the ecology and evolution of cognition and its underlying neural mechanisms. Examines links between cognition, behaviour in the wild, and the brain. Builds upon the principles of behavioural ecology and behavioural neuroscience.

Offered by: Biology

• Prerequisite(s): BIOL 307 or equivalent or permission of the instructor

• Terms
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • Mélanie Guigueno

Biology (Sci): Concepts and mechanisms in advanced cell biology, based on genetic, cell biological, biophysical, and computational studies. Emphasis is placed on processes that are evolutionarily conserved, with examples from model organisms and cell-free (in vitro) approaches.

Offered by: Biology

• Winter
• 3 hours seminar
• Prerequisite: BIOL 313 or permission

• Terms
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • Paul M Harrison, Paul Lasko, Gary J Brouhard

Biology (Sci): An analysis of the role and regulation of gene expression in several models of eukaryotic development. The emphasis will be on critical evaluation of recent literature concerned with molecular or genetic approaches to the problems of cellular differentiation and determination. Recent research reports will be discussed in conferences and analyzed in written critiques.

Offered by: Biology

• Winter
• 3 hours lecture and discussion
• Prerequisites: BIOL 300 and BIOL 303 or permission

• Terms
  • This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): Neural mechanisms underlying behaviour in vertebrate and invertebrate organisms.

Offered by: Biology

• Winter
• 3 hours seminar
• Prerequisite: BIOL 306 or NSCI 200 or NSCI 201 or PHGY 311 or permission of instructor.

• Terms
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • Sarah Woolley

Biology (Sci): Discussions of all aspects of nervous system development including pattern formation, cell lineage, pathfinding and targeting by growing axons, and neural regeneration. The basis for these discussions will be recent research papers and other assigned readings.

Offered by: Biology

• Winter
• 1 hour lecture, 2 hours seminar
• Prerequisites: BIOL 303 or BIOL 306 or permission of instructor

• Terms
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • Donald Van Meyel, Artur Kania, Alyson Elise Fournier, Jean-Francois Cloutier, Edward S Ruthazer

Biology (Sci): Causes and consequences of biological invasion, as well as risk assessment methods and management strategies for dealing with invasive species.

Offered by: Biology

• Winter
• 3 hours lecture
• Prerequisite(s): BIOL 215 (or ENVR 200 plus ENVR 202), and at least one 300- or 400-level course in ecology, evolution, or conservation biology.
• Restriction: Not open to U1 or U2 students
• Restriction: Not open to students who are taking or have taken ENVR 540.

• Terms
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • Anthony Ricciardi

Biology (Sci): Fundamental principles of cellular control, with cell cycle control as a major theme. Biological and physical concepts are brought to bear on control in healthy cells..

Offered by: Biology

• Winter
• 3 hours lecture
• Revised Prerequisite: CHEM 115 or 120, MATH 133 and 141, PHYS 142; or equivalents. BIOL 201 or ANAT/BIOC 212. Recommended: COMP 202, PHYS 230 and BIOL/PHYS 319.

• Terms
  • This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): Ecology revisited in view of tropical conditions. Exploring species richness. Sampling and measuring biodiversity. Conservation status of ecosystems, communities and species. Indigenous knowledge.

Offered by: Biology

• Winter
• 24 hours lecture and 36 hours field work over a 4-week period
• Prerequisites: HISP 218, MATH 203, and BIOL 215
• Corequisites: ENVR 451; GEOG 404 and HIST 510 alternating with GEOG 498 and AGRI 550
• Restriction: location in Panama. Students must register for a full semester of studies in Panama

• Terms
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): Cellular and molecular approaches to characterization of the human genome.

Offered by: Biology

• Winter
• 3 hours lecture
• Prerequisites BIOL 202 or BIOL 302; BIOL 300; BIOL 370; or permission.

• Terms
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • James Engert, Rima Slim, Alexandre Montpetit, Bruce Gottlieb, Ma'n Hilmi M Zawati, Hamed S Najafabadi, Yojiro Yamanaka, David Langlais, Javad Nadaf, Jean-Baptiste Riviere

Biology (Sci): The influence of developmental mechanisms on evolution. This course draws on recent examples from plants and invertebrate and vertebrate animals. Topics include homology, modularity, dissociation, co-option, evolutionary novelty, evolution of cis-regulation and gene regulatory networks, developmental constraint and evolvability, heterochrony, phenotypic plasticity, and canalization.

Offered by: Biology

• Winter
• 3 hours lecture
• Prerequisites: BIOL 303 and BIOL 304; or permission of instructor.

• Terms
  • This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): This course will address issues related to experimental design and multivariate statistical analysis. The first third of the course will focus on experimental design, and the remainder of the course will focus on multivariate approaches to data analysis. The course is designed to inform students on best practices to analytically address their experimental questions.

Offered by: Biology

• Prerequisite(s): BIOL 373 and permission of Instructor.
• Restriction(s): Not open to students who have taken or are taking BIOL 596 and/or BIOL 597.
• This course is equivalent to taking BIOL 596 and BIOL 597.

• Terms
  • This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): Core skills in reading, writing, critical thinking and experimental design/interpretation and career opportunities, pertaining to the Molecular Biology research stream. Preparation for the first supervisory committee meeting, including paper/pre-print reviews, research presentations, and research proposals, related to students’ thesis research projects.

Offered by: Biology

• Prerequisite: Permission of instructor
• Restriction: Not open to students who have taken or are taking BIOL 603.

• Terms
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • Abigail Gerhold

Biology (Sci): Core skills in proposal writing, peer review, oral presentation, and practical workflows for reproducibility in science, pertaining to the Organismal Biology research stream, and including stream-specific topics such as field safety and career options. Topics include: paper/pre-print discussion and written review, research presentations,research proposals, rubric-guided peer review, and experimental design in field research disciplines.

Offered by: Biology

• Prerequisite: Permission of instructor.
• Restriction: Not open to students who have taken or are taking BIOL 602.

• Terms
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • Lars Lonsmann Iversen

Biology (Sci): Guide to the process of writing a scientific manuscript, including how to effectively communicate research findings to maximize their impact. Provides an atmosphere and structure to facilitate writing. Expectation that students bring analyzed data to the course with the goal of completing a manuscript. All aspects of manuscript writing are covered, including: narrative, writing style, effective figures, editing, and peer-review.

Offered by: Biology

• Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor
• While this course is open to undergraduates, students must enter with a complete and analyzed data set (i.e., should have rough Figures), and a letter from their supervisor confirming that this data set exists and is appropriate for a first-author paper by the student. Students must email this information to the instructor, and enrol on Minerva once they receive confirmation of their admission. Enrolment is limited, priority given to Biology graduate students. Language of instruction is English. Course evaluation includes regular assignments and peer-to-peer feedback.

• Terms
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • Anna L Hargreaves

Biology (Sci): Long-term research at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute will be organized and synthesized to examine historical assembly and ecological maintenance of tropical communities. This synthesis will draw on phylogenetic concepts for historical insight and will examine the probable resilience of these communities to global change, pollution and biodiversity loss.

Offered by: Biology

• Restriction: students enrolled in Neotropical Environment Option (NEO) or permission of the instructor
• Fees: Graduate students requesting registration in the Neotropical Environment Option pay a fee of $919.56. This fee is used to support the costs associated with transportation and housing while in Panama.

• Terms
  • This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): Independent research work under the direction of the Thesis Supervisor and the Supervisory Committee.

Offered by: Biology

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): Independent research work under the direction of the Thesis Supervisor and the Supervisory Committee.

Offered by: Biology

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): Independent research work under the direction of the Thesis Supervisor and the Supervisory Committee.

Offered by: Biology

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): The oral Qualifying Examination is a formal evaluation of the candidate's ability to proceed to the attainment of the Ph.D. Candidates must submit a thesis proposal in advance of the exam.

Offered by: Biology

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year

Biology (Sci): Doctoral candidates are required to give a public oral presentation of their major results before submitting a thesis.

Offered by: Biology

• Terms
  • Fall 2024
  • Winter 2025
• Instructors
  • There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year