A Little Taste of Med School

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SweetHelix

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I receive this in an email from a med school. It is a homework assignment that is to be handed in on the first day of class. For all of you that want to get a head start or want to freak out early, here goes:

1st year Class​
This material can be found by using a good biology text, a biochemistry text, or, if you do not have either, by using a search engine.

[FONT=Arial,Arial]1. Review organic chemistry nomenclature and structure (hexose, pentose, aldehyde, alcohol, amino group, amide, carboxylic acid, ketone, enol, anhydride, ester, sulfhydryl, disulfide, phosphate group, organic phosphate, orthophosphate). Draw an example of each.

2. Review pH, including calculations of pKa and pH from the Henderson-Hasselbalch equation. Write the Henderson-Hasselbalch equation.

3. Review the four major classes of macromolecules found in the body (proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, nucleic acids) and their structures and major roles. Name two examples of each of the four types.

4. Be able to name all twenty common amino acids from their structures. List the names and three letter abbreviations for the twenty amino acids.

5. List the functions (i.e. what are the starting and ending materials, and what is the purpose of the pathway?) of the major metabolic pathways (glycolysis, gluconeogenesis, glycogen synthesis, glycogenolysis, pentose phosphate pathway, tricarboxylic acid cycle, electron transport, oxidative phosphorylation, fatty acid synthesis, beta-oxidation, triglyceride synthesis, cholesterol synthesis, ketone synthesis, purine and pyrimidine synthesis and degradation.) Name two enzymes that catalyze reactions in each of the pathways.

6. Name any five enzymes that are targets for pharmacological intervention together with the relevant pharmaceutical and the disease or symptom to be treated (e.g. Lipitor targets hydroxymethylglutarylCoA reductase to inhibit endogenous cholesterol synthesis).

These answers are to be handed in on the first day of class. Please do not feel a false sense of security because all of the above are first order (name, list, etc.) types of questions. We begin slowly, but step it up rapidly.


*

Good luck and happy hunting! :luck: :smuggrin:
.

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what school was this for?
 
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are you serious?
 
this doesn't look so bad, except for the last couple of questions.
 
A. What school was that for???

B. Those questions don't seem too bad except for 6. But then again that is not stuff a lot of undergrad classes go over cuz not all schools offer pharm classes.


The other stuff is not too bad.
 
I can't tell if the "are you serious" comment is supposed to portray shock of easiness or difficulty. Anyway, I've heard that most schools do start with some review of biochem. For all of you bio majors that are coming straight out of undergrad it's probably a piece of cake. But for non-trads sometimes they need a little review time. I think they just want to make sure everyone is on the same level before getting into more dense material.
 
[FONT=Arial,Arial]6. Name any five enzymes that are targets for pharmacological intervention together with the relevant pharmaceutical and the disease or symptom to be treated (e.g. Lipitor targets hydroxymethylglutarylCoA reductase to inhibit endogenous cholesterol synthesis).



For once being a pharmacology major in undergraduate comes in handy:))) Actually I'm sure it's going to come in handy throughout medical school, but for now learning all these drugs seems hard-- it's nice to know it will make things a little easier later on!
.
 
Does your school teach biochemistry at all? I know some schools do not, and require you to have it before matriculation. Our school taught it, it was one of the first classes, and all of that was covered. So if no biochem is taught at your school, I could see where this would be helpful.
 
keeping you on your toes, I guess. I know I'd be stressing out if I had to answer those, especially 5 and 6. Not being a biology, chemistry, or biochem major has some drawbacks maybe.
 
i love how biochemistry is so important yet the mcat bio section doesnt focus on it as much as genetics or physiology.
 
**** it's been a year and a half for me since the MCAT, and about three years since Organic and Biochem. I took some time off to work and to finish a research project I was working on. Damned if I remember any of that stuff :D
 
This sounds like an hour or two of biochem lectures. I wouldn't worry about it. If you're gung-ho, check out Wikipedia. It's gotten me through some tough times. Just today before my micro final, I had one last look at a certain strain of bacteria and it was actually a question on the test. :D
 
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That bit of homework is a piece of cake! Nice of them to start you off slowly at whatever school that is. Honestly, in your first test block, when you have three whole textbooks of material on the tests, you will wish for the days when that sheet was all you had to do....
 
Are there even homework assignments to be submitted in med school? Instead, I'm under the impression that it's all tests tests tests.
 
LOL... this seriously sounds like the review for the biochem 2 test I have tomorrow... seriously its freaky... and I'm also curious what school this is for...
 
This sounds like an hour or two of biochem lectures. I wouldn't worry about it. If you're gung-ho, check out Wikipedia. It's gotten me through some tough times. Just today before my micro final, I had one last look at a certain strain of bacteria and it was actually a question on the test. :D

Maybe an hour. They probably just want you to have some background before the opening lecture, so they don't get blank faces when they start talking pathways and aminos. Don't expect this to be the typical med school "assignment". They just want everyone to show up with a common starting point for the first lecture.
 
I can't tell if the "are you serious" comment is supposed to portray shock of easiness or difficulty.

That's funny, cause that's exactly what I was going to say. I guess I'll change my reply to WTF?! :laugh:
 
I can't tell if the "are you serious" comment is supposed to portray shock of easiness or difficulty.

I think its probably because they're sending homework before the people have even definitely decided to attend (May 15th) and WTF? Homework? I haven't had homework in at least 3 years.
 
this assignment doesnt even seem hard enough to generate a decent bell curve. what a disappointment this would be!
 
this assignment doesnt even seem hard enough to generate a decent bell curve. what a disappointment this would be!
I'm pretty sure it's supposed to be neither hard nor easy...it's just what it is. I think it's a completely reasonable assignment, and the word "review" is just about right; I recognize everything on that page, but I would need to look at it again to regain my familiarity with it.
 
While my school doesn't give out homework per se, that assignment sounds very much like our first weeks elearning-assignments that were given to us to augment our lectures. (Meaning none of it was ever covered in lecture, but we needed to know it for the test). Each week of our foundations block had such an elearning assignment. Each question would probably come with 2-3 pages worth of reading material and then would have questions to answer at the end along with a self test to see how well we did.
We also have had such elearning assignments throughout the year, but not quite as time consuming as our foundations block.
 
I just received this homework assignment too. It's from Howard.
 
i meant "are you serious?" as in the above poster's "wtf"--they're handing out homework?
 
I just received this homework assignment too. It's from Howard.

Are you kidding? Howard doesn't need homework assignments to make sure their matriculants actually know the material. They admit applicants based on MCAT, GPA, and activities and not on race.
 
I'm with the people saying "Homework? In med school?" Doesn't make sense, even if it is true.
 
Its not homework as in you have to hand it in and will get a score (although I did have two writing assignments my first semester that were "homework").
They just expect you to be responsible for that material and they don't plan on covering it in lecture.
 
If your undergrad institution adequately prepared you for medical school and you actually studied that assignment should be a piece of cake.
 
That doesn't sound too bad. I could sit down and answer all of those right now, with the exception of #6.
 
Nobody should be worried about this type of stuff. The number one skill you have to have in medical school is the ability to teach yourself how to do things. I don't know much of what the OP posted, but I can say with 100% certainty I can learn it. That is all that matters. Self-learning is the most important trait a doctor can possess. Almost none of the questions the OP received will be important in actual practice but the fact that people in medical school have the ability to teach themselves the right answers is what is important. At Rochester I was told that everything you learn in medical school will become obsolete or you will forget it. I think this is true so don't worry about it. Be comfortable with the fact that you can learn on the fly.
 
At Rochester I was told that everything you learn in medical school will become obsolete or you will forget it.

I completely agree with you on the self learning stuff. But they lied to you on this one. Why go to med school then if everything you learn you will forget?
 
That doesn't sound too bad. I could sit down and answer all of those right now, with the exception of #6.
they took the one example I was able to think of offhand :p

well, I suppose angiotensin-converting enzyme is another obvious one.
 
they took the one example I was able to think of offhand :p

well, I suppose angiotensin-converting enzyme is another obvious one.

Oooooh, I actually know that one (well, you saying it reminded me of it). We once had a 1-day lecture on pharmacology when I took h-phys.
 
I receive this in an email from a med school. It is a homework assignment that is to be handed in on the first day of class. For all of you that want to get a head start or want to freak out early, here goes:

1st year Class​
This material can be found by using a good biology text, a biochemistry text, or, if you do not have either, by using a search engine.

[FONT=Arial,Arial]1. Review organic chemistry nomenclature and structure (hexose, pentose, aldehyde, alcohol, amino group, amide, carboxylic acid, ketone, enol, anhydride, ester, sulfhydryl, disulfide, phosphate group, organic phosphate, orthophosphate). Draw an example of each.

2. Review pH, including calculations of pKa and pH from the Henderson-Hasselbalch equation. Write the Henderson-Hasselbalch equation.

3. Review the four major classes of macromolecules found in the body (proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, nucleic acids) and their structures and major roles. Name two examples of each of the four types.

4. Be able to name all twenty common amino acids from their structures. List the names and three letter abbreviations for the twenty amino acids.

5. List the functions (i.e. what are the starting and ending materials, and what is the purpose of the pathway?) of the major metabolic pathways (glycolysis, gluconeogenesis, glycogen synthesis, glycogenolysis, pentose phosphate pathway, tricarboxylic acid cycle, electron transport, oxidative phosphorylation, fatty acid synthesis, beta-oxidation, triglyceride synthesis, cholesterol synthesis, ketone synthesis, purine and pyrimidine synthesis and degradation.) Name two enzymes that catalyze reactions in each of the pathways.

6. Name any five enzymes that are targets for pharmacological intervention together with the relevant pharmaceutical and the disease or symptom to be treated (e.g. Lipitor targets hydroxymethylglutarylCoA reductase to inhibit endogenous cholesterol synthesis).

These answers are to be handed in on the first day of class. Please do not feel a false sense of security because all of the above are first order (name, list, etc.) types of questions. We begin slowly, but step it up rapidly.


*

Good luck and happy hunting! :luck: :smuggrin:
.

sounds easy... basic knowledge for mcat plus biochem 1
 
Hey guys, keep bragging about how easy this is. I'm impressed every single time. No, really, I am. I'm just blown away that you paid attention in intro bio and chemistry.
 
Hey guys, keep bragging about how easy this is. I'm impressed every single time. No, really, I am. I'm just blown away that you paid attention in intro bio and chemistry.

Yep, typical pre-allo sort of thread in that respect.

Don't know what kind of biochem these students took, but my UG profs used to love to go off on tangents about drug action.

As for the last one, they didn't specify human enzymes. Just pick any five antibiotics and be done with it.
 
im mostly worried by the comments that that material would = 1 hr of lecture. that pace would be tough to keep up across multiple classes for two years straight even if you were somewhat familiar wiht the material, much less for new material. add the OP's comment that things will be stepped up rapidly, and im kind of scared. i cant be the only one feeling this way. anyone else willing to admit it?

i can see why people have to start studying 2 weeks in advance and get all burned out now.
 
The people who say that's ONE HOUR of lecture in med school are pulling your leg, and most of them probably haven't taken med school biochem. I have, and our school's biochem definitely has a reputation for being quite rigorous, but that's more than one class. The pacing was usually along the lines of one lecture for each of the following: TCA cycle, urea cycle, Beta-oxidation, transcription/translation, etc. A lot of med schools have their curriculum posted publicly as well.
 
The people who say that's ONE HOUR of lecture in med school are pulling your leg, and most of them probably haven't taken med school biochem. I have, and our school's biochem definitely has a reputation for being quite rigorous, but that's more than one class. The pacing was usually along the lines of one lecture for each of the following: TCA cycle, urea cycle, Beta-oxidation, transcription/translation, etc. A lot of med schools have their curriculum posted publicly as well.

I agree, though my school didn't focus a whole lot of the different cycles so they were all put in maybe three lectures along with lots of other material, but we weren't expected to memorize the cycles, just the important control points.

Then whenever we got to whichever system was relevant i.e. Renal system and the urea cycle, we went into a lot more detail.

Med school is a lot of work, but manageable. I think we med students tend to exaggerate the difficulty to pre-meds who act like they'll think its gonna be a piece of cake and then I have a tendency to downplay the difficulty when a person is discouraged.

Its hard to describe the pace of med school. I suppose one won't understand till they are in the middle of it. To those who feel overwhelmed - don't, its manageable. But to those who feel cocky about their abilities - med school can be humiliating. I think it depends on what your expectations are. Some expect to go into it and struggle. They work really hard and are surprised to find themselves learning the material and pulling decent grades. Some expect to go in and be the top of their class - and then are surprised that they don't perform up to their expectations.
 
The people who say that's ONE HOUR of lecture in med school are pulling your leg, and most of them probably haven't taken med school biochem. I have, and our school's biochem definitely has a reputation for being quite rigorous, but that's more than one class. The pacing was usually along the lines of one lecture for each of the following: TCA cycle, urea cycle, Beta-oxidation, transcription/translation, etc. A lot of med schools have their curriculum posted publicly as well.

I think I said the one hour because the topics listed are each maybe given a couple of minutes (maybe not all on the same day) in med school -- most people show up having that level of background. These are background or launch pad topics, not the subjects of actual med school lectures, in my experience. The things like organic chemistry nomenclature and macromolecule structures were never covered (it was assumed we had all taken the organic chem prereqs), and the amino acid stuff was very much a "please review this on your own" mention. So yes, the pace of med school biochem, at least at some places, is going to move very quickly past this stuff.
 
Some expect to go in and be the top of their class - and then are surprised that they don't perform up to their expectations.

This is the real rub of med school. Virtually EVERYONE shows up having gotten "mostly A's" in undergrad or postbac, and expects to be somewhere at the top of the med school class. Half will end up in the bottom half of the class, below average. It messes some people up.
 
I think I said the one hour because the topics listed are each maybe given a couple of minutes (maybe not all on the same day) in med school -- most people show up having that level of background. These are background or launch pad topics, not the subjects of actual med school lectures, in my experience. The things like organic chemistry nomenclature and macromolecule structures were never covered (it was assumed we had all taken the organic chem prereqs), and the amino acid stuff was very much a "please review this on your own" mention. So yes, the pace of med school biochem, at least at some places, is going to move very quickly past this stuff.

I agree, medschool never even covered a review of organic/gchem (though our notetakers have clarified what exactly a ketone is in the noteset, which I found humorous). The first biochem lecture we had was an overview of metabolism that easily covered these questions and then some and took an hour of lecture.
 
I agree, though my school didn't focus a whole lot of the different cycles so they were all put in maybe three lectures along with lots of other material, but we weren't expected to memorize the cycles, just the important control points.

Then whenever we got to whichever system was relevant i.e. Renal system and the urea cycle, we went into a lot more detail.

Med school is a lot of work, but manageable. I think we med students tend to exaggerate the difficulty to pre-meds who act like they'll think its gonna be a piece of cake and then I have a tendency to downplay the difficulty when a person is discouraged.

Its hard to describe the pace of med school. I suppose one won't understand till they are in the middle of it. To those who feel overwhelmed - don't, its manageable. But to those who feel cocky about their abilities - med school can be humiliating. I think it depends on what your expectations are. Some expect to go into it and struggle. They work really hard and are surprised to find themselves learning the material and pulling decent grades. Some expect to go in and be the top of their class - and then are surprised that they don't perform up to their expectations.

Would you agree that it isn't the material that is bad but the pace at which you have to learn it all?? A lot of med students say that the material they learn is no more difficult then undergrad except that there is a lot to know in little time.
 
Would you agree that it isn't the material that is bad but the pace at which you have to learn it all?? A lot of med students say that the material they learn is no more difficult then undergrad except that there is a lot to know in little time.

Yes.

Although if a person struggles with certain concepts (some physiological concepts were not intuitive to me) then its easy to get behind and then you've got both problems - trying to understand it and trying to memorize it. This was only a problem for me in the first systems block (cardio and pulmonary). Once I got into consecutive blocks, I'd figured out the physiology concepts.

I don't know that the material is difficult per se, but so much of what we learn is circular learning and it is difficult to learn some of the first concepts without understanding stuff that you will learn later - generally what happens is I float through the first couple of weeks of a block (I'm in a systems curriculum) not really understanding the material that I read in my lecture power points and then all of a sudden it just sort of comes together. From that point on is when I really have to get down and study seriously because I'm already almost two weeks behind.
Each block I swear I'm not gonna let myself get behind and it just keeps happening - I think its because initially I just don't get it - until I see more of the material and then it all comes together.

Some med students have solved this by trying to go through all of the material fast in the first week (not paying attention to the normal lecture schedule) by the second week they've gleaned some big picture understanding and are able to go back and start really learning the material.
The way my school handles our material (powerpoints and no notesets - and we don't recieve the powerpoints much in advance) makes it difficult for me to do this, but I think I'd do it if I could.
 
Yes.

Although if a person struggles with certain concepts (some physiological concepts were not intuitive to me) then its easy to get behind and then you've got both problems - trying to understand it and trying to memorize it. This was only a problem for me in the first systems block (cardio and pulmonary). Once I got into consecutive blocks, I'd figured out the physiology concepts.

I don't know that the material is difficult per se, but so much of what we learn is circular learning and it is difficult to learn some of the first concepts without understanding stuff that you will learn later - generally what happens is I float through the first couple of weeks of a block (I'm in a systems curriculum) not really understanding the material that I read in my lecture power points and then all of a sudden it just sort of comes together. From that point on is when I really have to get down and study seriously because I'm already almost two weeks behind.
Each block I swear I'm not gonna let myself get behind and it just keeps happening - I think its because initially I just don't get it - until I see more of the material and then it all comes together.

Some med students have solved this by trying to go through all of the material fast in the first week (not paying attention to the normal lecture schedule) by the second week they've gleaned some big picture understanding and are able to go back and start really learning the material.
The way my school handles our material (powerpoints and no notesets - and we don't recieve the powerpoints much in advance) makes it difficult for me to do this, but I think I'd do it if I could.

That sucks that your school doesn't have a note taking service thing or video streaming lectures. USF has that and the med students say they love it.
 
That sucks that your school doesn't have a note taking service thing or video streaming lectures. USF has that and the med students say they love it.

We do have podcasted lectures, but don't have access to them until the afternoon after the lecture. This is fine if you don't mind being a day behind (I do) but what I'm talking about it for a person to go over the entire material the initial week of the block. Thats not really possible without a comprehensive syllabus.

We used to have a notetaking service but lost it this year with the change of the curriculum. (from traditional to systems)
 
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