Biochemistry Class

[Tortue]

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Hi, I think I'm going to take biochemistry this summer and I was wondering if you have any suggestions, advice, etc. about how to study for the class, any helpful books, etc. I really need to do well in the class because I'm not very good with chemistry and really struggled with ochem.

Thanks for any ideas, inputs, comments...😀

 

[Electrophile]

Ermm...don't have a summer job if you want to ace the class. At least, if you're like me.

 

[twelvetigers]

If you don't work full time, I think you could manage it. I enjoyed biochemistry, but had really disliked all other chemistries. You might not have as hard of a time with it as some. Does your school have a drop date? You could give it a week or two and then drop for a refund if it seems like too much. If your school can't do that, then maybe take a peek at the book or sit in on a class that's going this smester to see what you might think.

 

[RazorDoc2010]

I had struggled with OChem too but didn't find biochem to be nearly as daunting. Don't have a bad attitude about it before you start, because it really is fairly unrelated to the other chemistries you've probably taken.

Other than that, read your notes every night, read the book, do examples and ask for help if you need it. good luck!

 

[athenaparthenos]

I did well in o-chem (A- and B+ in the two semesters I took it), barely got a C in biochem. I would say that your o-chem skills or lack thereof won't apply so much -- in my biochem class it was largely just memorization of enzyme names and not much active problem solving. I also had a class of 250 people taking it with me, which really hurt me as I do better in small classes where I can actually get a chance to talk to the professor. The smaller the class you can do it in, the better.

 

[Steelmagghia]

If you are good with shapes, you'll be great in biochem.

I have an A in biochem I and I am just at the cusp between an A and a B right now in biochem II.

The best advice I can give you is to start drawing the structures on everything you can get your hands on as soon as you're given the structures. I draw on my mirrors with dry erase marker (mirrors work just like dry erase boards...if you get them soon enough, you can wipe the marker off with a kleenex, if you leave them for a long time you have to use some windex).
It helps, trust me.

 

[lailanni]

Pervious thread on this subject

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=500205

Helped me a bunch!

 

[Tortue]

I am going to work part time ~20-25 hrs a week, and take biochem. Other people have told me that it makes more sense than ochem bcz it kind of ties everything together. 😱

 

[enchantingme2]

I am taking biochem now and I hated hated hated all the other chemistries. It is a very difficult class, but I enjoy it more and understand its relevance to what we are doing more. Although it is required to have Organic prior, for the most part a basic understanding seems to be doing me well (I havent taken any type of chem in a few years so I am very rusty....very rusty). I think that a lot of it is based on memorization and that if you have the time to dedicate to that then you should be fine. BUT do not think its easy...we just had our second exam and the average was an 85 out of 150...so the class average was an F....not good. ALSO when your teacher says (and they will say this) memorize all 20 amino acids and their phs etc etc. definately memorize that!

 

[projekt]

At my school, Biochem I was easy and Biochem II (which I didn't take) was apparently challenging. BC I required a lot of memorization and knowing the acid/base relationship for amino acids as well as the Michaelis-Menten equation.

I memorized the glycolysis reaction, the TCA cycle and the parameters of A, B, and Z DNA. Reciting those things from memory helped on the exams.

I have since forgotten all of that. When my sister asked me about biochem problems, I had to relearn it from my lousy book.

If your textbook is not helpful, find a better one. I wish I had!

 

[twelvetigers]

I loved memorizing the amino acids. I remember them. (NERD)

That said, there weren't a lot of structures to know besides those. In my class, at least. There was also memorizing glycolysis/TCA cycle/ETC. Those seem like the norm.

 

[pupsforseeing]

Science nerd moment alert 🙂

I received a card from a friend the other day and the message was written out in amino acids. I had to decipher it by interpreting it using their one-letter codes. Yay biochem 🙂

In first semester (pretty much all metabolism), we had to learn the structures of all the intermediates for glycolysis/TCA cycle/ETC, amino acid neogenesis, beta-oxidation, fatty acid synthesis, etc etc. The lists never ended! But, that was probably one of my favorite classes ever.

Now I'm in second semester. It's mainly nucleic acid chemistry which is much less exciting to me. And my grades are reflective of that, even though the averages on the exams are significantly higher. Yay senioritis!

 

[Steelmagghia]

Science nerd moment alert 🙂

I received a card from a friend the other day and the message was written out in amino acids. I had to decipher it by interpreting it using their one-letter codes. Yay biochem 🙂

In first semester (pretty much all metabolism), we had to learn the structures of all the intermediates for glycolysis/TCA cycle/ETC, amino acid neogenesis, beta-oxidation, fatty acid synthesis, etc etc. The lists never ended! But, that was probably one of my favorite classes ever.

Now I'm in second semester. It's mainly nucleic acid chemistry which is much less exciting to me. And my grades are reflective of that, even though the averages on the exams are significantly higher. Yay senioritis!

Interesting, our classes are set up completely opposite.
For me, 1st semester was all structures and reactions. Second semester is metabolism and whatnot. I preferred the structures, but I think that is more because that is what my professor prefers so I understood her better.
She HATES metabolism, and it shows. 🙁

 

[david594]

Did everyone do 2 semesters of biochem? I know my college offers a single semester biochem course geared towards everyone who needs it for non-biochem major reasons.

 

[dyachei]

Did everyone do 2 semesters of biochem? I know my college offers a single semester biochem course geared towards everyone who needs it for non-biochem major reasons.

I only did 1 semester. It was called principles of biochem.

 

[Steelmagghia]

Did everyone do 2 semesters of biochem? I know my college offers a single semester biochem course geared towards everyone who needs it for non-biochem major reasons.

In my school, the Biochem majors have to take the lab, but the class is the same for non biochem and biochem majors. In fact, we're all in the SAME class. And yeah, it's two semesters, and it is hardcore. The instructor is a Biochem PhD and is in charge of all of these labs all over the country.
It's an AWESOME class, though.

 

[twelvetigers]

Only one semester here, but there's another option for those pursuing a major or minor in it. We have "Survey of Biochem".

 

[pupsforseeing]

We only have it as a two semester sequence, and it's required for my major (molecular biology). The biochem kids take the same course with us.

 

[twelvetigers]

Yeah, I was also going to point out that here, you are a Biochem/Molec Bio major, they're not even separate. Which I think is weird, because I loved biochem and hated cell & molec bio. But, my cell molec professor was ick.

 

[banditalfi]

I'm in my second semester right now (putting off the problem sets as I type this!). I took the first semester over two years ago, so here's what I remember of it...

-Protein stuff - amino acids, enzymes to break them down, tandem MS, etc
-Glycolysis
and apparently that's all I remember

This semester:
-Krebs Cycle (ughhh)
-Photosynthesis
-Random stuff - drugs, vitamins, etc
-Purine and pyrimidine synthesis

OK that's it for now!