LIFE SCIENCES (LS)
MASTER PROGRAM
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1. Introduction
Biological sciences are key technologies of the 21st century. All over the world,
universities, industries, governments and international organizations are creating new
opportunities for research, development and applications of biology. Rapid advances
in genome and proteome sciences are opening up a multitude of new research and
business opportunities in life science related industries. KFUPM leadership realizes
that in order for the Kingdom to be at the forefront of development in the 21st century,
we need to embark and excel in this vital field. The university has established very
strong and reputable research programs in both science and engineering. Thus,
KFUPM would like to build on its successes in the field of science and engineering
to integrate the interdisciplinary field of life sciences (biological sciences). We have
a vision that, in the next 10 years, KFUPM will have a leading role in the Kingdom
and the region, in the field of life sciences. Thus, we propose to establish a new
graduate Program in “Life Sciences”.
At present, the Department of Biology is functioning as a support department in
providing graduate and undergraduate biology related courses, required by several
engineering departments and the environmental sciences Program. In addition it will
also serve the bioinformatics Program by offering biology related courses, which will
be taken by the bioinformatics Program students in the future. At the same time, the
department is building up expertise in biological sciences areas as well as developing
infrastructure and manpower. This proposed new Program will start as a graduate Life
Sciences (LS) Program, which will serve the strategic goals of the Kingdom. The
Department of Biology will provide excellent graduate education through its offered
courses and research opportunities.
2. Motivation for the Program
2.1 Needs for a BIOS Program in the Kingdom
Our Master Program proposes to address critical needs of the country in the field of
biology and related sciences. Advances in areas such as biotechnology, environmental
sciences, medicine and other fields, continually emphasize the importance of LS
program which, in turn, would prepare students for diverse fields through broad,
interdisciplinary training in the Life Sciences. As a multidisciplinary science, LS
Program is at the forefront of finding answers to some of the contemporary important
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problems including predicting the effects of global climate change on ecosystems,
mapping of the genome to understand the molecular basis of human diseases and
fundamental processes that produce and sustain life on Earth. For instance, at present,
the world’s oceans are experiencing rising sea level due to increased CO2 saturation
and higher surface sea temperatures. In addition, due to increased energy needs and
global warming in the face of diminishing petroleum reserves, there is a crucial need to
develop alternative and clean sources of energy. One such energy source is waste
product (lignocellulosic biomass) for biofuel generation and other important products.
The remodeling and retooling of microbial metabolism holds the key for the production
of advanced biofuels (e.g. alkanes, alkenes, and aromatics). Furthermore, the genomic
and proteomic revolutions in biology have resulted in the exploitation of DNA via gene
mining for use in various biotechnological industries.
The proposed Program is based on the knowledge generated by the methodological
advances in molecular biology (and genetics), microbiology (both bacteriology and
virology), cell biology, biochemistry, -omics (genomics, proteomics, metabolomics)
and biotechnology. The philosophical goal of this Program is to train individuals to
become experts in the field of Biology who will be able to create new knowledge related
to the protection and sustainability of the environment, as well as to provide solutions
to societal challenges in food, energy and health. The Program will encourage students
to efficiently promote, communicate and teach the discipline to others.
The Program will devote resources to ideas and support the creation and
implementation of interdisciplinary curricular and graduate training programs
within the KFUPM.
2.2 Strength of our Program
The proposed Program is based on the following strengths:
1. The Program is multidisciplinary and will be linked with 7 main Departments in our
University: Departments of Chemistry, Earth Science, Mathematics, Physics, Chemical
Engineering, Civil Engineering and Computer Science. These Departments not only
have various suitable equipment that will be accessible to our students for both research
and teaching, but also senior scientists with various expertise, who will add value to our
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Program. Thus, such broad range collaboration between our Department and these
aforementioned ones constitutes the uniqueness and the strength of our Program.
2. As discussed in section 2.1, our Program has flexibility to accommodate students
with interest in various fields of Biology, including Environmental and Marine Biology,
Biotechnology, Human Physiology and Health
3. Our Program will be hosted by KFUPM, a University located in the Eastern Province,
which is one of the most industrialized provinces in the Kingdom (due to oil and oilrelated industries). Thus, it will provide an opportunity to many under-graduates from
the working force to join our Program. Such close interaction between the industry and
academia could lead to a better articulation of research questions relevant to the industry
in particular, and the country at large.
4. Finally, our Program is hosted in KFUPM, one of the leading universities in the
country (and the region), which has a proven record of excellence in both teaching and
research in the disciplines of Sciences and Engineering. KFUPM’s outstanding
experience as a leading University greatly contributes to our strength
2.3 Program Objectives
The Program objectives are based on the University as well as College of Sciences vision,
mission, and objective statements. KFUPM vision statement states "To be a vibrant
multicultural University of international repute focused on quality education and innovative
research that prepare professionals and entrepreneurs to lead social and technical
development in the region". The generalized main mission statement of KFUPM is
summarized as follows:
-
Preparing professionals empowered with the knowledge, skills, values and confidence
to serve our country.
-
Produce research that contributes to the knowledge and sustainable development of
Saudi Arabia.
In addition, the main mission of College of Sciences, to which the Life Sciences Department
belongs, is "to encourage change, flexibility and accessibility to improve our education
outcomes in terms of better student learning and employability as well as serving the
society at large".
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The current proposed Program, by its uniqueness and flexibility, will contribute in improving
both the learning and employability of students, as clearly outlined in the objectives of the
Program.
The objectives of the Programs are listed below. In addition, a matrix of the objectives
with the outcomes is presented in Appendix A.
1- To provide postgraduate education to qualified students and prepare them for a
career in biological sciences such as laboratory specialists in pharmaceutical, medical,
forensic medicine, food, environmental and agro-technology industries.
2- To train professionals in the field of environmental biology and biotechnology.
3- Prepare biology researchers and professionals for the existing and future needs of
the Kingdom.
4- To prepare students to work independently and to pursue more advanced studies in
the field of biology and allied disciplines.
2.4 Program Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of the Master Program, the students will be able to:
1. Easily and correctly, handle the experimental tasks, to use instruments and
employ procedures according to different situations.
2. Apply both theoretical and practical concepts to undertake and solve problems in
biological sciences.
3. Design, conduct and analyze experiments and interpret experimental data.
4. Develop new ideas and conceive novel research in the fields of LS.
5. Work with multi-disciplinary teams to identify, formulate, and solve problem in
LS.
6. Use up-to-date technology, skills and instrumentation related to biology.
7. Practice and conduct professional and ethical responsibility.
8. Write the outcomes of their research findings in the form of a dissertation and
demonstrate the ability to communicate through public thesis defense.
9. Use modern library search tools to locate and retrieve scientific information about a
topic and experiments.
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3. Courses
3.1 List of Courses
The following is the list of all available courses in the proposed Program. We have
highlighted in bold our core courses;
MEPH 510 Radiobiology
LS 511 Microbiology
LS 512 Virology
LS 513 Microbial Biotechnology
LS 521 Biochemistry
LS 523 Human Physiology
LS 524 Toxicology
LS 526 Protein Structure and Function
CHE 534 Bioreaction Engineering
ENVS 535 Environmental Biotechnology
LS 541 Cellular and Molecular Biology
LS 542 Biotechnology
CE 542 Microbiology in Environmental Engineering
LS 546 Techniques in Biology
CE 548 Biological Processes
LS 551 Ecology and Evolution
LS 562 Invertebrate
LS 563 Paleobiology
ENVS 564 Statistical Methods in Environmental Researches
LS 564 Plant Biotechnology
LS 565 Ethics in Biology
LS 571 Biological Oceanography
LS 572 Physiology of Mammals
LS 573 Plankton Ecology and Process
LS 574 Aquaculture
LS 590 LS Special Topics I
LS 591 LS Special Topics II
LS 599 Seminar
LS 606 Independent Research
LS 610 MS Thesis
CHEM 631 Molecular Biochemistry
5.3 Course requirements
Total credit hours required for the LS Master is 30 credit hours. Students must take 4
core courses.
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Table 4: Summary of Courses and Credit hours
Type of Courses
CR
Core Courses
12
LS Electives
9
Free Elective Course
3
Seminar
0
Thesis
6
Total
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The details of the core courses, numbers and titles are given in the Table 5 below
Table 5: Name and Credit hours of all Courses
Requirement
Course Number and Title
CR
Core Course
LS 511 Microbiology
3-0-3
Core Course
LS 541 Cellular and Molecular Biology
3-0-3
Core Course
LS 546 Techniques in Biology
2-2-3
Core Course
LS 551 Ecology and Evolution
3-0-3
General Req.
LS 599 (Seminar)
1-0-0
Degree Req.
LS 610 (MS Thesis)
0-0-6
LS Electives
Choice of 3 courses within the LS elective
courses.
9-0-9
Free elective course
Choice of 1 course
3-0-3

Elective Courses (9 credit)
The following courses are offered for the degree of LS Master as
biological electives. All students are required to complete 3 elective courses
(9 credit hours) as shown in the Table below.
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Table 6: List of elective courses
Elective Courses
LS 512
LS 513
LS 521
LS 523
LS 524
LS 526
LS 542
CE 542
3-0-3
3-0-3
3-0-3
3-0-3
3-0-3
3-0-3
3-0-3
3-0-3
LS 562
Virology
Microbial Biotechnology
Biochemistry
Human Physiology
Toxicology
Protein Structure & Function
Biotechnology
Microbiology in Environmental
Engineering
Invertebrate
LS 563
Paleobiology
3-0-3
LS 564
Plant Biotechnology
3-0-3
LS 565
Ethics in Biology
3-0-3
LS 571
Biological Oceanography
3-0-3
LS 572
Physiology of Mammals
3-0-3
LS 573
Plankton Ecology and Process
3-0-3
LS 574
Aquaculture
3-0-3
LS 590
LS Special Topics I
3-0-3
LS 591
LS Special Topics II
3-0-3
LS 606
Independent Research
0-0-3
3-0-3
Environmental Sciences Master Program Courses
ENVS 535
Environmental Biotechnology
3-0-3
ENVS 564
Statistical Methods in Environmental
Research
3-0-3
Physics Department
MEPH 510
Radiobiology
2-0-2
Chemical Engineering Department
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CHE 534
Bioreaction Engineering
3-0-3
CE 542
Civil Engineer Department
Microbiology in Environmental
Engineering
3-0-3
CE 548
Biological Processes
3-0-3
Chemistry Department
CHEM 631

Molecular Biochemistry
3-0-3
MARS 532 -Advanced Marine Invertebrate and MARS 533 Marine
Fisheries will be offered as elective courses when they are being approved in
MS Marine Sciences Program.

Free Elective (3 credit)
All students are required to complete 1 free elective (3 credit hours) to be
chosen from any academic department or Program in the University according
to the approved degree plan.
5.4 Degree plan
Students will take 2 core courses (along with one elective) during the first
semester, and another 2 (along with another elective) during the second
Semester. During the third semester, students will take the last elective course
and the free elective. Students will give the seminar in second semester; they
will start their thesis in the third semester and will complete it in the fourth
semester. The following is the degree plan of the Program.
Table 7: Summary of the Degree Plan
Course #
First Semester
LS 511
Title
LT
LB
CR
Microbiology
3
0
3
LS 541
Cellular and Molecular Biology
3
0
3
LS XXX
LS Electives
3
0
3
9
Second Semester
LS 546
Techniques in Biology
9
2
9
2
3
LS 551
LS XXX
LS 599
Ecology and Evolution
LS Electives
Seminar
3
3
1
0
0
0
9
Third Semester
LS XXX
XXX*
LS Elective
Free Elective
LS 610
MS Thesis
3
3
3
3
0
9
0
0
3
3
IP
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Fourth Semester
LS 610
MS Thesis
0
6
0
0
6
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*This refers to any course in the university, irrespective of the level of the course.
5.5 Course Description
The Table below presents the list of courses, their descriptions, and their respective
credit hours. The core courses are in bold.
LS 511 Microbiology
(3-0-3)
Principles of microbial growth and control, microbial genetic, industrial and
biocatalyst, microbial evolution aspects, metabolic diversity and various concepts of
immunology, and human diseases caused by microorganisms with some emphasis on
marine microbiology.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
LS 512 Virology
(3-0-3)
Biochemical, molecular, clinical, and biotechnological principals of animal viruses.
Plant viruses and viroid, viral structure, classification and assembly, viral replication,
viral recombination and evolution, virus-host interactions, viral transformation and
the use of viral vectors in biotechnology.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
LS 513 Microbial Biotechnology
(3-0-3)
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The history of microbial biotechnology; microbial biodiversity, production of
proteins by bacteria; fuel alcohol, and amino acids, vitamins, alkaloids; biomass
transformation and microbiology of pulp and paper; polymer synthesis;
bioremediation using microbes; patents and regulations in biotechnology.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
LS 521 Biochemistry
(3-0-3)
Principles, mechanisms, chemical structures and synthesis of macromolecules of life,
including lipid, polysaccharide, protein and nucleic acids, enzyme mediated catalytic
reactions, and catabolic reactions leading to energy generation.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing.
LS 523 Human Physiology and Anatomy
(3-0-3)
Physiological principles governing the function of major organ systems (nervous,
circulatory, respiratory, endocrine) and their interactions in vertebrates emphasizing
mammals especially humans. Anatomic descriptions of these major organ systems
will also be presented. Illustration of physiological principles using modern
approaches.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
LS 524 Toxicology
(3-0-3)
General principle of toxicology, including adsorption, distribution, metabolism,
biological elimination, sequestration, and remediation of toxicant. Toxicant as
poisons, pesticides, solvents and metals, hydrocarbon pollutants and drugs,
Biotransformation of toxicants, drug-metabolizing enzymes, activation and
mechanism of detoxification.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
LS 526 Protein Structure and Function
(3-0-3)
Types of proteins with various functions, levels of protein structure and
bioinformatics tools to study structure and predict function, Levinthal folding
paradox, Anfinsen experiment, catalytic Proteins, protein regulation, OMICS
revolution and proteomics, functional genomics, extremophilic proteins.
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Prerequisite: LS 521
LS 541 Cellular and Molecular Biology
(3-0-3)
Chemical basis of life, the basic unit of life (the cell) in relation with structure and
function, photosynthesis, cellular respiration, cell reproduction (mitosis & meiosis),
cell cycle regulation. Cell communication, signal transduction, molecular basis of
carcinogenesis Molecular structures and mechanisms involved in the storage,
transmission and utilization of genetic information in simple and complex organisms,
gene transcription and translation, principles and methodology of recombinant DNA.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
LS 542 Biotechnology
(3-0-3)
Application of genetics and molecular biology to the developments of
biotechnological products in medicine, environment, agriculture and industrial
manufacture, fundamental issues of biotechnology, development of biotechnology,
practical techniques of biotechnology, implication of biotechnology applications to
the lives of humans and other animals, plants and the environment.
Prerequisite: LS 541
LS 546 Techniques in Biology
Electrophoresis,
chromatography,
(2-2-3)
Uv-Vis
spectrophotometry,
fluorescence
spectroscopy, circular dichroism, biocalorimetry (isothermal titration calorimetry,
iTC; differential scanning calorimetry, DSC), Mass spectrometry (MS), light and
electron microscopy.
Prerequisite: LS 521
LS 551 Ecology and Evolution
(3-0-3)
Understanding of resource sharing among communities, and fundamental concepts of
terrestrial and aquatic environments, Global changes and nutrient cycling, nutrient
availability, resource competition among individuals and within a community,
abundance of organisms and human interactions, primary production, decomposition,
and microbial ecology.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing; LS 551 is equivalent to ENVS 533.
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LS 562 Invertebrate
(3-0-3)
Evolutionary and physical diversity of invertebrates, phylogenetic relationships
among the metazoans; biodiversity represented by invertebrates; patterns of evolution
within the major phyla, classification, systematic, and phylogeny, animal
development, life histories and origin of various invertebrate phyla.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
LS 563 Paleobiology
(3-0-3)
Evolutionary aspects of paleobiology as science, including; the growth of theoretical
paleobiology, punctuated equilibrium, Taphonomy and the quality of fossil record,
toxic paleobiology, macroevolution, paleoecology and paleoclimate.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
LS 564 Plant Biotechnology
(3-0-3)
History of plant tissue culture, different basic media and their components,
totipotency, callus culture, haploid production, organogenesis, embryogenesis, in
vitro multiplication, cell and protoplast culture, cryopreservation, germ plasma
preservation. Plant genetic engineering, delivery system, transgenic plant production
and molecular analysis, genetically modified (GM) crops and their assessment; biosafety guidelines, marker assisted selection, DNA finger printing, bio-fertilizers and
bio-insecticides Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
LS 565 Ethics in Biology
(3-0-3)
Writing, oral and critical analysis skills needed to link science to ethics in biology.
Current issues that involve biology, ethics, society and learning plan that integrates
their Biology concentration, capstone and internship interests, and personal and
professional goals.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
LS 571 Biological Oceanography
(3-0-3)
History of biological oceanography, Marine organisms and their interrelationships
with chemical, geological and physical aspects of their environments. The diversity
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of pelagic and benthic marine organisms, bioelemental cycling within these life forms
and the factors that influence their abundance and distributions. The consequences of
shifts in the ocean biota throughout geological time and how they may be affected by
future climate change.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
LS 572 Physiology of Mammals
(3-0-3)
Analysis of the functional biology of mammals with emphasis on the mechanistic
basis of physiological functions and their adaptive significance in a variety of
environmental conditions.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
LS573 Plankton Ecology and Process
(3-0-3)
Biology and ecology of marine phytoplankton, with emphasis on quantitative aspects
of growth, production and distribution in space and time. The diversity, distribution,
identification of the main phytoplankton groups. Emphasis will also include Ecology
and Process.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
LS 574 Aquaculture
(3-0-3)
Understanding techniques used for stocking fish and commercial invertebrate’s with
emphasis of utilizing various techniques to commercialize production of marine
fishes, invertebrates and other marine organisms
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
LS 590 LS Special Topic I
(3-0-3)
Advanced topics selected in area of life sciences.
LS 591 LS Special Topic II
(3-0-3)
Advanced topics selected in area of life sciences.
LS 599 Seminar
(1-0-0)
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Presentation of a seminar on a timely and important topic in life sciences. Attendance
to seminars given by faculty members and visiting scientists is also required.
LS 606 Independent Research
(0-0-3)
Independent reading of a particular topic in LS under the supervision of a faculty
member, preferably the one supervising the project. The topic is strongly
recommended to be related to the research in the project.
LS 610 MS Thesis
(0-0-6)
A research topic under the supervision of a faculty member in order to probe in depth
a specific problem in Biology.
Prerequisite: LS 599
Environnemental Sciences Master Program Courses
ENVS 535 Environmental Biotechnology
(3-0-3)
This course will focus on how biotechnology techniques are applied to solve
environmental problems. Topics to be covered will include an overview of
environmental biotechnology, Agricultural Biotechnology, and Biotechnology of the
marine environment. Covered materials will go on to explore diverse ways in which
biotechnology is applied to tackle environmental problems and issues, from
monitoring of the environment and treatment of waste, to the removal of pollutants
and extraction of oils and minerals. This course will conclude by discussion of
specific topics related to existing environmental problems.
Prerequisite: ENVS 532 or consent of instructor
ENVS 564 Statistical Methods in Environmental Researches
(3-0-3)
Role of statistics in scientific research, particularly environmental science. Different
statistical methods and their application in environmental studies, experimental
design; inference and modeling. Solutions to environmental problems based on
statistical methods and modeling.
Prerequisite: STAT 201 or equivalent.
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Civil Engineering Department MS graduate course
CE 542 Microbiology in Environmental Engineering
(2-3-3)
Role of microorganisms in wastewater treatment; aerobic and anaerobic digestion of
municipal sludges, and degradation of water quality in drinking water systems;
disinfection of wastewater and drinking water for removal of viruses, bacteria and
protozoa that cause waterborne diseases.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
CE 548 Biological Processes
(3-0-3)
Theory and applications of biological processes in wastewater treatment; kinetic
models; aeration and oxygen transfer; suspended-growth and fixed-film processes;
aerobic and anaerobic digestion; sludge thickening, dewatering and disposal.
Prerequisite: CE 542 (can be taken concurrently)
Chemistry Department MS graduate course
CHEM 631 Molecular Biochemistry
(3-0-3)
The course focuses on the chemistry, structure, and function of biological molecules,
macromolecules and systems. Topics covered include protein and nucleic acid
structure, enzymology, mechanisms of catalysis, regulation, lipids and membranes,
carbohydrates, bioenergetics and carbohydrate metabolism.
Prerequisite: CHEM 530
Chemical Engineering Department MS graduate course
CHE 534 Bioreaction Engineering
(3-0-3)
Enzyme kinetics and immobilized enzymes systems. Cellular growth, bioreactions,
transport processes, intracellular reactions, stoichiometry of microbial reactions.
Analysis of bioreaction rates. Bioreactors modeling and design. Immobilization and
immobilized packed bed bioreactors. Inhibitory effects in bioreactors and the use of
selective membranes. Extractive fermentation. Optimization and on-line control of
bioreactors.
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
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Physics Department: Master’s Degree in Medical Physics
MEPH 510 Radiobiology
(2-0-2)
Effects of ionizing radiations on living cells and organisms, including physical,
chemical, and physiological bases of radiation cytotoxicity, mutagenicity and
carcinogenesis.
Prerequisites: MEPH 561
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