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Baton Rouge Community College
Academic Affairs Master Syllabus
Date Approved or Revised: __May 2012___________
Course Name: Fundamentals of Genetics
Course Number: BIOL 260
Lecture Hrs. 4
Lab Hrs. 0
Credit Hrs. 4
Course Description: Covers general principles of genetics, including molecular genetics, heredity
and genetic analysis. Intended for science majors.
Prerequisites: BIOL 120 and BIOL 120L with grade of “C” or better
Co-requisites: None
Suggested Enrollment Cap: 30
Learning Outcomes: Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to:
1. Demonstrate knowledge of genetic principles and problem solving skills.
2. Relate an organism’s genotype to its phenotype and explain the role of genes in inheritance.
3. Explain basic techniques used for genetic manipulation and procedures used to identify genome
structure and gene function.
4. Analyze the genetic structure of a population.
5. Explain how genetics plays a role in society.
Assessment Measures: Assessment of all learning outcomes will be measured using the
following methods:
 Learning outcomes will be assessed by administering periodic exams during the semester and a
comprehensive final exam at the end of the semester.
 Instructor-designed assignments will assess the learning outcomes and will be given as a
portion of the total grade. Assignments may include written and oral assignments, projects,
homework, and quizzes; all assignments will be graded using an instructor-designed rubric.
 A weekly set of genetics problems will be assigned; a discussion of the assigned problems and
problem solving strategies will be the focus of a weekly tutorial (fourth lecture hour).
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Information to be included on the Instructors’ Course Syllabi:
 Disability Statement: Baton Rouge Community College seeks to meet the needs of its students
in many ways. See the Office of Disability Services to receive suggestions for disability statements
that should be included in each syllabus.

Grading: The College grading policy should be included in the course syllabus. Any special
practices should also go here. This should include the instructor’s and/or the department’s policy
for make-up work. For example in a speech course, “Speeches not given on due date will receive
no grade higher than a sixty” or “Make-up work will not be accepted after the last day of class.”

Attendance Policy: Include the overall attendance policy of the college. Instructors may want to
add additional information in individual syllabi to meet the needs of their courses.

General Policies: Instructors’ policy on the use of things such as beepers and cell phones and/or
hand held programmable calculators should be covered in this section.

Cheating and Plagiarism: This must be included in all syllabi and should include the penalties
for incidents in a given class. Students should have a clear idea of what constitutes cheating in a
given course.

Safety Concerns: In some programs this may be a major issue. For example, “No student will be
allowed in the safety lab without safety glasses.” General statements such as, “Items that may be
harmful to one’s self or others should not be brought to class.”

Library/ Learning Resources: Since the development of the total person is part of our mission,
assignments in the library and/or the Learning Resources Center should be included to assist
students in enhancing skills and in using resources. Students should be encouraged to use the
library for reading enjoyment as part of lifelong learning.
Expanded Course Outline:
I. Introduction to Genetics
II. Patterns of Inheritance
A. Mitosis and Meiosis
a. Cell structure and genetic function
b. Roles of mitosis and meiosis in multicellular organisms
c. Gametogenesis
B. Mendelian Genetics
a. Simple patterns of inheritance
b. Mendel’s Laws of Segregation and Independent Assortment
c. Laws of probability
d. Chi-square analysis
e. Pedigrees
C. Modifications to Medelian Ratios
a. Deviations from Mendel’s observations
b. Sex linked, sex limited and sex influenced inheritance
c. Extranuclear inheritance
D. Sex Determination and Sex Chromosomes
a. Genetics of sex determination in different organisms
b. Dosage compensation
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E. Chromosomal Mutations
a. Nondisjunction
b. Monosomies and Trisomies
c. Polyploidy
d. Chromosomal mutations: deletions, insertions, duplications, inverstions,
translocations and fragile sites
F. Linkage and Gene Mapping
a. Gene linkage
b. Crossing over
c. Linkage maps (end of topics for exam 1)
III. Molecular Genetics
A. DNA Structure and Analysis
a. Characteristics of genetic material
b. Structure and function of DNA
c. Alternative forms of DNA
d. Structure of RNA
B. DNA Replication and Chromosome Structure
a. Models of DNA replication
b. Prokaryotic chromosome structure and DNA replication
c. Eukaryotic chromosome structure and DNA replication
C. The Genetic Code and Transcription
a. Nature of the genetic code
b. Molecular process of transcription
c. RNA editing
D. Translation and Proteins
a. Types of RNA involved in translation
b. Three steps of translation
c. One gene - one polypeptide hypothesis
d. Relationship of proteome and phenotype
c. Protein modification
E. Mutagenesis and Gene Repair
a. Types of mutations
b. Effects of mutations
c. DNA repair mechanisms (end of material for exam 2)
F. Regulation of Gene Expression
a. Prokaryotic gene expression
b. Eukaryotic gene expression
G. Cell Cycle Regulation and Cancer
a. Definition of cancer
b. Genetics of cancer
c. Environmental effects contributing to cancer
IV. Molecular Genetic Tools
A. Recombinant DNA Technology
a. Definition of recombinant DNA
b. PCR and its uses
c. DNA libraries and their uses
d. Cloning
e. DNA sequencing
B. Genomics and Proteomics
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a. Definition of genomics
b. Functional genomics in prokaryotes and eukaryotes
c. Comparative genomics in prokaryotes and eukaryotes
d. Proteomics
C. Applications and Ethics of Genetic Engineering
a. Genetic engineering in agriculture, pharmaceuticals, medicine and forensics
b. Ethical, social and legal questions raised by genetic engineering (exam 3)
V. Genetic Analysis of Individuals and Populations
A. Developmental Genetics
a. Model organisms and developmental genetics
b. Segment formation, homeotic genes and gene cascades
c. Plant developmental systems
B. Quantitative Genetics
a. Polygenic traits
b. Statistical analysis
c. QTL mapping
C. Population Genetics
a. Hardy-Weinberg Law and its uses
b. Natural selection, mutation, migration, genetic drift, non-random mating and their
effects on populations
D. Evolutionary Genetics
a. Speciation
b. Reconstruction of evolutionary history
E. Conservation Genetics
a. Genetic diversity and conservation genetics
b. Causes of the erosion of genetic diversity (exam 4)