Bioinorganic Introduction: Periodic Table

Submitted by Sheila Smith / University of Michigan- Dearborn on Tue, 09/13/2011 - 16:05
Description

I use this introductory exercise at the beginning (the very first thing) of my one semester topics course in Bioinorganic Chemistry and as the first exercise in my Bioinorganic unit in my senior level Inorganic Course.  The exercise is a very simple one, but generates a lot of great discussion, requiring students to access knowledge from prior chemistry and biology courses, as well s common knowledge from sources external to their academic career.  Students are often surprised to see how much they know before a topic is covered.  

Geometry and Magnetism Worksheet_ Bioinorganic

Submitted by Sheila Smith / University of Michigan- Dearborn on Thu, 06/23/2011 - 14:55
Description

This is an in class exercise that I use to introduce structure and magnetism to a junior/senior level course on bioinorganic chemistry. The class is cross-listed between Chemistry and Biochemistry. All of the students have had general chemistry and organic (with some exposure to MO Theory). Many of the students have also had the sophomore-level inorganic course, which delves extensively into MO theory, and some of the the students have also had the senior-level course on transition metal chemistry which looks deeply at d-orbital splitting.

Metals and Life by Eleanor Crabb and Elaine Moore

Submitted by Amanda Reig / Ursinus College on Tue, 02/22/2011 - 08:27
Description

This appears to be an excellent introductory text for bioinorganic chemistry.  The authors assume no previous biochemistry knowledge and only a cursory understanding of concepts in inorganic chemistry is required.  Any student who has completed general chemistry should find most of the book readily accessible. 

Biological Inorganic Chemistry: Structure & Reactivity edited by Bertini, Gray, Stiefel, and Valentine

Submitted by Betsy Jamieson / Smith College on Tue, 07/20/2010 - 13:10
Description

Biological Inorganic Chemistry:  Structure & Reactivity edited by Bertini, Gray, Stiefel, and Valentine was published by University Science Books (copyright 2007). It is a detailed text divided into 2 parts.  Part A gives "Overviews of Biological Inorganic Chemistry" while Part B goes into more specifics of "Metal Ion Containing Biological Systems."  Several prominent bioinorganic chemists have contributed chapters to the book in their various areas of expertise.  

Medicinal Applications of Organometallic Compounds

Submitted by Sibrina Collins / College of Arts and Sciences at Lawrence Technological University on Sat, 07/17/2010 - 14:51
Description
This learning object focuses on concepts of bioorganmetallic chemistry. I use an article published in Chemical and Engineering News (Dagani, R. “The Bio Side of Organometallics,”Chem. Eng. News, 2002, 80(37), pp 23-29) to introduce students to this field. This activity consists of two components, namely writing a two-page summary of the article and using an in-class activity focused on the concepts of geometry, Crystal Field Theory (CFT) and proposing a mechanism for an overall chemical reaction.

Metals in Biological Systems - Who? How? and Why?

Submitted by Betsy Jamieson / Smith College on Wed, 01/20/2010 - 10:01
Description

This learning object was developed collaboratively by members of the IONiC Leadership Council.  The overall goal is to provide a general overview of metals in biological systems and introduce students to several of the important ideas in the field of bioinorganic chemistry.  Topics include toxic metals, metals used in biological systems and the overlap of these categories; issues associated with the uptake, transport and storage of metal ions; and the benefits gained by using metals in biological molecules.  

Biological and medical examples in intro chem at MIT

Submitted by Joanne Stewart / Hope College on Fri, 01/01/2010 - 16:29
Description

I read about these new biology examples for intro chem in a recent Association for Women in Science (AWIS) Washington Wire (December 2009, Issue II).  Professor Catherine Drennan from MIT and her colleagues introduced "examples of biological and medical topics that demonstrate chemistry principles into her introductory chemistry lectures to highlight the connection between the fields of biology and medicine, that students often love, and chemistry."  Their assessment showed that the examples increased student satisfaction with the course.

Siderophore Building: In class Exercise

Submitted by Sheila Smith / University of Michigan- Dearborn on Tue, 10/27/2009 - 21:25
Description
This is an in-class exercise (brainstorming) designed to lead the student through the design of a siderophore (or "iron lover") by applying his knowledge of Lewis acid- base chemistry (specifically HSAB theory), geometry and entropy. This is a good start for a discussion of iron transport and storage in the bioinorganic section of Inorganic II (transition metals). I also use it in my junior level descriptive course when we discuss coordination chemistry.

Metals in Acid Base Chemistry

Submitted by Sheila Smith / University of Michigan- Dearborn on Sun, 10/18/2009 - 08:26
Description

This is a simple in class exercise to review acid- base equilibria and to lead the students to thinking about metals as both Lewis and Bronsted- Lowry acids. I use it as a discussion starter when I introduce the role of metals in biological acid/base chemistry in my upper division inorganic course, but it can be used at any level once acid-base equilibria has been covered.