Undergraduate Course: Biological Chemistry 2 (CHEM08030)

Course Outline
School	School of Chemistry	College	College of Science and Engineering
Credit level (Normal year taken)	SCQF Level 8 (Year 2 Undergraduate)	Availability	Available to all students
SCQF Credits	20	ECTS Credits	10
Summary	A lecture course providing instruction in aspects of biological chemistry. A sound knowledge of chemistry is essential for understanding the structures, reactivities and interactions of biomolecules. The course comprises individual lecture series including biomolecular structure and chemistry, analytical techniques in biological chemistry, biosynthesis of natural products, biological inorganic chemistry, and fundamentals of medicinal chemistry.
Course description	The course consists of 30 lectures divided into five lecture modules outlined above. Each lecture module is geared to presenting the important basic principles (at a second year level) illustrating the relevance of these using typical examples. Each module course is followed by a tutorial/examples class session where problems arising from the content can be discussed. The laboratory course consists of four experiments which are designed to improve hands-on practical and analytical skills.

Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites	Students MUST have passed: Biological Chemistry 1B (CHEM08023) OR Chemistry 1A (CHEM08016) AND Chemistry 1B (CHEM08017)	Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations		Other requirements	It is strongly advised to be enrolled on this course by Week 1 to ensure attendance at all labs. This course is suitable for students who have studied at first year undergraduate chemistry level. Students who have been granted direct entry into second year of a Chemistry degree programme may also enrol in this course. Direct entry to other Schools minimum A Grade Chemistry A Level/Higher/IB
Additional Costs	Purchase of a laboratory coat.

Information for Visiting Students
Pre-requisites	Minimum A Grade Chemistry A Level/Higher/IB. Visiting students are advised that this course is at the second year university academic level and has a pre-requisite of 40 credits in first year chemistry/biological chemistry or equivalent for UoE students. Visiting students must have a sound knowledge of chemistry.
High Demand Course?	Yes

Course Delivery Information

Academic year 2026/27, Available to all students (SV1)		Quota: 186
Course Start	Semester 1
Timetable	Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info)	Total Hours: 200 ( Lecture Hours 30, Seminar/Tutorial Hours 8, Supervised Practical/Workshop/Studio Hours 12, Revision Session Hours 4, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 142 )
Assessment (Further Info)	Written Exam 70 %, Coursework 30 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment)	3-hour Written Examination in December diet (70% of overall mark) + Laboratory (30% of overall mark) Force fail criteria: Students must attend at least 3 out of 4 lab sessions, AND achieve an overall mark of 40% or higher in the Practical component, AND achieve an overall exam mark of 40% or higher, in order to pass the course. Failure to meet these criteria will result in failing the course, regardless of your overall course mark.
Feedback	Each lecture course unit has an associated Examples Class. This will provide students with practice at problem-solving and tackling exam-like questions. It is also an opportunity for students to discuss any issues pertaining to the lecture course. Feedback is also given for each of the 4 laboratory worksheets.
Exam Information
Exam Diet	Paper Name		Minutes
Main Exam Diet S1 (December)	Biological Chemistry 2 SV1		180
Resit Exam Diet (August)	Biological Chemistry 2 SV1		180

Academic year 2026/27, Part-year visiting students only (VV1)		Quota: 12
Course Start	Semester 1
Timetable	Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info)	Total Hours: 200 ( Lecture Hours 30, Seminar/Tutorial Hours 8, Supervised Practical/Workshop/Studio Hours 12, Revision Session Hours 4, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 142 )
Assessment (Further Info)	Written Exam 70 %, Coursework 30 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment)	3-hour Written Examination in December diet (70% of overall mark) + Laboratory (30% of overall mark) Force fail criteria: Students must attend at least 3 out of 4 lab sessions, AND achieve an overall mark of 40% or higher in the Practical component, AND achieve an overall exam mark of 40% or higher, in order to pass the course. Failure to meet these criteria will result in failing the course, regardless of your overall course mark.
Feedback	Each lecture course unit has an associated Examples Class. This will provide students with practice at problem-solving and tackling exam-like questions. It is also an opportunity for students to discuss any issues pertaining to the lecture course. Feedback is also given for each of the 4 laboratory worksheets.
Exam Information
Exam Diet	Paper Name		Minutes
Main Exam Diet S1 (December)	Biological Chemistry 2 VV1		180
Resit Exam Diet (August)	Biological Chemistry 2 VV1		180

Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to: Apply chemical principles from organic, physical, and inorganic chemistry to explain key concepts in biological chemistry. Describe the structure and function of major biomolecules, including proteins, nucleic acids, lipids, and carbohydrates, and explain how different analytical chemistry techniques can be applied to biomolecules. Describe the chemical basis of selected biological processes, including the biosynthesis of natural products and principles of biological inorganic chemistry. Explain the principles of drug design and optimisation particularly when applied to enzyme inhibitors. Perform laboratory experiments safely and collect, record, analyse, and interpret experimental data, relating experimental observations to underlying chemical principles.

Reading List
Reading lists pertaining to each course unit will be given by the lecturers.

Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills	1. Data collection, analysis, processing and reporting 2. Teamwork (laboratories and examples classes) 3. Time management and independent learning.
Additional Class Delivery Information	3 x 1-hour lectures every week on Monday, Tuesday and Friday mornings. Examples Classes and Labs are held on Thursdays. All teaching is delivered on King's Buildings Campus.
Keywords	biological chemistry,biomolecule,bioinorganic chemistry,biosynthesis,spectroscopy,medicinal chem

Contacts
Course organiser	Dr Annamaria Lilienkampf Tel: (0131 6)50 4812 Email: Annamaria.Lilienkampf@ed.ac.uk	Course secretary	Ms Morag Munro Tel: (0131 6) 51 7258 Email: Morag.Munro@ed.ac.uk