Program Overview

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Program Overview

The Biophysics of Cells and Single Molecules course offers a comprehensive introduction to the interplay between physical forces, cell mechanics, and single-molecule dynamics. This course emphasizes bridging experimental biophysics, modeling, and biological data analyses with real-world applications across diverse scientific fields.

Course Content

The integration of physics into biology is an increasingly prominent field, with mounting evidence supporting the crucial role of mechanical forces in biological systems. Cells, as dynamic and active entities, generate and maintain mechanical forces to engage with their surroundings. They adapt to mechanical stimuli and physical signals through cytoskeletal reorganization, mechanosensitive signaling, and force generation. This course delves into how disruptions in the cellular mechanical environment impact processes like cell growth, motility, and decision-making.

Key Topics

• Cytoskeleton dynamics
• Cell-cell interactions
• Viscoelasticity
• Effects of mechanical perturbations in diverse cell types, including eukaryotic cells, bacteria, and plant cells
• Analyzing data from experiments and computational models to explore these phenomena

Learning Outcomes

Skills

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

• Work with experimental and computational data to explore biophysical phenomena
• Describe how cells and single molecules respond to and exert physical forces
• Explain how polymerization dynamics drive cellular movement and structural changes
• Identify the critical parameters influencing cell motility and force generation
• Use physical models to understand the behavior of biological networks and biomembranes
• Classify viscous and elastic regimes in cellular microrheology
• Explore key experimental techniques in biophysics, including their applications and limitations

Knowledge

Participants will gain an overview of cell mechanics, covering single-molecule systems such as molecular motors, as well as the mechanics of membranes and dynamic filaments in the cytoskeleton, and pattern formation in biology. The course also highlights how these concepts are relevant to biotechnology, biomedical sciences, and materials research.

Competencies

Students will develop the ability to apply physics concepts to achieve a quantitative understanding of complex biological systems. Participants will:

• Understand the critical role of force and mechanical properties in life processes across all scales
• Develop hands-on skills in analyzing experimental and computational data
• Gain experience in critically assessing scientific papers and effectively communicating findings to peers

Teaching and Learning Methods

• Lectures
• Theoretical exercises
• Student presentations of primary literature
• A mandatory project

Literature

The final course material will be available on Absalon. Expected literature includes:

• Physical Biology of the Cell (2nd edition) by R. Phillips
• Primary literature (scientific papers) and lecture notes

Recommended Prerequisites

None. The course is open to students across disciplines interested in understanding the intersection of physics, biology, and interdisciplinary science.

Exam Details

• Type of assessment: Oral examination, 25 minutes (no preparation time)
• Examination prerequisites: Mandatory exercises during the course based on questions in connection to the curriculum. All exercises must be approved in order to register for the oral examination.
• Aid: No aids allowed
• Marking scale: 7-point grading scale
• Censorship form: No external censorship; several internal examiners
• Re-exam: Same as the ordinary exam. If the exam prerequisite is not fulfilled, it will be possible to re-submit the mandatory exercises before the re-exam.

Course Type and Workload

• Course type: Single subject courses (day)
• Workload:
  • Lectures: 30 hours
  • Class Instruction: 20 hours
  • Preparation: 105 hours
  • Theory exercises: 20 hours
  • Project work: 30 hours
  • Exam: 1 hour
  • Total: 206 hours

Language and Course Details

• Language: English
• Course number: NFYK15006U
• ECTS: 7.5 ECTS
• Programme level: Full Degree Master
• Duration: 1 block
• Placement: Block 1
• Schedule group: B
• Capacity: No limitation – unless you register in the late-registration period (BSc and MSc) or as a credit or single subject student.
• Study board: Study Board of Physics, Chemistry and Nanoscience
• Contracting department: The Niels Bohr Institute
• Contracting faculty: Faculty of Science
• Course Coordinator: Amin Doostmohammadi

Timetable

• 25E-B1-1; Hold 01;; Biophysics of Cells and Single Molecules

Additional Information

The course is designed for students from diverse backgrounds, such as biology, chemistry, bioinformatics, biomedical sciences, and engineering, who are interested in understanding the physics of life processes and enjoy working with data from experiments and models.