Syllabus for Life Sciences

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XL-Life Sciences
SECTION H. CHEMISTRY (Compulsory)

Atomic structure and periodicity: Planck’s quantum theory, wave particle duality, uncertainty principle,
quantum mechanical model of hydrogen atom; electronic configuration of atoms; periodic table and
periodic properties; ionization energy, election affinity, electronegativity, atomic size.

Structure and bonding: Ionic and covalent bonding, M.O. and V.B. approaches for diatomic molecules,
VSEPR theory and shape of molecules, hybridisation, resonance, dipole moment, structure parameters
such as bond length, bond angle and bond energy, hydrogen bonding, van der Waals interactions. Ionic
solids, ionic radii, lattice energy (Born-Haber Cycle).

s.p. and d Block Elements: Oxides, halides and hydrides of alkali and alkaline earth metals, B, Al, Si, N,
P, and S, general characteristics of 3d elements, coordination complexes: valence bond and crystal field
theory, color, geometry and magnetic properties.

Chemical Equilibria: Colligative properties of solutions, ionic equilibria in solution, solubility product,
common ion effect, hydrolysis of salts, pH, buffer and their applications in chemical analysis, equilibrium
constants (Kc, Kp and Kx) for homogeneous reactions,

Electrochemistry: Conductance, Kohlrausch law, Half Cell potentials, emf, Nernst equation, galvanic cells,
thermodynamic aspects and their applications.

Reaction Kinetics: Rate constant, order of reaction, molecularity, activation energy, zero, first and
second order kinetics, catalysis and elementary enzyme reactions.

Thermodynamics: First law, reversible and irreversible processes, internal energy, enthalpy, Kirchoff’s
equation, heat of reaction, Hess law, heat of formation, Second law, entropy, free energy, and work
function. Gibbs-Helmholtz equation, Clausius-Clapeyron equation, free energy change and equilibrium
constant, Troutons rule, Third law of thermodynamics.

Basis of Organic Reactions Mechanism: Elementary treatment of SN1, SN2, E1 and E2 reactions,
Hoffmann and Saytzeff rules, Addition reactions, Markonikoff rule and Kharash effect, Diels-Alder
reaction, aromatic electrophilic substitution, orientation effect as exemplified by various functional
groups. Identification of functional groups by chemical tests

Structure-Reactivity Correlations: Acids and bases, electronic and steric effects, optical and geometrical
isomerism, tautomerism, conformers, concept of aromaticity

SECTION I. BIOCHEMISTRY

Organization of life. Importance of water. Cell structure and organelles. Structure and function of
biomolecules: Amino acids, Carbohydrates, Lipids, Proteins and Nucleic acids. Biochemical separation
techniques and characterization: ion exchange, size exclusion and affinity chromatography,
electrophoresis, UV-visible, fluorescence and Mass spectrometry. Protein structure, folding and function:
Myoglobin, Hemoglobin, Lysozyme, Ribonuclease A, Carboxypeptidase and Chymotrypsin. Enzyme
kinetics including its regulation and inhibition, Vitamins and Coenzymes.

Metabolism and bioenergetics. Generation and utilization of ATP. Metabolic pathways and their
regulation: glycolysis, TCA cycle, pentose phosphate pathway, oxidative phosphorylation,
gluconeogenesis, glycogen and fatty acid metabolism. Metabolism of Nitrogen containing compounds:
nitrogen fixation, amino acids and nucleotides. Photosynthesis: the Calvin cycle.

Biological membranes. Transport across membranes. Signal transduction; hormones and

DNA replication, transcription and translation. Biochemical regulation of gene expression. Recombinant
DNA technology and applications: PCR, site directed mutagenesis and DNAmicroarray.

Immune system. Active and passive immunity. Complement system. Antibody structure, function and
diversity. Cells of the immune system: T, B and macrophages. T and B cell activation. Major
histocompatibilty complex. T cell receptor. Immunological techniques: Immunodiffusion,
immunoelectrophoresis, RIA and ELISA.

SECTION J. BIOTECHNOLOGY

Advanced techniques in gene expression and analysis: PCR and RT-PCR, microarray technology, DNA
fingerprinting and recombinant DNA technology; prokaryotic and eukaryotic expression systems;
Vectors: plasmids, phages, cosmids and BAC.

Architecture of plant genome; plant tissue culture techniques; methods of gene transfer into plant cells
and development of transgenic plants; manipulation of phenotypic traits in plants; plant cell
fermentations and production of secondary metabolites using suspension/immobilized cell culture;
expression of animal protein in plants; genetically modified crops.

Animal cell metabolism and regulation; cell cycle; primary cell culture; nutritional requirements for
animal cell culture; techniques for mass culture of animal cell lines; application of animal cell culture for
production of vaccines, growth hormones; interferons, cytokines and therapeutic proteins; hybridoma
technology and gene knockout; stem cells and its application in organ synthesis; gene therapy;
transgenic animals and molecular pharming.

Industrial bioprocesses: microbial production of organic acids, amino acids, proteins, polysaccharides,
lipids, polyhydroxyalkanoates, antibiotics and pharmaceuticals; methods and applications of
immobilization of cells and enzymes; kinetics of soluble and immobilized enzymes; biosensors; biofuels;
biopesticides; environmental bioremediation.

Microbial growth kinetics; batch, fed-batch and continuous culture of microbial cells; media for industrial
fermentations; sterilization of air and media, design and operation of stirred tank, airlift, plug flow,
packed bed, fluidized bed, membrane and hollow fibre reactors; aeration and agitation in aerobic
fermentations; bioprocess calculations based on material and energy balance; Down stream processing
in industrial biotechnology: filtration, precipitation, centrifugation, cell disintegration, solvent extraction,
and chromatographic separations, membrane filtration, aqueous two phase separation.

Bioinformatics; genomics; proteomics and computational biology.

SECTION K. BOTANY

Plant Systematics: Systems of classification (non-phylogenetic vs. phylogenetic - outline), plant groups,
molecular systematics.

Plant Anatomy: Plant cell structure, organization, organelles, cytoskeleton, cell wall and membranes;
anatomy of root, stem and leaves, meristems, vascular system, their ontogeny, structure and functions,
secondary growth in plants and stellar organization.

Morphogenesis & Development: Cell cycle, cell division, life cycle of an angiosperm, pollination,
fertilization, embryogenesis, seed formation, seed storage proteins, seed dormancy and germination.

Concept of cellular totipotency, clonal propagation; organogenesis and somatic embryogenesis, artificial
seed, somaclonal variation, secondary metabolism in plant cell culture, embryo culture, in vitro
fertilization.

Physiology and Biochemistry: Plant water relations, transport of minerals and solutes, stress physiology,
stomatal physiology, signal transduction, N2 metabolism, photosynthesis, photorespiration; respiration,
Flowering: photoperiodism and vernalization, biochemical mechanisms involved in flowering; molecular
mechanism of senencensce and aging, biosynthesis, mechanism of action and physiological effects of
plant growth regulators, structure and function of biomolecules, (proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, nucleic
acid), enzyme kinetics.

Genetics: Principles of Mendelian inheritance, linkage, recombination, genetic mapping;

Plant Breeding and Genetic Modification: Principles, methods – selection, hybridization, heterosis; male
sterility, genetic maps and molecular markers, sporophytic and gametophytic self incompability,
haploidy, triploidy, somatic cell hybridization, marker-assisted selection, gene transfer methods viz.
direct and vector-mediated, plastid transformation, transgenic plants and their application in agriculture,
molecular pharming, plantibodies.

Economic Botany: A general account of economically and medicinally important plants- cereals, pulses,
plants yielding fibers, timber, sugar, beverages, oils, rubber, pigments, dyes, gums, drugs and narcotics.
Economic importance of algae, fungi, lichen and bacteria.

Plant Pathology: Nature and classification of plant diseases, diseases of important crops caused by fungi,
bacteria and viruses, and their control measures, mechanism(s) of pathogenesis and resistance,
molecular detection of pathogens; plant-microbe beneficial interactions.

Ecology and Environment: Ecosystems – types, dynamics, degradation, ecological succession; food
chains and energy flow; vegetation types of the world, pollution and global warming, speciation and
extinction, conservation strategies, cryopreservation, phytoremediation.

SECTION L. MICROBIOLOGY

Historical Perspective: Discovery of microbial world; Landmark discoveries relevant to the field of
microbiology; Controversy over spontaneous generation; Role of microorganisms in transformation of
organic matter and in the causation of diseases.

Methods in Microbiology: Pure culture techniques; Theory and practice of sterilization; Principles of
microbial nutrition; Enrichment culture techniques for isolation of microorganisms; Light-, phase
contrast- and electron-microscopy.

Microbial Taxonomy and Diversity: Bacteria, Archea and their broad classification; Eukaryotic microbes:
Yeasts, molds and protozoa; Viruses and their classification; Molecular approaches to microbial
taxonomy.

Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic Cells: Structure and Function: Prokaryotic Cells: cell walls, cell membranes,
mechanisms of solute transport across membranes, Flagella and Pili, Capsules, Cell inclusions like
endospores and gas vesicles; Eukaryotic cell organelles: Endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus,
mitochondria and chloroplasts.

Microbial Growth: Definition of growth; Growth curve; Mathematical expression of exponential growth
phase; Measurement of growth and growth yields; Synchronous growth; Continuous culture; Effect of
environmental factors on growth.

Control of Micro-organisms: Effect of physical and chemical agents; Evaluation of effectiveness of

Microbial Metabolism: Energetics: redox reactions and electron carriers; An overview of metabolism;
Glycolysis; Pentose-phosphate pathway; Entner-Doudoroff pathway; Glyoxalate pathway; The citric acid
cycle; Fermentation; Aerobic and anaerobic respiration; Chemolithotrophy; Photosynthesis; Calvin cycle;
Biosynthetic pathway for fatty acids synthesis; Common regulatory mechanisms in synthesis of amino
acids; Regulation of major metabolic pathways.

Microbial Diseases and Host Pathogen Interaction: Normal microbiota; Classification of infectious
diseases; Reservoirs of infection; Nosocomial infection; Emerging infectious diseases; Mechanism of
microbial pathogenicity; Nonspecific defense of host; Antigens and antibodies; Humoral and cell
mediated immunity; Vaccines; Immune deficiency; Human diseases caused by viruses, bacteria, and
pathogenic fungi.

Chemotherapy/Antibiotics: General characteristics of antimicrobial drugs; Antibiotics: Classification,

Microbial Genetics: Types of mutation; UV and chemical mutagens; Selection of mutants; Ames test for
mutagenesis; Bacterial genetic system: transformation, conjugation, transduction, recombination,
plasmids, transposons; DNA repair; Regulation of gene expression: repression and induction; Operon
model; Bacterial genome with special reference to E.coli; Phage λ and its life cycle; RNA phages; RNA
viruses; Retroviruses; Basic concept of microbial genomics.

Microbial Ecology: Microbial interactions; Carbon, sulphur and nitrogen cycles; Soil microorganisms
associated with vascular plants.

SECTION M. ZOOLOGY

Animal world: Animal diversity, distribution, systematics and classification of animals, phylogenetic
relationships.

Evolution: Origin and history of life on earth, theories of evolution, natural selection, adaptation,
speciation.

Genetics: Principles of inheritance, molecular basis of heredity, mutations, cytoplasmic inheritance,

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology: Nucleic acids, proteins, lipids and carbohydrates; replication,
transcription and translation; regulation of gene expression, organization of genome, Kreb’s cycle,
glycolysis, enzyme catalysis, hormones and their actions, vitamins.

Cell Biology: Structure of cell, cellular organelles and their structure and function, cell cycle, cell division,
chromosomes and chromatin structure. Eukaryotic gene organization and expression (Basic principles of
signal transduction).

Animal Anatomy and Physiology: Comparative physiology, the respiratory system, circulatory system,
digestive system, the nervous system, the excretory system, the endocrine system, the reproductive
system, the skeletal system, osmoregulation.

Parasitology and Immunology: Nature of parasite, host-parasite relation, protozoan and helminthic
parasites, the immune response, cellular and humoral immune response, evolution of the immune
system.

Development Biology: Embryonic development, cellular differentiation, organogenesis, metamorphosis,

Ecology: The ecosystem, habitats, the food chain, population dynamics, species diversity,
zoogerography, biogeochemical cycles, conservation biology.

Animal Behaviour: Types of behaviours, courtship, mating and territoriality, instinct, learning and
memory, social behaviour across the animal taxa, communication, pheromones, evolution of animal
behaviour.