Design, implementation, and outcomes of an elective course on preliminary structural biology for undergraduate students majoring in biotechnology

Biotechnological pharmaceuticals is a key course offered to third-year undergraduates majoring in biotechnology in our university. However, students often experience difficulties in understanding the principles of related technologies. In this study, we developed and implemented an elective course on preliminary structural biology for biotechnology undergraduates, aiming at reinforcing the principles of these technologies by experimental practice. The course was composed of three phases and lasted for 15 weeks, 18 students were randomly divided into six teams and were encouraged to design, prepare, carry out, and conclude a project on their own. The main contents of their project were cloning, expression, purification, and crystal screening of HpaA, a lipoprotein from the gastric pathogen Helicobacter pylori. Examination scores of biotechnology pharmaceuticals were used to assess learning outcomes. The results showed that students who participated in this course gained higher scores in the final examination, and they performed better on the questions specifically related to the elective course. These results demonstrated that the course enhanced students' understanding of the technologies involved in this course by practical applications. Thus, this elective course was effective in helping biotechnology undergraduates to learn the theory and application of biological technologies, and the experience gained in this course may be useful for other technology-based courses.