NPLK14032U Advanced Carbohydrate Technologies
MSc Programme in Biotechnology
This course will provide a comprehensive understanding of plant carbohydrates and will use an integrated series of lectures and practical/theoritical exercises to cover fundamental carbohydrate biology and the associated technology. This is followed by presentation of more applied themes by academic and industrial researches. The key lectures will be provided by members the three departments involved, but an important feature of the course will be the involvement of invited external speakers. Students will have opportunities to get hands-on practical experience with state–of-the-art techniques for glycan analysis including carbohydrate microarrays.
Carbohydrates have a large impact on plant development and thereby on cereal based foods or food ingredients that constitutes the major part of the human diet. Carbohydrates are bioengineered to make biofuel and bioenergy more efficient. Further carbohydrates are functionalised in plants and with enzyme processing to generate new functions, health-associated ones, and intelligent and advanced biomaterials.
In the course the theory will be presented, followed by excercises in the technologies described. The course will deal with polysaccharides as they occur in plants, especially important food crops and will cover biosynthesis, diversity, evolution and structure. The theory will be backed up by presentation of the analytical techniques for polysaccharide analysis with a particular emphasis on relating structure to function and the effects of enzymatic and chemical modifications. Also included will be lectures with focus on the applications of plant polysaccharides. This will ex. include plant fibres and health, advanced functional food ingredients, nutraceuticals and therapeutics, novel bio-materials and the production of plant polysaccharides within a bio-refinery context.
Key topics covered: e.g. functional food ingredients, nutraceuticals, excipients (medical applications), biocomposites, industrial production of fibres from plants, monoclonal antibody production; biosynthesis of plant carbohydrate, biofuel enzyme discovery, rational energy crop design, starch, pectin, plant cell wall, spectroscopic analysis.
The newest examples of techniques will be presented e.g. carbohydrate microarrays, high-throughput antibody screening; hydrocolloid rheology (structure function relationships); high-throughput enzyme screening; immuno-fluoresence microscopy; bioinformatics relating to the carbohydrate enzyme database (CAZY), viscometric measurements, molecular modeling.
Theory. Carbohydrates in planta
• The biological sources of plant carbohydrates
• Plant cell walls
• Starch
• Carbohydrate biosynthesis
• Carbohydrate evolution and diversity
Technology. Carbohydrate structure, analysis and functionality
• Relating carbohydrate structure and function
• Carbohydrate active enzymes
• Carbohydrate microarrays
• Glycan recognition, monoclonal antibodies and carbohydrate
binding modules
• Carbohydrate molecular modelling
• Glycomics, data mining, multivariate data analysis
• Near infra red, infra red-, and Raman spectroscopy
• Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy
Applied. Industrial production of plant carbohydrates and the
impact on human health & nutrition
• Functional food ingredients introduction
• Pectins, carrageenans and other hydrocolloids
• Glucans and arabinoxylans
• Fibre function, resistant starch and health
• Pectin and cancer
• Prebiotics
The primary outcomes will be a sound knowledge of the biology
and utilization of plant carbohydrates. After completing the
course, students should be able to:
Knowledge
• Describe the processes of carbohydrate biosynthesis, occurrence
and diversity in the plant kingdom.
• Demonstrate a practical knowledge of cutting-edge techniques for
carbohydrate analysis, including the construction and use of
carbohydrate microarrays for high throughput screening.
• Describe the activities and importance of industries based on
plant carbohydrates.
• Demonstrate a detailed understanding of the use of plant
carbohydrates as functional food ingredients, nutraceuticals,
therapeutics and as novel bio materials.
• Describe the health effects of plant fibres.
Skills
• Apply their knowledge to critically assess scientific literature.
• Use selected techniques for carbohydrate analysis.
• Apply their knowledge to evaluate the outcome of carbohydrate
analysis.
• Describe how fundamental carbohydrate biology is related to
downstream industrial uses.
Competences
• Work independently and with scientific literature.
• Prepare and present oral and written work
• Design experiments related to carbohydrate biology and
applications
A mixture of original research papers, reviews articles and text book chapters. To be announced.
- Category
- Hours
- Lectures
- 24
- Preparation
- 100
- Theory exercises
- 21
- Practical exercises
- 11
- Laboratory
- 19
- Project work
- 30
- Exam
- 1
- Total
- 206
- Credit
- 7,5 ECTS
- Type of assessment
- Oral examination, 30 minDescription of Examination: 30 minute oral exam within the theoretical and practical aspects of the course, with 30 minutes preparation time.
- Exam registration requirements
An approved written report for the practical exercises
- Aid
- All aids allowed
- Marking scale
- 7-point grading scale
- Censorship form
- No external censorship
One internal examiner
- Re-exam
if the requirements have not been fulfilled prior to the ordinary exam the written report must be handed in no later than 2 weeks before the re-exam. The report has to be approved.
Criteria for exam assesment
Assement is based on the theory and lab exercises as stated in the learning outcome.
Course information
- Language
- English
- Course code
- NPLK14032U
- Credit
- 7,5 ECTS
- Level
- Full Degree Master
- Duration
- 1 block
- Placement
- Block 2
- Schedule
- C
- Course capacity
- 25
- Course is also available as continuing and professional education
- Study board
- Study Board for the Biological Area
Contracting departments
- Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences
- Department of Food Science
- Department of Geoscience and Natural Resource Management
- Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports
- The Niels Bohr Institute
Contracting faculty
- Faculty of Science
Course Coordinators
- Bodil Jørgensen (boj@plen.ku.dk)
Lecturers
Teachers from the departments involved and guest lecturers from other universities.