Biology is designed for multi-semester biology courses for science majors. It is grounded on an evolutionary basis and includes exciting features that highlight careers in the biological sciences and everyday applications of the concepts at hand. To meet the needs of today’s instructors and students, some content has been strategically condensed while maintaining the overall scope and coverage of traditional texts for this course. Instructors can customize the book, adapting it to the approach that works best in their classroom. Biology also includes an innovative art program that incorporates critical thinking and clicker questions to help students understand—and apply—key concepts.

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Describe gel electrophoresisExplain molecular and reproductive cloningDescribe uses of biotechnology in medicine and agriculture

This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview:

"Genetic sequencing is faster and cheaper than ever. But are the latest techniques more reliable than traditional ones? Scientists at the Dasman Diabetes Institute and Kuwait University are investigating that question for one of the trickiest genetic diseases to diagnose: autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease. ADPKD is an inherited disease in which clusters of fluid-filled cysts accumulate in both kidneys, leading to increased kidney volume, impaired kidney functions, and, ultimately, kidney failure. In fact, ADPKD is the fourth leading cause of kidney failure, affecting one in every 800 to 1000 people worldwide. People with ADPKD may also develop cysts in the liver and other complications. The cause: mutations in genes PKD1 and PKD2. Genetic diagnosis allows doctors to detect the disease before symptoms even arise. The gold standard for doing so is Sanger sequencing. This technique sequences one DNA fragment at a time to detect mutations in the genome..."

The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.

This course covers current understanding of, and modern approaches to human disease, emphasizing the molecular and cellular basis of both genetic disease and cancer. Topics include: The Genetics of Simple and Complex Traits; Karyotypic Analysis and Positional Cloning; Genetic Diagnosis; The Roles of Oncogenes and Tumor Suppressors in Tumor Initiation, Progression, and Treatment; The Interaction between Genetics and Environment; Animal Models of Human Disease; Cancer; and Conventional and Gene Therapy Treatment Strategies.