Journal of Engineering Education Transformations

Anil Shet ¹, Basavaraj Hungund ¹, Deepak Yaraguppi ¹, Gururaj Tennalli ¹, Laxmikant Patil ¹, Sharanappa Achappa ¹, Shivalingsarj Desai ¹, Uday Muddapur ¹, Veeresh Hombalimath ¹, Zabin Bagewadi ¹

Affiliations
1 Department of Biotechnology, B.V. Bhoomaraddi College of Engineering & Technology, Hubballi- 580031, IN

Abstract

Biotechnology being an inter-disciplinary domain, demands an adequate theoretical knowledge of allied subjects along with good hands-on skill-sets for the graduates to be industry-ready. In this context, theme-based mini project for V semester was designed and implemented for under-graduate students of Biotechnology. The objectives of the mini project were 1)To equip the students with basic skill sets and impart the culture of Good Laboratory Practices (GLP)& Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) and 2) To impart basic microbiological and biochemical skill-sets. The mini project was undertaken with the theme of "Isolation, Screening and Preliminary Characterization of Microorganisms Producing Selected Industrially Important Metabolites". A multi-level rubrics-based assessment was followed to measure the learning. The project addressed eight Program Outcomes (PO) whose attainment on a scale of 10 was calculated. It is concluded that the theme-based project was effective in experiential learning for the students which plays a key role in bridging the gap between industry and academia.

Keywords

Skill-Sets, Good Laboratory Practices, Standard Operating Procedures, Theme Base Project.

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Anil Shet ¹, Basavaraj Hungund ¹, Deepak Yaraguppi ¹, Gururaj Tennalli ¹, Laxmikant Patil ¹, Sharanappa Achappa ¹, Shivalingsarj Desai ¹, Uday Muddapur ¹, Veeresh Hombalimath ¹, Zabin Bagewadi ¹

Affiliations
1 Department of Biotechnology, B.V. Bhoomaraddi College of Engineering & Technology, Hubballi-31, IN

Abstract

Biotechnology being an inter-disciplinary domain, demands an adequate theoretical knowledge of allied subjects, good hands-on skill-sets, along with an ability to integrate biology with engineering for the graduates to be industry-ready. In this context, theme based mini and minor academic projects for V and VI semester respectively were designed and implemented for under-graduate students of Biotechnology. The objectives of the mini project were 1) To equip the students with basic skill-sets and impart the culture of Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) & Standard Operating Procedures (SOP)and 2) to impart basic microbiological and biochemical skillsets. In continuation of mini project, students have to harness the capabilities of skills learnt in mini project to translate in to an industrially viable product, hence fermentation skills play an important role. In this perspective, the objectives of minor project were developed to impart the students with 1) basic fermentation skills at laboratory level 2) SOP of analytical instruments and 3) statistical analysis of the results. The minor project was implemented with the theme "Submerged Fermentation and Optimization of Process Parameters for Production of Industrially important Biomolecules". A multi-level rubrics-based assessment was followed to measure the stated learning outcomes.The attainment was highest (9.5) for PI 9.1.2, which indicated good team work and show lowest (7.0) for PI 13.2.1, which shows scope for improvement for improvement in area of verification and calibration of equipment. It was concluded that the theme-based projects were effective in experiential learning for the students which plays a key role in bridging the gap between industry and academia.

Keywords

Skill-Sets, Standard Operating Procedures (SOP), Good Laboratory Practices (GLP).

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Sharanappa Achappa ¹, L. R. Patil ², V. S. Hombalimath ², Anil R. Shet ²

Affiliations
1 Assistant Professor, Department of Biotechnology, KLE Technological University, Hubballi - 580 031, IN
2 Department of Biotechnology, KLE Technological University, Hubballi - 580 031, IN

Abstract

Bioinformatics is an interdisciplinary field involving biology, computer science, mathematics & statistics concerned with the development & application of computer hardware & software to acquire, storage, analysis & visualization of biological information to draw a meaningful conclusion. This interdisciplinary nature makes bioinformatics an ideal framework to experience students the interplay between different scientific areas, while touching on societal aspects mainly on health and environment. Implementing Project-based learning (PBL) in Bioinformatics laboratory promoted students involving in experiential learning and critical thinking through group activities, improves problem analyzing and solving skills, bridge the gap between teaching and understanding the course, concentrate on the fundamentals and its application etc. This paper presents the experience with PBL implementation for V semester students in Bioinformatics laboratory course. An open ended problem on different diseases was floated to the group (group comprising up to 4 students, maximum 4 groups in a batch). Cascade of laboratory experiments were performed to understand the molecular aspect of protein involved in pathogenesis. The activity was instrumental in addressing graduate attributes namely: problem identification & solving, identification of proper tools, data analysis and interpretation, communication skill and ability to work in teams were the major outcomes of this course. Rubrics-based assessment was performed to measure the attainment. Overall results show that the students were engaged in active learning and their understanding of the subject was enhanced.

Keywords

PBL, Bioinformatics, Pathogenesis.

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Sharanappa Achappa ¹, S. V. Desai ¹

Affiliations
1 Department of Biotechnology, KLE Technological University, Hubballi - 580 031, IN

Abstract

The central dogma of life beginning with DNA leading to RNA and subsequently to protein is the unifying principle and corner stone to the understanding of biology. With the advent of sophisticated and high throughput sequencing, enormous data is being generated. This has made the bio-informatics tools indispensable to decipher the data into meaningful conclusions. The objective of the present study was to comprehend the understanding of Genomics and Proteomics with the use of Bioinformatics tools. The course project activity was performed for Genomics & Proteomics course of VII semester undergraduate students of Engineering in Biotechnology. The students were grouped into team of four and assigned with one pathogenic bacterium. The activity involved identifying a pathogenesis-related protein, retrieving the DNA sequences of the protein, finding conserved domains, building phylogenetic relationship amongst the homologous organisms, genome annotation, predicting secondary and tertiary structure of proteins and deducing its stability. In the process, the students were engaged in active learning by the use of various Bioinformatics tools and repositories. The students were thus able to predict the secondary and tertiary structure of protein beginning with DNA sequences. The activity was instrumental in addressing the Graduate attributes. Rubrics-based assessment was performed to measure the attainment level on the scale of 10. The attainment ranged from 7.28 to 9.25 for different performance indicator (PI) of the graduate attributes. A formal anonymous feedback from the students revealed that the activity helped in appreciating the intricate relationship between Genomics and Proteomics by integrating the related concepts.

Keywords

Genomics, Proteomics, Genes, Proteins.

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