Using biocatalysis to integrate organic chemistry into a molecular biology laboratory course

Current cutting‐edge biomedical investigation requires that the researcher have an operational understanding of several diverse disciplines. Biocatalysis is a field of science that operates at the crossroads of organic chemistry, biochemistry, microbiology, and molecular biology, and provides an excellent model for interdisciplinary research. We have developed an inquiry‐based module that uses the mutagenesis of the yeast reductase, YDL124w, to study the bioorganic synthesis of the taxol side‐chain, a pharmacologically important molecule. Using related structures, students identify regions they think will affect enzyme stereoselective, design and generate site‐specific mutants, and then characterize the effect of these changes on enzyme activity. This laboratory activity gives our students experience, working in a scientific discipline outside of biology and exposes them to techniques and equipment they do not normally work with in a molecular biology course. These inter‐disciplinary experiences not only show the relevance of other sciences to biology, but also give our students the ability to communicate more effectively with scientists outside their discipline.