| Plant Biology |
PBIO 400 - Plants and Civilization
Credits:
4.00
Global experience of human interactions with plants and
ways in which plants have contributed to the development
and flourishing of human societies. Includes role of plants
in providing sustenance, clothing and shelter, quest for
spices and the historical consequences of plant
explorations and exploitations, the power to heal or kill,
plants in mythology and spiritual endeavors, plants that
alter consciousness, plant diseases and human history,
plants as energy for society, and the Green
Revolution?global change and feeding the world in the
future. Special fee.
PBIO 401 - Plant Biology Orientation
Credits:
1.00
Overview of plant biology research and teaching
facilities; introduction to research, extension, and
educational functions within the department; career
opportunities in plant biology. Required of all plant
biology majors. Cr/F.
PBIO 405 - Organic and Sustainable Food Production
Credits:
4.00
Introduces systems involved in organic food production
with emphasis on sustainability of our food production.
Scientific and biological principles relating to organic
food production. Role of organic food production in our
local communities. Special fee.
PBIO 412 - Introductory Botany
Credits:
4.00
Plants in their natural environments: their structure,
function, growth, reproduction, and evolutionary
diversity. Special fee. Lab.
PBIO 421 - Introductory Horticulture
Credits:
4.00
Introduces horticultural practices and principles affecting
plant growth and development in garden, landscape,
greenhouse, and farm settings. Special fee. Lab.
PBIO 421H - Honors/Introductory Horticulture
Credits:
4.00
See description for PBIO 421. Special fee.
PBIO 501 - Basic Biochemistry
Credits:
3.00
Fundamentals of general and plant biochemistry for
students in majors not requiring the biology core, e.g.,
health sciences, agricultural sciences, environmental
biology. (Will not substitute for BCHM 658-659, BCHM
751-752.) Not open to first-year students; not offered
every year. Prereq: CHEM 403-404 or equivalent.
PBIO 503 - Introduction to Marine Biology
Credits:
4.00
Emphasizes the organization of marine biological
communities. Various marine environments?pelagic, benthic,
temperate, tropical?and their characteristic communities.
Major emphasis on the approaches (e.g., analysis of energy
flow and predator-prey interactions) used to analyze marine
communities as well as the sampling techniques employed for
each approach and the characteristic habitat type. Prereq:
BIOL 411-412. Special fee. (Also offered as ZOOL 503.)
PBIO 547 - Environmental Horticulture
Credits:
4.00
Effects of environmental factors such as nutrition, light,
and temperature on plant growth and development. Hands-on
learning of a scientific approach to plant production, with
an emphasis on producing high-quality greenhouse plants.
Diagnosis of plant problems related to environmental
factors. Issues of environmental quality related to
intensive horticultural production. Special fee. Writing
intensive.
PBIO 565 - Turf Management
Credits:
4.00
Adaptation and management of fine turf grasses for
recreational, aesthetic, and functional use. Lab. Special
fee.
PBIO 566 - Systematic Botany
Credits:
4.00
Scientific basis of plant taxonomy and the identification
and classification of major plant families, native trees,
shrubs, and wild flowers. Field trips, plant collection.
Prereq: BIOL 412 or PBIO 412. Lab. Special fee.
PBIO 600 - Field Experience
Credits:
1.00 to 4.00
A supervised experience providing the opportunity to apply
academic experience in setting associated with future
professional employment and/or related graduate opportunity
to apply academic experience in settings associated with
future professional employment and/or related graduate
opportunities. Must be approved by a faculty adviser
selected by the student. May be repeated to a maximum of 8
credit hours. Prereq: permission. Cr/F.
PBIO 600W - Field Experience
Credits:
1.00 to 4.00
See description for PBIO 600. Cr/F. Writing intensive.
PBIO 612 - Plant Genetics and Reproduction
Credits:
4.00
Introduces plant domestication, Mendelian inheritance,
plant reproduction, biochemical basis of inheritance,
plant breeding, and biotechnology of crop plants. Prereq:
CHEM 403; PBIO 412 or equivalent. Will not satisfy biology
core requirement for genetics.
PBIO 625 - Introduction to Marine Botany
Credits:
4.00
Life history, classification, and ecology of micro- and
macroscopic marine plants, including phytoplankton,
seaweed, and salt marsh plants, and the interactions
between humans and marine plant communities. Occasional
Saturday morning field trips. Prereq: BIOL 412 or PBIO 412
or permission. Special fee. Lab.
PBIO 650 - Crop Production Technologies
Credits:
3.00
Major technologies and systems for intensive production of
warm season vegetable crops, including traditional and
alternative tillage and fertilizer practices, irrigation
systems, storage systems, and use of various plasti-culture
techniques (mulches, row covers, high tunnels, and
greenhouses) to extend the growing season. Prereq: PBIO 421
or equivalent or permission; PBIO 546 and 547 recommended.
(Not offered every year.)
PBIO 651 - Plant Pathology
Credits:
4.00
Nature, symptomatology, etiology, epidemiology, and
control of important plant diseases. Prereq: PBIO 412,
BIOL 411-412, or equivalent. Lab.
PBIO 652 - Culture of Vegetable Crops
Credits:
3.00
Origin, distribution, adaptation and culture of major
temperate and subtropical vegetable crops. Lectures
emphasize information on varieties, planting systems,
cultivation, pest control, harvesting, and storage for New
England growing conditions. Prereq: PBIO 421 or 412 or
equivalent or permission; PBIO 546 recommended. (Not
offered every year.)
PBIO 679 - Landscape Management
Credits:
3.00
Relates the principles of plant growth and development to
current theory and practice in the establishment and
maintenance of landscape plants. Plant selection, site
assessment, planting techniques, cultural practices and
diagnosis of problems are addressed with emphasis on
environmental sustainability. Prereq: PBIO 421 or
permission. Special fee. (Offered every other year.)
PBIO 689 - Greenhouse Crop Management
Credits:
4.00
Production of annuals, herbaceous perennials, and
flowering bulbs. Hands-on learning of production aspects
including nutrition and irrigation management, and details
of specific floricultural crops. Business management for
greenhouse and nursery operations is covered, including use
of computer spreadsheet tools. Prereq: PBIO 547. Lab.
Special fee. (Offered alternate years.)
PBIO 701 - Plant Physiology
Credits:
3.00
Structure-function relationship of plants, internal and
external factors regulating plant growth and development,
plant hormones, plant metabolism, water relations, and
mineral nutrition. Prereq: PBIO 412 or PBIO 421 or BIOL
411-412; CHEM 403-404; PBIO 501 or equivalent.
PBIO 702 - Plant Physiology Laboratory
Credits:
2.00
Analytical techniques for plant physiology, effects of
growth regulators on plant growth and development, cell
and tissue culture, enzyme kinetics, and plant water
relations. Pre- or Coreq: PBIO 701. Special fee.
PBIO 709 - Plant Stress Physiology
Credits:
3.00
Physiological and biochemical mechanisms of plant responses
to abiotic stresses, including drought, salt, high and low
temperature, visible and ultra-violet radiation, heavy
metals, and air pollutants. Current hypotheses,
agricultural and ecological implications are discussed.
Prereq: plant physiology; biochemistry; or permission.
(Offered alternate years.)
PBIO 713 - Biochemistry of Photosynthesis
Credits:
4.00
Physiology and biochemistry of photosynthesis in higher
plants and microorganisms: light reactions, electron
transport, membrane structure and function, carbon
assimilation pathways, energy conservation, and metabolic
regulation. Agronomic and ecological aspects of
photosynthesis are examined. Prereq: plant physiology or
biochemistry (Not offered every year.)
PBIO 714 - Electron Microscopy
Credits:
2.00
Theory and principles involved in preparing plant and
animal tissue for observation with the transmission (TEM)
and scanning (SEM) electron microscopes; shadow casting;
photographic techniques; stereology; and presentation of
micrographs for publication. Prereq: permission.
Co-requisites:
PBIO 715 - Electron Microscopy Lab
Credits:
3.00
Practical application of theoretical principles and
practices used in preparing and observing plant and animal
tissues with the transmission and electron microscopes.
Student project assigned. Prereq: permission. Special fee.
Co-requisites:
PBIO 714
PBIO 717 - Lake Ecology
Credits:
4.00
Introduces the ecology of freshwater systems with emphasis
on lakes. Origins of lakes and the effects of watersheds
on lake chemistry and nutrient cycling are explored. Other
topics include the impact of human disturbances on
productivity and aquatic food webs and methods used for the
management and restoration of lakes. Comparisons are made
of the structure and functions of lake ecosystems found in
temperate, tropical and arctic regions. Prereq: general
biology. (Also offered as ZOOL 717.)
PBIO 719 - Field Studies in Lake Ecology
Credits:
4.00
Ecology of lakes and other freshwater habitats examined
through field studies. Emphasizes modern methods for
studying lakes; analysis and interpretation of data; and
writing of scientific papers. Seminars on research papers
and student presentations of class studies. Field trips to
a variety of lakes, from the coastal plain to White
Mountains; investigate problems, such as eutrophication,
acidification, biodiversity and biotoxins. Capstone
experiences include interaction with state agencies, lake
stakeholders and the submission of written manuscripts for
publication. Prereq: introductory biology. (Also offered as
ZOOL 719.) Special fee. Writing intensive.
PBIO 720 - Plant Nutrition
Credits:
4.00
Mineral nutrition of higher plants, behavior of nutrients
in the soil and in plants, environmental and genetic
factors that influence nutrient absorption and
translocation, and visual diagnosis and remediation of
plant nutrient deficiencies and toxicities. Prereq: CHEM
403-404; PBIO 701 or permission. Special fee.
PBIO 722 - Marine Phycology
Credits:
4.00
Identification, classification, ecology, and life
histories of the major groups of marine algae,
particularly the benthonic marine algae of New England.
Periodic field trips. Prereq: BIOL 412 or PBIO 412 or 703.
Lab. (Offered alternate years.) Special fee.
PBIO 723 - Seaweeds, Plankton, and Seagrass: The Ecology and Systematics of Marine Plants
Credits:
4.00
Introduces the biology of marine plants, with an emphasis
on the macroalgae common to the Gulf of Maine and found in
abundance at the Isles of Shoals. Lecture topics include
productivity in the world's oceans, rocky shore ecology,
commercial cultivation of algae, and phytoplankton ecology,
as well as molecular analysis of the evolution and
biogeography of marine plants. Field and laboratory
exercises include collection and identification of algae
from Appledore's intertidal and subtidal habitats,
experimental design and data analysis for field study, and
tidepool community surveys. Individual field projects may
involve studies of algae growth, productivity as it relates
to morphology, photosynthesis, and desiccation during low
tide. Daily and evening lectures, laboratories and field
work. Prereq: field marine science or one year of
introductory biology. (Summers only, at Shoal's Marine Lab.)
PBIO 725 - Marine Ecology
Credits:
4.00
Marine environment and its biota, emphasizing intertidal
and estuarine habitats. Includes field, laboratory, and
independent research project. Prereq: general ecology;
permission. Marine invertebrate zoology, oceanography, and
statistics are desirable. (Also offered as ZOOL 725.)
Special fee. (Offered alternate years.)
PBIO #726 - Integrated Pest Management
Credits:
4.00
Integration of pest management techniques involving
biological, cultural, and chemical control with principles
of ecology into management approaches for pests. Prereq:
permission. Writing intensive.
PBIO 727 - Algal Physiology
Credits:
3.00
Survey of major topics in the physiology and biochemistry
of marine and freshwater algae including: nutrition,
metabolic pathways, reproductive physiology, storage and
extracellular products, cell inclusions, growth and
development. Prereq: plant physiology or introductory
biochemistry or permission. (Not offered every year.)
Co-requisites:
PBIO 732 - Lake Management: A Multidisciplinary Approach
Credits:
4.00
Lectures and seminars on interpreting lake water quality,
developing a natural history inventory for lakes, the
process of creating a lake management plan, and resolution
of conflicting uses of lakes. Students develop lake
management plans in cooperation with governmental agencies
and lake associations. Guest speakers from state agencies
and non-governmental organizations. Introduces use of GIS
(Geographic Information Systems) methods for the analysis
of lakes and watersheds. Presents lake management issues
from scientific and social science points of view. Open to
students from all disciplines. (Also offered as ZOOL 732.)
Special fee. Lab.
PBIO 747 - Aquatic Higher Plants
Credits:
4.00
Flowering plants and fern relatives found in and about
bodies of water in the northeastern United States;
extensive field and herbarium work, preparation techniques,
and collections. Prereq: PBIO 566 or permission. Lab. (Not
offered every year.)
PBIO 751 - Cell Culture
Credits:
5.00
Theory and principles fundamental to the culture of cells
in vitro. Introduces techniques of preparation and
maintenance of animal, plant, insect, and fish cell
cultures. Application of cell culture to contemporary
research in biological sciences. Prereq: MICR 503;
permission. (Also offered as ANSC 751 and MICR 751.)
Special fee. Lab.
PBIO 753 - Cytogenetics
Credits:
4.00
Chromosome structure, function, and evolution. Eukaryotic
genome organization. Theory of, and laboratory techniques
for, cytogenetic analysis in plants and animals. Prereq:
BIOL 604. Special fee. Lab. (Also offered as GEN 753. Not
offered every year.)
PBIO 753H - Honors/Cytogenetics
Credits:
4.00
See description for PBIO 753.
PBIO 754 - Laboratory in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of Nucleic Acids
Credits:
5.00
Application of modern techniques to the analysis of
biomolecules, with an emphasis on nucleic acids; includes
DNA isolation and analysis, cloning, sequencing, and
analysis of gene products. Prereq: BIOL 604; BCHM 658/659;
751, or permission. (Also offered as BCHM 754, GEN 754.)
Special fee. Writing intensive.
PBIO 758 - Plant Anatomy
Credits:
5.00
Anatomy of vascular plants, emphasizing structure and
development of basic cell and tissue types, and of the
major plant organs. Prereq: BIOL 412 or PBIO 412. Lab. (Not
offered every year.)
PBIO 760 - Insect Pest Management
Credits:
4.00
Students learn the principles of integrated pest
management, as they apply to insects (and some other
anthropods). Additionally, they learn to recognize the
major orders of incests, and some insect families that are
important as natural enemies of pests. Course incorporates
a significant amount of writing, plus learning to search
the scientific literature. Prereq: BIOL 411 and BIOL 412 or
equivalent. Writing intensive.
PBIO #761 - Biodiversity: A Phytogeographic Perspective
Credits:
4.00
Global view of biodiversity, floras and vegetation types,
from a phytogeographical perspective. Major factors such
as climatic, edaphic, biotic, geologic, glaciation on
distributions. Four Saturday field trips: Mt. Washington,
northern bogs, old-growth forest, coastal dunes. Prereq:
PBIO 566 or permission. (Offered alternate years.) Special
fee. Writing intensive.
PBIO 772 - Evolutionary Genetics of Plants
Credits:
4.00
Mechanisms of genetic change in plant evolution,
domestication, breeding, genetic engineering. Topics
include Darwinian theory; speciation and hybridization;
origins and co-evolution of nuclear and organelle genomes;
gene and genome evolution; transposable elements,
chromosome rearrangements, polypliody. Lab: DNA techniques,
sequence analysis programs, phylgenetic trees. Special fee.
Prereq: BIOL 604 or equivalent; PBIO 412 or BIOL 411/412 or
equivalent. (Also offered as GEN 772.) (Not offered every
year.) Writing intensive.
PBIO 774 - Plant Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering
Credits:
3.00
Plant transformation and regeneration, gene isolation and
identification, structure and regulation of plant genes,
current applications of plant genetic engineering,
environmental and social implications. Prereq: BIOL 604 or
permission. (Also offered as GEN 774.) (Not offered every
year.)
Co-requisites:
PBIO 775 - Plant Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering Lab
Credits:
2.00
Techniques for genetic transformation and selection of
plants, analysis of foreign gene expression, and plant
cell and tissue culture. Coreq: PBIO or GEN 774. (Also
offered as GEN 775.) Special fee. (Not offered every year.)
Co-requisites:
PBIO 774
PBIO 795 - Investigations
Credits:
1.00 to 6.00
Topics may include systematic botany, plant physiology,
plant pathology, plant anatomy, plant ecology, mycology,
cell biology, phycology, botanical teaching, morphology,
cell physiology, scientific writing, microtechnique, cell
and tissue culture, history of botany, genetics, plant
utilization, or teaching experience. Individual projects
under faculty guidance. Prereq: permission. (4 credit
maximum per semester for any single section.) May be
repeated.
PBIO 795W - Investigations
Credits:
1.00 to 6.00
See description for PBIO 795. Writing intensive.
PBIO 796 - Special Topics
Credits:
1.00 to 4.00
Occasional offerings in subject matter not covered by
existing courses. A) Systematic Botany, B) Physiology, C)
Plant Pathology, D) Anatomy, E) Morphology, F) Ecology, G)
Mycology, H) Phycology, I) Cell Biology, J) Genetics, K)
Evolution, L) Plant Utilization, M) Plant Molecular
Biology, N) Developmental Plant Biology, O) Cell and Tissue
Culture, P) Physiological Ecology, Q) Plant Disease
Control, R) Plant Hormones, S) Crop Management, T)
Biotechnology, U) Plant Nutrition, V) Ecological
Agriculture W) History and Philosophy. Prereq: permission.
May be repeated. No more than 4cr. maximum per semester for
any single section.
PBIO 796W - Special Topics
Credits:
1.00 to 4.00
See description for PBIO 796. Writing intensive.
PBIO 797 - Senior Seminar
Credits:
1.00
Professionalism course for plant biology and environmental
horticulture majors. Topics focus on the importance of
written and oral communications. Projects include resume
preparation, oral presentations, and writing activities.
Discussion of current topics in horticulture/plant sciences
and job search basics. Attendance at selected seminars in
related subject areas. Required of all senior majors in
environmental horticulture. (Fall semesters only.) Cr/F.
PBIO 799 - Honors Senior Thesis
Credits:
2.00 to 4.00
Students work under the direction of a faculty sponsor to
plan and carry out independent research resulting in a
written thesis. Two-semester sequence; IA grade (continuous
course) given at end of first semester. May be repeated to
a total of 6 credits. Writing intensive.