Cells to Organisms - BIO00025C

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Module summary

Cells to Organisms introduces the molecular, cellular, and developmental biology that underpins life across different biological scales. From bacteria to human biology, the module builds understanding week by week, showing how principles found in single-celled life form the basis for multicellular organisms and their complex systems, using the nervous and immune systems as in-depth examples.

You will start by exploring how prokaryotic cells are organised and how they regulate gene expression in response to their environment. This foundation leads into eukaryotic biology, where you will investigate the origins of multicellularity, gene regulation in eukaryotes, the need for intercellular signalling for multicellular life. You will then apply these concepts to developmental biology to explain how signals are used in development to coordinate cells and to form tissues and organs. In the final part of the module, you will bring everything together by exploring the development and function of the nervous and immune systems, advanced examples of how cells coordinate in complex organisms. Throughout the module, experimental approaches are used to illustrate key concepts and support student development in scientific reasoning and critical thinking.

Module will run

Occurrence	Teaching period
A	Semester 2 2025-26

Module aims

The module aims to establish a foundational understanding of molecular and cellular biology and its application to understanding the development and function of living organisms. It begins with the regulation of gene expression and the importance of intracellular and intercellular communication in both unicellular and multicellular contexts. The module integrates these core concepts with developmental biology, culminating in examples from the nervous and immune systems. Throughout the module, we provide examples of experimental strategies and evidence used to address questions in cell and molecular biology, emphasising the scientific method and promoting skills in problem solving and critical thinking.

Module learning outcomes

Students who successfully complete this module will be able to:

1. Describe, compare and contrast the cellular organisation, and gene expression regulation in prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells.

2. Discuss the origins of multicellularity and and the need for cell signalling

1. Explain and illustrate with examples the principles of cell signalling and gene regulation.

1. Describe how signalling gradients and stem cell lineage progression pattern tissues during vertebrate development.

1. Describe neuronal development and apply knowledge of signalling to explain neuronal connectivity

1. Describe the development of blood cell lineages and the role of signalling in blood cell function.

2. Compare the roles of innate and adaptive immune systems in the context of common strategies used by pathogenic microbes.

Indicative assessment

Task	% of module mark
Closed/in-person Exam (Centrally scheduled)	100.0

Special assessment rules

None

Indicative reassessment

Task	% of module mark
Closed/in-person Exam (Centrally scheduled)	100.0

Module feedback

Marks for all summative assessments will be made available to you and your supervisor via e:vision. Feedback will be either individual or cohort-level, depending on the assessment format. You should take the opportunity to discuss your marks and feedback with your supervisor.

For exam-style summative assessment, model answers will be provided for all questions along with cohort-level feedback indicating how students answered questions in general. Marks achieved per question will be added to your script.

For coursework assessments (eg. reports or essays) you will receive individual feedback on your work. This will usually be in the form of a feedback sheet that will include suggestions for further improvement.

During the teaching of the module you will receive formative feedback that may be at a whole class or individual level. Such feedback may include: model answers and discussion of workshop questions, summaries of performance in practicals, VLE-based quizzes, individual spoken comments during workshops, individual written comments on formative work.

Indicative reading

These are available through the VLE module site.