Biotechnology

Course manual 2025/2026

Course content

This course will introduce students to a wide range of aspects related to devising and designing the upstream component of biotechnological processes. While working on a tailor-made case study, which may possibly be implemented in subsequent internships, the student will use the new knowledge to devise a detailed metabolic engineering plan addressing a particular problem of his/her choice. The design of this plan has to be molded not just by technical feasibility, but also by ethical and legal considerations, inclusion of confinement strategies, promotion of phenotypic stability, product localization for downstream processing, amongst others.

Objectives

• Design a technically feasible metabolic engineering strategy de novo;
• Calculate the expected production performance parameters, including product transport;
• Evaluate and compare the phenotypic stability of alternative biotechnological strategies;
• Analyze and compare the regional legal restrictions that may potentially apply to different approaches;
• Reflect on the ethical ramifications of new biotechnological products and predict their level of acceptance by the target consumers.
• Report on the newly designed strategy and describe how it takes into account different aspects listed before.
• Communicate the proposed biotechnological solution orally.

Teaching methods

• Lecture
• Seminar
• Self-study
• Supervision/feedback meeting
• Working independently on e.g. a project or thesis
• Presentation/symposium

The course is comprised of interactive lectures where the different subjects are presented and lively debates where students are invited to reflect on the ethical implications of different biotechnological approaches. Students will have a chance to interact with expert lecturers in the field from both an academic and industrial background.

Learning activities

Attendance

Additional requirements for this course:

Absence needs to be communicated to the course coordinator.

Assessment

Inspection of assessed work

Inspection of assessed work is announced via Canvas and/or scheduled individually by mail.

Assignments

Project Plan - This group assignment is graded individually as well, by evaluating the performance of each member of the group throughout the project accompaniment sessions. The latter will be weighted in the evaluation of the final Project Plan. This assignment counts 0.6 of the final grade. Feedback is provided upon request by the student.

Final Presentation - Each group will present their final biotechnological plan (15 min + 10 min discussion). Individual students will be evaluated based on the presentation of their Group and also based on their participation in the discussions following the presentation from their colleagues as well. This assignment counts 0.3 of the final grade. Feedback is provided after the session for the whole group and, when needed, in separate with the Group or individually if preferred.

Presentation of Draft Plan and Ethical considerations - Presentation of Draft Plan and Ethical considerations (10 min presentation + 5 min discussion). Individual students will be evaluated based on the presentation of their Group and also based on their participation in the discussions following the presentation from their colleagues as well. This assignment counts 0.1 of the final grade.  Feedback is provided after the session for the whole group and, when needed, in separate with the Group or individually if preferred.

Fraud and plagiarism

The 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' applies to this course. This will be monitored carefully. Upon suspicion of fraud or plagiarism the Examinations Board of the programme will be informed. For the 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' see: www.student.uva.nl

Course structure

Contact information

Coordinator

• Filipe Branco dos Santos

Staff

• dr. Wei Du
• prof. dr. L.W. Hamoen
• Loles Hoogerland
• prof. dr. J. Hugenholtz
• Martijn Rep