Biochemistry

Biochemistry is the study of the chemistry of life. This major is intended for those interested in the more chemical and molecular aspects of the life sciences and the reactions that underpin living systems, such as those that provide cells with energy to perform myriad activities and functions and the biosynthetic reactions that enable cells to repair, grow, and divide. The major provides a mechanism to study the chemistry of molecules found in living organisms—in particular proteins, DNA and RNA, lipids and carbohydrates— all within state-of-the-art labs equipped with the very latest in technology and instrumentation. As a field, biochemistry has a wide range of applications as it is applied to medicine, dentistry, and veterinary medicine, food science, toxicology, biotechnology, forensics, and agriculture. In addition, biochemists engage in work in physiology, pharmacology, virology, microbiology, and clinical chemistry to investigate the mechanisms of a drug’s action, or to conduct research related to organ function or to study the diagnosis and treatment of disease as well as the assessment of health. Biochemistry majors are strongly positioned to go on to study medicine in medical, dental, veterinary, and nursing schools or to explore graduate programs in numerous and exciting research areas.