Lecture: Biological Thermodynamics (TU Dresden)

Biological systems obey the same physical laws as non-living matter. The lecture describes the use of thermodynamic analyses of state transitions in proteins and lipid membranes based on spectroscopy or direct calorimetric measurements. The methodology of calorimetric assays is introduced and quantitative evaluations developed in the context of radiotoxicity assessments. Students give presentations on selected scientific papers related to the lecture topics.

Part I

• State equations
• First and second law of Thermodynamics
• Gibbs free energy
• Lipid phase transitions

Part II

• Isothermal titration calorimetry
• Differential scanning calorimetry
• Protein unfolding
• Thermodynamic potentials and molecular force measurements at biomembranes

Part III

• Microcalorimetry
• Radionuclide toxicity measured by metabolic heat release from microorganisms