Is molecular biology just a specialized brach of chemistry?

[onemind]

Hi, I am learning about molecualr biology and it seems as though it deals with certain molecules. Is it just chemistry with a different name and purpose or is there more to it?

Thanks

[budullewraagh]

it's really simplified chemistry, although i suppose the more advanced the class, the more chemistry will be involved

[donkey]

hi, I used to be a chemistry student before switching to biology where i'm now doing biochemistry / molecular biology.

 

Basically, to me molecular biology is all about DNA, gene expression and genetic engineering. You need a simple understanding of the chemistry involved but it's not really very similar to chemistry. You don't really need to know about mechanism of chemical reactions and such.

 

Biochemistry, as the name would suggest, is a lot more similar to chemistry.

 

Perhaps you could say that biochemistry and molecular biology are as much a subset of chemistry as chemistry is a subset of physics.

[budullewraagh]

chemistry isn't so much a subset of physics...chemistry follows the rules of physics. chemists need to know physical chem, kinetics, thermodynamics, etc, which is physics and chem, but that is as far as the overlap goes. molecular biology is less chemistry than biochemistry. biochemistry is still annoying; every biochem book i've seen has had some errors and they are all written from a biologist's point of view.

[onemind]

Thanks for the replies guys

I guess I will take that intro to chem course at uni now

Cheers

[ecoli]

Taking chem courses is helpful in understanding biology. Try learning about respiration without learning how chemical pathways work...it just doesn't happen.

[budullewraagh]

so true. and it's so much easier to memorize. btw, what's up with your sig?

[ecoli]

It the title of a book, of humurous science stuff, by Max Gergel

 

http://www.lib.utah.edu/unreq/fb/3mp_scientific.html

http://www.biblio.com/details.php?dcx=27768660&src=frg

[budullewraagh]

tell me about the book

[ecoli]

I don't know anything else about. I've never read it, the title just caught my attention. I heard of it when reading "Dancing Naked in the Mind Field." It was highly recomended by Kary Banks Mullis, so I thought I would use it as my sig.