Introducing a new undergraduate biochemistry/molecular biology curriculum recommended by the American Society for Biochemistry and molecular biology (ASBMB)

Abstract

Biochemistry throughout much of its history has been a field reserved for postbaccalaureate study. Universities in the United States established biochemistry (often called physiological chemistry) departments in the late 19th century and early 20th century primarily to train students for the M.Sc., Ph.D., and M.D. degrees. Therefore, the curriculum of biochemistry programs and courses was driven by basic research and topics in medical/clinical education. The exact time and institutions with the first undergraduate biochemistry programs are uncertain, but some universities began such programs in the 1950s, while a few liberal arts colleges followed suit in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Perhaps a major impetus for the expansion of undergraduate programs was the publication of Lehninger’s Biochemistry, the first textbook that was written and designed with undergraduate students in mind. Lehninger used what he called “molecular