This course is an intensive, comprehensive introduction to the chemistry of carbon and its importance to living systems. Topics include current ideas of bonding and structure, major reaction mechanisms and pathways, a discussion of the analytical tools used to determine the structure and stereochemistry of organic molecules (such as infrared and nuclear magnetic resonance [NMR] spectroscopy), and some of the chemistry of enzymes and cofactors. This course fulfills the requirement of two semesters of organic chemistry for entrance to medical school.
