Biochemistry

Biochemistry is the study of the molecular basis of life. The study of biochemistry includes the knowledge of the structure and function of molecules found in the biological world and an understanding of the precise biochemical pathways by which organic molecules are either put together or broken down.

Biochemistry seeks to describe the structure, organization, and functions of living matter in molecular terms. Essentially two factors have contributed to the excitement in the field today and have enhanced the impact of research and advances in biochemistry on other life sciences. Firstly, it is now generally accepted that the physical elements of living matter obey the same fundamental laws that govern all matter, both living and non-living. Therefore, the full potential of modern chemical and physical theory can be brought in to solve certain biological problems. Secondly, incredibly powerful new research techniques, notably those developing from the fields of biophysics and molecular biology, are permitting scientists to ask questions about the basic process of life.

Biochemistry draws on its major themes from many disciplines. For example from organic chemistry, which describes the properties of biomolecules; from biophysics, which applies the techniques of physics to study the structures of biomolecules; from medical research, which increasingly seeks to understand disease states in molecular terms and also from nutrition, microbiology, physiology, cell biology, and genetics.