Course code:
411B2		 Course name:
Chemistry of Natural Products

Academic year:

2025/2026.

Attendance requirements:

There are no requirements.

ECTS:

12

Study level:

basic academic studies

Study program:

Biochemistry: 2. year, summer semester, compulsory course

Teacher:

Milica M. Popović, Ph.D.
associate professor, Faculty of Chemistry, Studentski trg 12-16, Beograd

Assistant:

Jovana N. Terzić
junior research assistant, Institute of Chemistry, Technology and Metallurgy, Njegoševa 12, Beograd

Hours of instruction:

Weekly: four hours of lectures + seven hours of labwork (4+0+7)

Goals:

The goal of this course is to teach students the basic principles of isolation, purification, identification, characterization and structural analysis of the most important groups of natural products. Within this course, students will also learn about the basic roles each of these compounds has in the organisms which produce them. The second goal of this course is to help students acquire experimental skills necessary for the isolation and purification of some natural products and to teach them to characterize the obtained substances.

Outcome:

At the end of this course students will have the basic theoretical and experimental skills necessary for the isolation, purification, identification, characterization and structural analysis of the most important groups of natural products. Students will be familiar with the role each of these compounds has in the organisms which produce them.

Teaching methods:

Lectures, experimental exercises, theory/calculation exercises and a tutorial.

Extracurricular activities:

Apart from learning the theory taught in the lectures, students have to prepare for 5 entrance tests, to collect and analyze the literature following the teacher’s instructions, to write a tutorial in the field of chemistry of natural products and to prepare its public defense.

Coursebooks:

Main coursebooks:

  1. Stephen P. Stanforth: Natural Product Chemistry at a Glance, Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 2006.
  2. Satyajit D. Sarker. Lutfun Nahar: Chemistry for Pharmacy Students, General, Organic and Natural Product Chemistry, John Wiley & Sons Ltd, 2007. (p. 283-370)
  3. Raphael Ikan (Ed): Selected Topics in the Chemistry of Natural Products, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd, 2008.

Supplementary coursebooks:

  • All available literature which deals with the areas included in the syllabus, including original scientific literature.

Additional material:

http://www.chem.qmul.ac.uk/iupac/sectionF/

  Course activities and grading method

Lectures:

0 points (4 hours a week)

Syllabus:

  1. Natural products in biochemistry – definition, classification, and biological significance
  2. Primary and secondary metabolites – general characteristics and functions
  3. Basics of the biosynthetic origin of natural products
  4. Methods of isolation and purification of natural products
  5. Methods of analysis and characterization of natural products
  6. Carbohydrates and glycoconjugates – structure and biological role
  7. Lipids and lipid mediators – structure and function
  8. Amino acids, peptides, biologically active peptides, nonribosomal peptide synthesis
  9. Terpenoids and steroids – structure and biological activity
  10. Alkaloids and nitrogen-containing natural compounds
  11. Phenolic compounds and polyketides
  12. Vitamins and coenzymes as natural products
  13. Antibiotics and bioactive natural products
  14. Natural products in modern biochemical research and biotechnology

Labwork:

0 points (7 hours a week)

Syllabus:

  1. Carbohydrates and glycoconjugates: Isolation of polysaccharides from natural sources. Qualitative and quantitative analysis of carbohydrates. Hydrolysis of polysaccharides and analysis of the products.
  2. Lipids and lipid analysis: Extraction of total lipids from biological material. Separation of lipid classes by thin-layer chromatography. Identification and quantitative analysis of lipids.
  3. Amino acids, peptides, and small bioactive molecules: Isolation of amino acids or peptides from natural sources. Qualitative analysis of amino acids. Separation and identification of amino acids and peptides.
  4. Terpenoids and phenolic compounds: Isolation of plant secondary metabolites. Spectrophotometric analysis. Evaluation of bioactivity and antioxidant potential.
  5. Alkaloids, antibiotics, and bioactive natural products: Isolation of alkaloids or antibiotics. Acid-base extraction. Chromatographic analysis. Basic tests of biological activity.

Colloquia:

10 points

Written exam:

30 points

Oral exam:

40 points

Tutorial:

20 points