BIO-101 is an introductory-level biology course that includes mammalian cell structure and function, cellular reproduction and physiology, and basic Mendelian genetics, with laboratory exercises (BIO-101L) designed to follow the lecture topics.
Cell structure and physiology as the foundation
The course establishes mammalian cell structure and function as the foundational unit of study, since nearly every subsequent biological concept — reproduction, genetics, physiology — builds on understanding how cells themselves are organized and function.
From cell biology to Mendelian genetics
BIO-101 moves from cellular reproduction and physiology into basic Mendelian genetics, connecting how cells replicate and divide to how traits are actually inherited across generations.
Key topics in BIO101
- Mammalian cell structure and function
- Cellular reproduction (mitosis and meiosis)
- Cell physiology
- Basic Mendelian genetics and inheritance patterns
- Connecting cell biology to heredity
- Foundational biological vocabulary and concepts
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Worked example: cell division to inheritance
- Cellular level: Understanding how cells divide through mitosis and meiosis
- Genetic level: Understanding how meiosis specifically is what allows Mendelian inheritance patterns to occur
- Lesson: BIO-101 teaches that genetics can't be fully understood without first understanding the cellular reproduction process that makes inheritance possible
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Frequently asked questions
SNHU's course descriptions for BIO-101 and BIO-120 are substantially the same — both cover mammalian cell structure and function, cellular reproduction and physiology, and basic Mendelian genetics with an associated lab — suggesting these are parallel introductory biology listings, likely serving different programs, campus versus online delivery, or different points in SNHU's catalog history, rather than two genuinely distinct courses. This mirrors a broader pattern already found across SNHU's catalog (in Accounting, Taxation, and Marketing) where a single course exists under more than one number.
Biology concepts like cell structure and cellular reproduction are much better understood through direct observation — viewing cells under a microscope, observing reproduction processes, running genetics crosses — than through lecture alone, so the lab component gives students hands-on, empirical grounding for the lecture's theoretical content. BIO-101 pairs lecture and lab because biological science education relies on this combination of conceptual understanding and direct observation to be genuinely effective.