Special Communication BASIC SCIENCE EDUCATION IN PAKISTANI MEDICAL CURRICULA: ROLE OF BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY

In Pakistan, the traditional science-oriented MBBS curriculum pertaining to basic sciences up to early seventies was loaded with the teaching of anatomy and physiology with less emphasis on biochemis-try and molecular biology. Although, there has been a significant change since then, yet the role of cell and molecular biology in the curriculum has remained less than desirable. With the introduction of problem-based learning approach in some of the medical institutions of the country (the Aga Khan University and Ziauddin Medical University), the basic sciences faculty would like to ensure that the medical students are going to get sufficient exposure to cell and molecular biology, which forms the basis of the understanding of mechanisms of disease processes. The objective of this paper is to emphasize on the need to develop some common scientific learning objectives which constitute the basic concepts within the disciplines of cell and molecular biology and provide the medical students a foundation for clinical reasoning. The aim is to equip medical student with sufficient basic knowledge that is useful in any future career