HORT 8040 – Molecular Markers in Crops. Study of the most important molecular markers and their use in crops, with emphasis on their historical development, theoretical basis, and practical applications.

CFIT 8007 – Breeding for Biotic and Abiotic Stress in Plants. Study of biotic and abiotic factors that limit the production of crops. Application of techniques and methods of plant breeding that increase the efficiency of selection for tolerance or resistance to stress.

PROC 8016 – Advanced Plant Bacteriology. Discussion and application of principles and methods of detection, isolation, identification, and characterization of plant pathogenic bacteria. Study of pathogenesis, virulence factors, interactions, resistance, and control.

PROC 8006 – Insect Behavior. Study of the terminology and concepts of insect behavior, operating mechanisms, and its ecological and evolutionary significance. Evaluation of insect behavior and its impact on management of other populations.

CIAN 8020 – Non-Ruminant Farm Animal Nutrition. Study of the digestive physiology of poultry, swine, equines, and lagomorphs to develop the analytical capacity for research in nutrition and its practical application. Analysis of the nutritional value of the most utilized feeds and discussion of their chemical composition, voluntary intake, digestibility, and metabolism as well as the most common feed additives.

CIAN 8025 –Vitamin Metabolism in Animals. Study of vitamins and their specific functions in animal cell metabolism. Analysis of vitamin requirements for different animal functions, the need for vitamin supplementation, and vitamin-mineral interactions.

CIAN 8630– Animal Endocrinology. Study of the organization and function of the endocrine glands. Analysis of the structure, synthesis, release, transport, and metabolism of their hormonal products and their effects on target cells.

 

 

CIAN 6601 – Advanced Animal Breeding. Advanced course in population genetics, with special emphasis on quantitative characteristics, breeding and selection of farm animals.

CIAN 6604 –Animal Nutrition. Physiological mechanisms involved in thirst and appetite; digestion, absorption and utilization of nutrients; respiration and body temperature regulation.

CIAN 6606 – Experimental Nutrition. Study and application of the methodology used in animal nutrition research. Practice in vivo, in vitro and in situ digestibility trials and mathematical models to determine ruminal degradability and fermentation rates. Evaluation of experimental designs for nutrition research.

CIAN 6611 – Ruminant Nutrition. Physiological and biochemical processes of digestion, relation of rumen function to animal Response, chemical analyses and nutrient composition and requirements of feedstuffs, primarily forages, in vitro methodology for determining nutrient digestibility.

CIAN 6617 – Advanced Reproduction. Anatomical, physiological, and pathological processes of reproduction in farm animals. Current concepts in endocrinology and their application in management and control of reproduction. Effect of tropical environment on reproduction.

CIAN 6625 – Animal Energy Metabolism. Prerequisite: Authorization of the Director of the Department. Study of energy metabolism and its relationship to cell structure; the concept and types of energy; laws of thermodynamics and their relationship to animal metabolism; energy utilization and requirements in animals; environmental effects and control systems in energy metabolism, as well as techniques utilized for its study.

CIAN 6626 – Animal Protein Metabolism. Nutritional and biochemical aspects of animal protein metabolism; digestion and absorption; metabolism of free amino acids; protein synthesis and turnover; excretion of nitrogenous products; nutritional value of proteins; protein requirements; general features of metabolic and hormonal control.

CIAN 6637 – Neuroendocrine and Circulatory Physiology. Study of the processes of the nervous, endocrine and cardiovascular functions with emphasis on cellular control mechanisms in domestic animals.

CIAN 6638 – Renal, Respiratory and Digestive Physiology. Study of the processes of the renal, respiratory and gastrointestinal functions with emphasis in the cellular control mechanisms in domestic animals.

 

 

Agronomy (AGRO and CFIT)

AGRO 6005 – Use of Statistical Computer Packages in Biometry. Use of statistical computer packages in the analysis of experimental data.

AGRO 6600 – Advanced Biometrics. Advanced study of analysis of variance, covariance and multiple regression, design and analysis of experiments applied to research problems in agricultural, biological and environmental sciences. Students design experiments, analyze data and use statistical computing programs. Previous knowledge of basic statistics is required.

AGRO 6300 – Simulation of Agricultural Systems. Study of the principles of simulation of agricultural systems. The dynamics between crop growth and development in relation to soil water and nitrogen will be discussed. The use of models to simulate crop production and management practices will be emphasized.

AGRO 6505 – Advanced Soil Fertility. Discussion of advanced topics in soil fertility including nutritional diagnosis, nutrient availability, limiting factors, recommendations for fertilization, soil management, and environmental impact.

AGRO 6604 – Soil-Plant Relationships. Study of the process that affect root growth and development, methods of study of such processes, availability of nutrients and factors that affect their movement and absorption, growth as a function of dry matter accumulation, root proliferation and nutrient uptake.

AGRO 6607 – Soil Chemistry. Chemical composition and properties of soils, chemical process of weathering, soil solution reaction, chemical properties of clays, and ionic exchanges in soils.

AGRO 6612 – Management of Tropical Soils. Application of principles of soil science in the interpretation and use of recent research relating to problems in the management and production of tropical soils.

AGRO 6624 – Soil Mineralogy. Identification of the constituent mineral of soils, and their relation to soil classification and agricultural practices.

CFIT

CFIT 6105 – Plant Breeding Methods. Study of crop domestication and sources of genetic diversity. Application of principles of Mendelian, population, quantitative and molecular genetics in crop improvement. Study of breeding techniques in self-pollinated, cross-pollinated and asexually propagated crops, and breeding for disease and pest resistance. Analysis of the use of transgenes in crop improvement.

CFIT 6009 – Advanced Plant Genetics. Discussion of advanced concepts in classical and molecular genetics and their application to the study of genome structure, expression, and manipulation in cultivated plants.

CFIT 8007 – Breeding for Biotic and Abiotic Stress in Plants. Study of biotic and abiotic factors that limit the production of crops. Application of techniques and methods of plant breeding that increase the efficiency of selection for tolerance or resistance to stress.

CFIT 6644 – Environmental Physiology. Environmental aspects of phyto-physiology, including energy, nutrition cycles, pollution, and others.

CFIT 6645 – Advances in Biological Nitrogen Fixation. Mechanism by which atmospheric nitrogen is incorporated into plant proteins and modern techniques utilized for its study, organisms capable of fixing nitrogen in a free-living state or in symbiosis with plants, methodology to take advantage of this process in agriculture.

CFIT 6611 – Advanced Plant Breeding. Types of genetic action in plant breeding, use of the principle of population genetics and quantitative genetics in the improvement of crops, relationships of population structure to the induction of genetic variation and selectivity processes. Application cytogenetics and polyploidy concept to plant improvement.

 

Horticulture (HORT)

HORT 6620 – Production of Horticultural Crops in Protected Structures. Study of the effect of environmental factors such as light, water, humidity, temperature, carbon dioxide concentration and various nutrients sources on the growth, development and yield of horticultural crops under different protected structures.

HORT 6611 – Advanced Plant Propagation. Techniques in plant propagation through embryo culture, meristematic culture in vegetative propagation, culture of explants, and other advanced methods, review of recent findings in this field.

HORT 6616 – Advanced Tropical Fruits. A study of the problems encountered in the production of fruits of major economic importance, with special emphasis on tropical conditions. The influence of stocks, varieties, planting sites, soils and ecological factors will be stressed.

HORT 6652 – Physiology of Vegetable Crops. The study of photoperiodism, thermoperiodism, deficiencies, growth substances, rooting, germination and fruit setting in each of the major vegetable crops.

HORT 6653 – Physiology of Fruit Production. The study of fruit production, including water, light, soil and nutrition relationships; pruning fruit setting, and other growth and productivity factors.

HORT 6665 – Plant Genetic Transformation. Theory and practice of the concepts the genetic transformation of plants by direct and indirect methods. Emphasis will be given to Agrobacterium tumefaciens mediated transformation.

HORT 6669 – Growth Regulators in Horticulture. The use of growth regulators and other chemicals in the modification and alteration of natural plant processes; the application of these substances in the commercial production of fruits, vegetables, and ornamentals.

HORT 6665 – Plant Genetic Transformation. Theory and practice of the concepts in the genetic transformation of plants by direct and indirect methods. Emphasis will be given to Agrobacterium tumefaciens mediated transformation.

 

Crop Protection (PROC)

PROC 6015 – Molecular Aspects in Phytopathology. Study of the biochemistry, physiology, and molecular biology of plant-pathogen interactions. Discussion of molecular mechanisms involved in the development of plant diseases caused by biotic agents such as fungi, bacteria, nematodes and viruses.

PROC 6603 – Methods of Research in Pathology. A course intended to give the graduate student practice and skills in methods of laboratory and field research in plant pathology.

PROC 6604 – Diagnosis and Control of Plant Diseases. Techniques used in diagnosis of plant diseases, sources of descriptive information on phytopathogens, fungi identification, and control measures.

PROC 6606 – Epidemiology of Plant Diseases. Application of mathematical analysis to the field study of plant disease epidemics. The use of forecasting and methods of detecting and quantifying the effects of epidemics on the yield and quality of crops.

PROC 6608 – Advanced Tropical Phytopathology. Study and analysis of the etiology, pathology, epiphytology, and control of major plant diseases of the most important economic tropical crops.

PROC 6609 – Integrated Pest Management. Integrated management of agricultural pests based on the understanding of basic ecological principles and through the use of environmentally compatible pest management tactics and strategies which include ecological management, and the biological, mechanical, genetic, chemical and legal factors.

PROC 6625 – Taxonomy and Morphology of Entomophagous Insects. Analysis, application, and evaluation of methods used in the morphology, taxonomy and systematics of entomophagous insects with emphasis on hymenopterans. Includes character differentiation, the construction and evaluation of keys, cladograms, and phenograms, analysis of the literature, and the taxonomy and morphology to the family level.

PROC 6630 – Control of Phytoparasitic Nematodes. Study and evaluation of the physical, biological and chemical control of phytoparasitic nematodes.

PROC 6635 – Tropical Agro-nematology. A detailed study covering the most important aspects of plant nematodes in the tropics, especially those concerned with sugar cane, coffee, tobacco, citrus fruits, pineapple, plantains, bananas, rice, and vegetables.

PROC 6645 – Biological Control: Concepts and Theories. Ecological theories which study the use of beneficial organisms for the population density regulation of organisms noxious to crops of economic importance. Other topics to be studied are: structure of the agroecosystem community, predator-prey ecological relations, types and components of predation, post-introduction programs and aspects of integration, perspectives and development of biological control strategies.

PROC 6650 – Phytovirology. Fundamental concepts of plant viruses including transmission vector identification, their effects on insect vectors, host range, classification, serology and physical properties and methods.

 

 

CITA 6017 – Food Toxicology. Study of the formation, characteristics, and control of potentially toxic components that occur naturally or are induced during food processing.

CITA 6016 – Sensory Properties of Food. Study of the descriptive and qualitative aspects of sensory analysis of food. Discussion and application of methodology for data collection and analysis. Group projects are required.

CITA/HORT 6603 – Food Processing Laboratory I. The topics in the laboratory will include tray drying, freeze drying, freezing, canning, heat penetration process studies in canned products, and fermentation.

CITA/HORT 6601 – Food Processing I. Fundamentals and commercial practice of food preservation by heat treatment, drying, freezing, canning, irradiation and microwaves. Topics included are selection of raw material, preparation, unit of operations and processing, packaging and storage. Processes covered will include aseptic packaging of juice and milk as well as canning of fruits and vegetables.

CITA 6615 – Food Technology. Units of operations: filling and packaging, reverse osmosis, ultrafiltration, electrodialysis, evaporation, freeze concentration. Quality control of raw materials and finished products, laws and regulations that apply to food industry.

HORT/CITA 6007 – Safety of Fruit and Vegetable Products. Advanced study of intrinsic and extrinsic factors that determine the growth of microorganisms, during postharvest, processing, storage, and transportation of fruits and vegetables that may affect public health.

HORT 6650 – Post Harvest Physiology and Manipulation of Horticultural Crops. The physiology of maturation and ripening, and the handling of the physiology of maturation and ripening, and the handling of horticultural crops to preserve quality and ensure storage life.

 

 

ECAG 6601 – Resource Economics. Analysis of problems in the development and management of natural resources. Emphasis on natural resources in agriculture and their impact in economic development. Economic principles involved in efficient utilization of natural resources, such as water, land, sea and forest.

ECAG 6641 – Agricultural Development. Study and analysis of the factors that influence the process of transformation and development of the agricultural sector of the economy, emphasizing those of an economic nature. Emphasis is given to the situation presented by an economy in full process of development.

ECAG 6604 –Advanced Farm Management. Analysis of situations and problems related with management of farm businesses. Includes study and analysis of methods of collecting and analysing farm data; marginal analysis and budgeting techniques; and managerial concepts as they apply to all levels of decision-making.

ECAG 6611 – Economics of Agricultural Production. Economic analysis of agricultural production. Includes the study of production and cost functions; input-output analysis; and the decision-making process necessary for a proper utilization of resources.

ECAG 6631 – Advanced Agricultural Marketing. A comprehensive advanced study of the field of agricultural marketing.

ECAG 6635 – Global Agribusiness Marketing. Analysis of the different marketing strategies used by agribusiness organizations in the global market.

ECAG 6650 – Economics of Agricultural Policy. General comprehensive study of the formulation and implementation of policy for the agricultural sector of the economy, with major emphasis on the economic aspects. Reference is made to specific aspects of policy, especially in Puerto Rico and the United States.

ECAG 6654 –Rural Sociology Problems. The application of sociological theories to the analysis of rural social problems; investigation of factors detrimental to community development and human welfare.

ECAG 6660 –Agricultural Prices. A cross-section analysis of the factors affecting demand and product prices; study of empirical techniques of economic model building and interpretation, and of forecasting.

ECAG 6665 – Applied Econometrics I. Use of econometrics in the agricultural economics problems and its application in production, price and consumption models.

ECAG 6666 – Applied Econometrics II. Study, application and evaluation of econometric models with limited dependent variables. Analysis and interpretation of results based on regression models.

 

 

EDAG 6601 – Advanced Methods in Teaching Vocational Agriculture. A comparative study of teaching methods and techniques.

EDAG 6603 – Evaluation. Study of the fundamentals of tests and measurements. Emphasis will be given to measures of central tendency and dispersion, measures for comparing differences and significance of the difference at various confidence levels, interpretation of results and formulation of plans of action.

EDAG 6608 – Preparation of Teaching Material. The preparation by the students of teaching materials such as samples, specimens, charts, graphs, pictures, slides, job analyses, lesson plans, basic units and enterprise units.

EDAG 6671 – Program Planning. A detailed analysis of the job of the teacher of vocational agriculture, with emphasis on the development of a sound philosophy of the program of instruction and the work.

EXAG 6603 – Oral and Written Communication. The learning process and the principles involved in written and oral communication. The course is especially designed for extension agents, teachers of vocational agriculture, and others interested in improving their teaching abilities, laboratory practice in the arts of communication is provided.

EXAG 6610 – Principles of Extension Teaching. The theories and principles of teaching and learning, and their application to Agricultural Education and Extension.

EXAG 6620 – Extension Evaluation. A study of the principles involved in extension evaluation, and of adequate methods and processes for measuring and evaluating extension work according to the results obtained. Questionnaire construction, sampling, interviewing, and analysis and interpretation of data will be discussed.

EXAG 6622 – Program Development in Extension. The basic principles, procedures and problems in the process of extension program development in both agriculture and homemaking.

EXAG 6628 – Advanced Seminar in Extension Problems. Study of problems from such fields as administration, supervision, personnel recruitment and training, and scope of programs. Selection will be made in the light of the special interest of seminar members.

 

 

BIOL 6605 –  ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION AND DISTURBANCE. An ecological consideration of pollution and disturbance of the environment; the effects of industrial, domestic and other pollutants of the ecosystem; the physical, chemical and biological parameters used in pollution control and abatement. Field trips.

BIOL 6806 –  BIOLOGICAL SYSTEMATICS. Study of the theory and practice of biological systematics, including parsimony analysis of morphological and molecular characters. Discussion of concepts and methods pertinent to the generation and evaluation of phylogenetic trees, and their application using current software packages. A course project on the phylogeny of a particular group or organisms is required.

BIOL 6631 – Cellular Biochemistry and Physiology. The interconversions of energy in living cells, photosynthesis and carbohydrate metabolism as energy sources, the utilization of metabolic energy for protein synthesis, solute and solvent movements, nerve and muscle phenomena. Emphasis on metabolic regulation and enzyme action.

BIOL 6040 –  BIOGEOGRAPHY. A study of the principles governing the distribution of organisms. Examples of the Caribbean area are used.

BIOL 6369 – POPULATION GENETICS. Genetic variation in natural populations of both plants and animals in different communities, covering selection, migration, mutations, mating systems, and the effect of population size on the maintenance of genetic variation.

BIOL 6610 – LIMNOLOGY. A study of the physical, chemical and biological characteristics and interrelations of these factors in aquatic situations; community structure in still and running water; studies of local streams and ponds.

BIOL 6617 – Advanced Genetics. Discussion of selected topics in genetics.

BIOL 6015 – Insect Morphology. A study of the general internal and external morphology of insects.

BIOL 6637 – Taxonomy and Morphology of Fungi. A through coverage of the phycomycetes, ascomycetes, deuteromycetes and basidiomycetes from a taxonomical and morphological approach, with emphasis on saprophytes, zoopathogens and phytopathogens.

BIOL 6705 – Advanced Food Microbiology. Microbiology of food commodities. The nature and function of beneficial and harmful microorganisms. Food borne diseases. Effects of food processing and storage on microorganisms.

 

 

QUIM 6815 –  PLANT BIOCHEMISTRY. Chemistry of plant constituents. Chemical processes occurring during the growth and development of plants; biochemistry of photosynthesis.

QUIM 6215 – ADVANCED ANALYTICALCHEMISTRY. Advanced topics in chemical analysis including various electrochemical, chromatographic, and complexometric methods.

 

 

INCI 6006 – GROUNDWATER HYDROLOGY. Fundamentals of groundwater hydrology: well hydraulics, groundwater quality, surface and subsurface factors affecting groundwater, and seawater intrusion.

INCI 6008 – WATER RESOURCES SYSTEMS Systems theory and operation research for solving typical water resources problems quantitatively and qualitatively; aspects of engineering economics, the concepts of the discount rate, methods of project evaluation, stochastic and deterministic simulation.