关键词：医药；跨学科；自然产品；生态
摘 要：Here we describe a new NSF-sponsored course model for introducing undergraduates to interdisciplinary science. This research-intensive course has students work in interdisciplinary teams to investigate the ecological roles of natural products in mediating plant-insect interactions using modern analytical chemistry. The class is co-taught by a chemical ecologist and an analytical chemist. Lectures are designed to expose students to core concepts in the field of chemical ecology; labs reiterate these concepts by having students carry out analyses on the molecules responsible for these interactions. The field of chemical ecology is ripe for this interdisciplinary model because it naturally bridges the "distinctive cultures" of chemistry and biology to investigate the role of natural products in nature (Kornberg, A. The two cultures: Chemistry and biology. Biochemistry 1987, 26(22), 6888-6891).