JoinAll Case Studies
Cases (only) are freely accessible; subscription is required for access to teaching notes and answer keys.
Suggested Keywords, to help with your search (besides selecting subjects): clicker cases, directed cases, interrupted cases, discussion cases, intimate debate cases. As a reminder, all cases may be adjusted to meet the needs of your student level. See our case use guidelines.
Grade level filtering: enter desired grade levels in the Keywords box and click Apply.
By Julia G. Primak, Amber B. Obbink, Makenzie V. White, Carina Bovi, Lacy M. Cleveland
In this case study, a collegiate lacrosse athlete, “Noah,” develops unusual fatigue, muscle pain, edema, and dark-colored urine. Concerned, the athletic trainer conducts a urinalysis, which suggests impaired kidney function, and Noah is diagnosed...
Saving Trees to Save Cancer Patients
By Reina Kim, Neva L. Laurie-Berry
In this case study, students assume the role of new hires at a fictional research company developing cancer treatments. A PowerPoint presentation (see Supplemental Materials) is used to deliver the informational content of the case, followed by stude...
By Nalini V. Broadbelt, Janvi Patel, Alexys Fonseca, Laura Pickell
This interrupted case study is designed to help students understand the anatomy and physiology of the digestive system. It follows the case of a toddler who swallows magnetic marbles that become lodged in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Students exp...
By Rita E. Sharp
This directed case study walks students through an examination of normal protein structure so that they can recognize the role of amino acids and different types of bonds to form the four levels of protein structure and to help them diagnose what hap...
Pregnancy and Influenza Vaccination
By Cecilia Coca-Aitken, Taylor Dodson, Shannon B. Seidel
This three-part case study follows “Lucia” during her first pregnancy in making an informed decision about receiving an influenza vaccine while also analyzing factors that influence vaccine coverage amongst pregnant people. Students learn about t...
By Nora S. Green
This case study places students in the role of forensic chemists at the New York State Police Forensic Investigation Center. They are tasked with determining the biological age of skeletal remains found in a recently purchased home. With no hits in t...
Navigating the Complexity of the Endocrine System
By Beverly Araujo, Rachel Densmore, Annalise Speer, Lindsey Duff, Lacy M. Cleveland
In this interrupted case study, students learn about “Eva,” a twenty-eight-year-old experiencing an array of endocrine-related issues and misdiagnoses. The case provides students with the opportunity to review the hypothalamic-pituitary axis and ...
Sex, Contraception, and High School
By Breanna N. Harris, Jaida Krisha Morah, Angela Aolani Nunez Miranda, Xena Gabrielle Aguilar, Jaden Kyree Hendrix, Wendy Saltzman
This directed case study follows a high school senior, “Becky,” who plans on having sexual intercourse, but has only received abstinence-only education. She reaches out to a sexually active friend, but she is unable to answer Becky’s questions....
By Zeyuan Li, Bianca Montibeler May Freitas, Nalini V. Broadbelt
This case study is designed to help students learn about the anatomy and physiology of the eye and its relationship to the visual cortex. The case tells the story of a 70-year-old female diagnosed with optic neuritis. As students work their way throu...
By Bruce C. Palmquist
This case study explores the relationship between science and religion through a hypothetical discussion between four students in a general education introductory astronomy course. One student questions the scientifically accepted age of the universe...
A Challenging Case of Data Analysis
By Connar G. Franklin
This case study uses data from the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster to help students explore and discuss the importance of thorough data collection and analysis. In Part I of the case, students are provided with data from the Rogers Report that was ...
By Nora S. Green
In this interrupted case, students take on the role of a trainee forensic chemist completing their final performance test in a toxicology laboratory. The trainee’s performance test involves a healthy man who was found dead in his apartment. Numerou...
By Milan Halliburton, Megan Jacobs-Strugala, Kirsten Vander Schaaf, Lacy M. Cleveland
In this case study, the story unfolds in a courtroom where a family is seeking justice for their son who died from carbon monoxide poisoning. The family’s conversation and the lawyer’s questioning of the medical examiner demonstrate the role of h...
By Elyse Paulson, Jessica DeCuyper, Heidi L. Pecoraro, Danielle L.J. Condry
This case study introduces students to a real-world scenario involving the investigation of the sudden death of puppies at an animal shelter. It focuses on diagnostic procedures, including autopsy, histology, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testi...
By Michele M. Cox
This case study reviews the central dogma of molecular biology and the mannose-6-phosphate (M6P) pathway. Four biology students are tasked with identifying a genetic disorder, specifically I-cell disease (mucolipidosis type II) and its pathophy...
By Thanos Myloneros, Ilaria Montagni, Janet A. De Souza-Hart
This case study uses a story involving time travel to help students integrate basic concepts in immunology, sociology, psychology, bioethics, and cultural competency, which are essential for improving public health related to vaccine-preventable infe...
By Cocoa T. Dixon
In this clicker case study, students review and apply their knowledge of alcoholic fermentation to a rare clinical condition called auto-brewery syndrome (ABS). After “Natasha” and her husband “Greg” enjoy a pasta dinner, she later awakens wi...
By Wendy A. Dustman, Sharon King-Keller, Alexandra M. Kurtz, Rebekah J. Ward
This case study presents an example of the progression of disease involving a deadly pathogen. The narrative follows an undergraduate student who interns for a wolf recovery program. During his internship, he finds and interacts with the den of a dec...
By Kendra L. Bourne, Bruce C. Palmquist, Grace L. Haddick
This case study introduces the concept of orbital energetics and the use of the Hohmann transfer orbit for an introductory college-level or high school physics course. Students use energy conservation to determine the work needed to move from Earth�...
Combatting the Southern Pine Beetle
By Ann T.S. Taylor, Rebecca L. Leuschen-Kohl
This case study begins with the story of a young biologist who belongs to an Indigenous community in rural Virginia where southern pine beetles (Dendroctonus frontalis) are wiping out the pine trees sacred to her native culture. She wonders if RNA in...
CRISPR-Cas9 and Sickle Cell Anemia
By Elizabeth R. Everman
In December 2023, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first gene therapy using CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing to treat sickle cell anemia. This case study covers the basic mechanism of CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing in its original context (the b...
By Claudia S. Kale, Sakhi Srinivasan
This case study follows the diagnosis and treatment of “Steven,” a patient detected with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) due to cirrhosis. In this story, Steven’s oncologist uses immunotherapy to treat Steven, giving students an opportunity to e...
By Sheri L. Boyce
Six-month-old "Henry" is suffering from increasing gastrointestinal bleeding. Students first explore the effect of the bleeding on common blood tests such as hematocrit and hemoglobin and explain their relationship to anemia and erythropoiesis. Stude...
By Ann T. Massey
When a teenager is brought to the emergency department because he is acting strangely, the on-duty physician quickly determines that he has been unintentionally intoxicated with an anticholinergic compound found in Jimson weed (Datura stramonium), a ...
No Alcohol or Caffeine, Please!
By Rema G. Suniga
This comprehensive case study explores gastroesophageal reflux disease-like symptoms and upper gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding to show how dysfunction of GI physiology is linked with multiple organ systems resulting in symptoms and signs presented by ...
Communication Gone Wrong in the Gut
By Isis D. Rivera-Walsh, Sheri L. Boyce
This case study tells the story of “Skylar” and her mom “Angie” who suffers from persistent diarrhea. What begins as a seemingly acute case turns chronic after a few weeks and Angie is eventually diagnosed with lymphocytic colitis. Skylar has...
By Chandler M. Ciuba, Abigail Rohr, Min-Ken Liao, Linnea R. Freeman
In this case study, students follow the progress of “Nathan,” a competitive hotdog eating champion, as he visits his doctor and a nutritionist who explain to him his risk of developing colon cancer due to his lifestyle and family history. Colon c...
Chirality, Amino Acid Racemization, and the Authenticity of the Buyid Silks
By Suzanne R. Carpenter
This case study is designed to walk biochemistry majors through the science behind a journal article about an investigation of potential fraud hinging on the analysis of a non-natural enantiomer of aspartic acid (“Buyid Silk and the Tale of Bibi Sh...
By Kristie L. Reilly, Carisa Davis, Estella Blankson, Christina Pepe
This case study explores the etiological mystery of the English sweating sickness (ESS) that threatened Europeans during the years 1485-1551 before abruptly vanishing. Numerous pathogens have been proposed to explain ESS, but none are completely sati...
By Margaret A. Murdoch, Neva L. Laurie-Berry
In this case study, students assume the role of new recruits to a fictional biomedical research company investigating the use of decellularized plant tissues as scaffolds for regenerating human tissues for medical research or treatment. Students work...
By Lacy M. Cleveland, Christine L. Savage, Elizabeth M. Kashmitter
In this directed case study, students follow a discussion between “Jerry,” a diabetic and former smoker struggling with gastroesophageal reflex disease (GERD), and his primary care physician. Jerry’s diagnosis provides an opportunity for studen...
How Failing in Science Helped Solve the Coho Salmon Mystery
By Meghan Ward, Krystal Nunes, Nicole Laliberté, Fiona Rawle
This PowerPoint case study examines a series of coho salmon die-offs in the Pacific Northwest to introduce students to the importance of learning through failure in science. Such failures are an important part of the scientific process as they lead t...
By Jenna Ridlen, Sharifah Albraiki , Sarah Ellis, Jocelyn A. Moore, Anusree Mukherjee
This interrupted case study follows first-time mother “Nia” as she initiates breastfeeding. Nia develops hyperlactation, breast tenderness, and fever. Her OB/Gyn diagnoses mastitis, and Nia starts antibiotics and anti-inflammatories. During follo...
By Hollie L. Leavitt
This directed case study allows students to review components of the immune and cardiovascular systems while learning the pathophysiology of immediate hypersensitivities. It tells the story of “Amoria,” a two-year-old with food allergies who is a...
By Marian Leal
This case study is based on the true story of “John,” a nonverbal, autistic young man who develops severe maladaptive behaviors, the cause of which ultimately seems to point to the function of his anterior pituitary gland. Students read John’s ...
The Anti-Cancer Fight with the Wellness Menu
By Michelle Sue, Kenneth W. Yip
This directed case study engages students in an accessible discussion of cancer pathogenesis, prevention, and risk factors. Students are introduced to “William,” a middle-aged man worried about his cancer risk. William seeks out his family physic...
By Matthew L. Simon
This case study serves as an extension to another case study originally published in 2006, “Can Suminoe Oysters Save Chesapeake Bay?” The original case provides students with a solid foundation for understanding the complexities of resource manag...
By Ariadna Mondragon-Botero, Susan M. Galatowitsch
In this case study, board members of a private forest reserve on the island of Madagascar seek funds for a forest restoration aimed at preserving endangered lemurs. During their monthly meeting, they discuss the details of a grant proposal that would...
By Melissa S. Kosinski-Collins, Kene Piasta, Martin Samuels, Ariana Hinckley-Boltax
This directed case study follows the story of “Beaker,” a female corgi who is diagnosed with a urinary tract infection. Students consider the difference between eukaryotic and bacterial cell structures, sizes, and metabolic strategies as they lea...
The Organic Chemistry of Drug Design in a Case of Schizophrenia
By Brahmadeo Dewprashad, Vishnu Tiwari
“Freddie,” a college student diagnosed with schizophrenia, seeks guidance from his psychiatrist, “Dr. Ruiz,” following a relapse due to non-adherence to his prescribed medication regimen. To improve Freddie’s treatment plan, Dr. Ruiz sugges...