Immunology Course Descriptions

This course consists of an integrated series of lectures designed to familiarize students with cellular, molecular and biochemical aspects of the development of the immune system and the immune response. The course focuses on the development of the immune system and the function of its major components.

This course examines the host/parasite relationship from both the standpoint of the pathogenic organism and the human host. Emphasis is placed on molecular and cellular mechanisms that contribute to and provide resistance to disease. In general, this course surveys a broad range of pathogenic organisms, including bacteria, viruses, fungi, nematodes and unicellular eukaryotic parasites.

This course focuses on the use of inbred mice and modern genetic technologies to dissect and characterize the in vivo properties of the immune system. The curriculum consists predominantly of directed reading of the primary literature and group discussions, coupled with integrated faculty lectures. Areas covered include the use of transgenic receptor systems to elucidate fundamental concepts of the immune system; in vivo dissection of cell lineages via targeted gene disruptions; and spontaneous and synthetic models of immunologic diseases.

High-throughput methodologies are generating complex experimental data at an incredible rate. As a result, these developments are forcing a paradigm shift in how the results from biological experimentation are interpreted and the increasingly important role computers are playing. The use of computers for data storage, data retrievaland data analysis is leading to the evolution of
two biological disciplines: bioinformatics andcomputational biology. In this course, the gene
expression microarray experimental platform is used as a model high-throughput methodology to
examine how bioinformatics, statistics and computation are being used to support the discovery of new biomedical knowledge.