BIOMS 4340 - Cellular and Molecular Microbial Pathogenesis: The Host/Pathogen Interplay


(PBS)      
Spring. (Offered alternate years) 3 credits.

Recommended prerequisite: BIOMS 4040 /BIOMI 4040  or BIOMS 4090 /BIOMI 4090 /PLPA 4090  or BIOMS 4310 /BIOMI 4310  or BIOMS 3150  or permission of the instructor.

D. Debbie, D. Russell, G. Whittaker, E. Denkers.

This course will integrate the immune response of the host to challenges from medically important pathogens, including viruses, parasites and bacteria, to provide a unified view of microbial pathogenesis. The lectures will integrate concepts from the disciplines of immunology, bacteriology, virology, and parasitology, to cover aspects of host cell biology and the innate and acquired immune responses of the host to infection. A range of medically relevant human and animal pathogens will be detailed, focusing on the host's response to commensalism versus disease, the mechanisms of host invasion, nutrient acquisition, and modulation of the host's immune response. The course will also discuss current disease interventions and the challenges facing antimicrobial therapy and vaccine development. This integrated and comparative view of the cellular and molecular interaction between infectious agents and the host's immune response will be a capstone of the student's exposure to infection biology.

Outcome 1: Identify and distinguish the approaches viruses, bacteria and parasites use to counteract or interact with components of the host immune response to allow their replication and spread.

Outcome 2: Integrate at a cellular and molecular level the host's response to prevent infections with the strategies infectious agents employ to overcome host.



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