Concepts in Immunology

Catalog description

Concepts in Immunology is designed to instruct students in immunological topics that are typically not covered in depth in lower-level classes in microbiology and/or immunology. These topics usually represent emerging areas in immunology and the specific interests of the teaching faculty and students registered for the course. This course is team-taught and is offered primarily to graduate students. Most students enrolled in this course are either graduate students in the Virology and Immunology Option (VIRIM) of the Biomedical Sciences (BMS) Program or students in other options of the BMS Program but who are conducting thesis research in laboratories of faculty who are in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology. One major objective of this course is to reinforce the students' knowledge in the fundamentals of immunology and to provide a substantially deeper base of knowledge in selected fundamental areas. Another major objective is to broaden the students' scope of immunological concepts through the teaching of interdisciplinary topics in immunology. In the past, such topics have included neuroimmunology, immunological aspects of aging, immunology of atherosclerosis, regulation of the maternal immune response during pregnancy, and pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis. Achieving these objectives is accomplished though a combination of didactic lectures and readings/discussion of both primary and review literature. This course is typically offered in the Spring semester of each year and class enrollment usually ranges between three and six students.