Catalog description: Survey of medical microbiology, focusing
on the host response and the subsequent evasion of that response by pathogens.
Expanded description and explanation: Despite a myriad of specific
and non-specific host defense mechanisms, infectious diseases remain a
major threat to human health. This course will include discussions of protection
of the host by indigenous flora, opportunistic infections, and subversion
of the host immune response by bacteria, viruses, and parasites. Topics
will include antigenic modulation and phase-variation, interference of
chemotaxis and phagocytosis, inhibition of intracellular killing mechanisms,
proteolysis of complement components and secretory IgA and non-protective
interactions of microorganisms with the humoral immune system, induction
of apoptosis by bacterial and viral pathogens, alterations in antigen processing
and MHC expression, interference of cytokine network regulation, and expression
by pathogens of cytokine, chemokine, and receptor analogs and antagonists.
Also discussed will be the measurement and assessment of host responses
against pathogens as well as a review of currently available vaccines and
new strategies in vaccine development. The teaching format will involve paper discussions.
Evaluation of student performance: Class participation (30%),
homework (40%), and one student-led paper presentation and discussion per
student (30%).
Faculty: Dr. Jeannine Brady will be Director of this course. They will be assisted in the presentation
of material to the students by various Graduate Faculty of the Colleges
of Medicine and Dentistry.
Assigned Reading: Readings will be assigned from the research
literature from journals such as Nature, Science, and The Journal of Immunology.
Course Objectives: The objective of this course is to provide
the student an appreciation of the complexity of immune defense against
infectious pathogens and an understanding of the challenges facing today’s
immunologists.