Paper 1314/BMSBoS/10
12 February 2014
Brief description of the paper
Paper describes the creation of a new second year course.
Action requested
For discussion and approval
Resource implications
Resources will be covered by teaching budget from College.
Equality and Diversity
There are no equality and diversity implications.
Originator of the paper
Matthew Taylor
3 February 2014
Freedom of information
This paper to be included in open business.

Proposal for new 2nd year ‘Microorganisms, Infection and Immunity’ course
The need for a new course:
This course is a partial replacement for Microorganisms, Cells and Immunity 2
(MCI2), and follows on from the restructure of junior and senior honours. It will focus on the infection and immunity aspects of MCI2, and will allow us to expand the immunology and infectious diseases teaching within the 2nd year. It will be a required course for students progressing into junior and senior Immunology honours, and recommended for Molecular Microbiology 3 and Parasite Biology 3. It will be a requirement all students taking Biomedical Sciences and Medical Sciences degrees, with a particular emphasis for those considering Medical Microbiology 3, and
Honours in Infectious Diseases and Medical Sciences. The new course will instigated alongside two new ‘cell biology’ courses that will run together and will cover both
BMTO and BTO students. Within BTO, it will also be complemented by a new ‘Microorganisms and biotechnology’ course.
Course Overview:
The aim of this course is to provide students with a foundation in:
1) The biology of infectious microorganisms
2) How microorganisms infect and interact with their hosts, and how this relates to their biology.
3) How the immune system fights infection and how disease can result when it fails.
The goal of this course design is to integrate micro-organism biology, infection biology, and immunology into one continuous lecture stream rather than having separate blocks of lectures for each (course outline below). The idea is to provide the fundamentals for all three aspects early on so all three can be applied and discussed together throughout the course. We aim to use 1 or 2 pathogen examples that will be used throughout the course, and that can be used to tie together different lectures.
Course Structure:
The course will consist of 30 lectures, 10 hours of practicals, and 5 tutorials. The practicals will cover sources of infection and culture of micro-organisms, diagnoses of infection and pathology, sterilization and disinfection. The course will develop graduate attributes linked to understanding the scientific literature by continuing with the literature comprehension tutorial that are currently delivered in MCI2. The subject matter of these tutorials will complement the lecture material.
Formative assessment will be given in the form of a series of timed release questions that re-emphasize the main lecture points, and help the students use and apply the lecture material. Formative assessment will also be used to strengthen links between different aspects of the course.

Course Assessment:
40% in course assessment: 50% of which will be linked to the practicals and involve analysis and interpretation of results and 50% will be based on literature comprehension/data interpretation
60% Exam: short answer questions and multiple choice questions.
Learning Outcomes

A fundamental understanding of microorganism biology, infection and the immune system. Tested in short answer exam and multiple choice exam.

The ability to read and interpret scientific papers. Tested during in course tutorials and literature comprehension test.

Data interpretation. Tested in short answer exam.
Timeslot:
The course will be delivered in the existing MCI2 timeslot. The lectures will be at KB.
Course level/prerequisites
This is a 20 credit point SCQF level 8 course. Molecules, Genes & Cells is recommended.
Resource Implications:
The course will be taught by existing staff within BTO and BMTO and supported by teaching budget and course administrator.
Course Outline:
Section 1) Introduction to Infection and Immunology
The challenge of micro-organisms: Infectious diseases
Summary of the major groups of microorganisms with a medical focus. Challenge dose, infective dose, tissue tropism. Transmission and virulence.
Immune system overview – how do we deal with infection?
Anatomy of the immune system. Physical barriers. Innate cells. Adaptive immune cells.
Memory. Development of immune cells
Co-evolution of pathogens and immunity
How infection drives the immune system, and in turn how the immune system impacts pathogens and infection strategies.
Section 2: Diversity and fundamental biology of infectious micro-organisms
The idea for this section is to emphasize the diversity and give the fundamentals of pathogen structures/properties.
Diversity and structure of bacteria.

Classification – gram+/-, Intracellular components. Cell wall. Membranes. Periplasm and external structures e.g. Flagella, pili, exopolysaccharides, capsules, outer membrane vesicles and endospores.
Diversity and biology of viruses
Classification, structure, genomic organisation and genetic content, basic Lifecycle
Parasitic and fungal infections
Section 3: How the host combats pathogen diversity and uses the fundamental biology of pathogens to detect and respond to infection.
Sensing micro-organisms: Innate cells
Challenge: how do you detect a wide range of different organisms as discussed above?
Answer: Use conserved molecules as discussed above in biology of bacteria/viruses/parasites.
PRRS, PAMPS, Complement, Cytokines – inflammation, cell recruitment – warning molecules. Introduction to innate cells.
Sensing micro-organisms: Adaptive immunity
Challenge: How do you recognize specific pathogens/strains when there are so many?
Answer: System of TCR and BCR and MHC.
T and B cells. Antigens and presentation. Self vs non-self. TCR and BCR. Clonal expansion.
Memory. T cell help. T cell cytotoxicity. Structure and function of Ab
Section 4: The biology of infection
Bacterial processes for survival and expansion
Growth, replication, metabolism, genetics, transposable elements.
Viral processes for survival and expansion
Viral replication, genetics, latency, apoptosis, transformation
Section 5: How the immune system controls infection
Killing pathogens 1: Extra-cellular
Macrophages, Complement, Ab – neutralising toxins, phagocytosis etc.., ADCC
Killing pathogens 2: Intra-cellular
CD8 cytotoxicity, NK cells, Ab – blockade of entry, Latency (how immune response can affect latency)
The mucosal immune system and commensal pathogens
Discriminating pathogens from food (intro to tolerance). Food allergies. Commensals – colonization resistance
Immune Evasion
Section 6: The consequences of failing to control infection

Inflammation and pathogenesis
Bacterial Pathogensis
Colonisation/adhesion, growth, immune evasion. Virulence determinants and regulation.
Secretion systems and toxins.
Viral Pathogenesis
Section 7: Therapeutic control of infection and immune therapies
Vaccination
Discovery of vaccination, Active and passive immunisation, Types of vaccine, Adjuvants
Control of bacteria
Antibiotics and resistance.
Control of Viruses
Immune therapies and uses of Ab mAb, Antibody techniques. In vivo Ab therapies - tumours/ anti-TNF therapies.