526-309 Molecular and Genetic Advances in Immunology

Credit Points

Coordinator

Prerequisites

Microbiology 526-304

Corequisites

Microbiology 526-305

Semester

Contact

Subject Description

Upon completion of the subject students should have an understanding and appreciation of modern molecular and genetic approaches to clarifying immunological phenomena, and their application in prophylaxis and therapy of human diseases.

Subjects covered in the course will include

• cellular and molecular methods for identification of immunologically important ligands and receptors
• transfection and transgenesis studies to define receptor function and signalling pathways
• phage display in the identification of ligands and production of antibody fragments
• protein/peptide engineering in study of immunogens and
• the application of such technologies to derive products for human therapy.

Assessment

A 2-hour end-of-semester written examination.

Prescribed Texts

• Janeway, C.A. and Travers, P., Immunobiology: the immune system in health and disease. 3rd ed 1997.
• Roitt, I., Bostoff, J. and Male, D., Immunology. 4th ed. 1996.