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Microbiology and Immunology

Chair: William R. Green

B. L. Berwin (Microbiology and Immunology), D. J. Bzik (Microbiology and Immunology), A. Cheung (Microbiology and Immunology), M. W. Fanger (Microbiology and Immunology), S. N. Fiering (Microbiology and Immunology, and Genetics), J. D. Gorham (Pathology, and Microbiology and Immunology), W. R. Green (Microbiology and Immunology), W. F. Hickey (Pathology, and Microbiology and Immunology), D. A. Hogan (Microbiology and Immunology), L. H. Kasper (Medicine, and Microbiology and Immunology), R. J. Noelle (Microbiology and Immunology), G. A. O’Toole (Microbiology and Immunology), W. R. Rigby (Medicine, and Microbiology and Immunology), C. L. Sentman, (Microbiology and Immunology), P. R. Sundstrom (Microbiology and Immunology), R. K. Taylor (Microbiology and Immunology), E. J. Usherwood (Microbiology and Immunology), W. F. Wade (Microbiology and Immunology).

The Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology is administered by the Microbiology and Immunology Department of Dartmouth Medical School. To qualify for award of the Ph.D. degree in Microbiology and Immunology (M/I), a student must fulfill the following requirements:

1. Satisfactory completion of an intensive three-term course in cell and molecular biology and biochemistry, a one-term teaching assignment, and a three-term course in laboratory experience in Microbiology and Immunology, including cell and molecular biology. The last will consist of three small research projects, conducted in rotation with different faculty members for periods of approximately three months.

2. Satisfactory completion of three other graduate level courses from the approved list of course offerings.

3. Attendance at, and participation in, the weekly seminar series and journal club of the Program.

4. Participation in the weekly Research in Progress (RIP) series.

5. Satisfactory completion of an oral qualifying examination.

6. Satisfactory completion of a significant research project, and preparation of a thesis describing this research.

7. Successful defense of the thesis in an oral examination, and presentation of the work in a Seminar.

The courses listed below are primarily designed for graduate students. The student should decide, in consultation with his/her committee and course instructors, whether his/her background is appropriate for the content of the course.

101. Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology I (Identical to and described under Biochemistry 101, also identical to Biology 101 and Genetics 101)

04F, 05F: 9

The first term of a year-long graduate-level course in biochemistry, cell and molecular biology. Topics include structure, function, and biosynthesis of proteins, nucleic acids and lipids; enzyme kinetics and enzyme mechanisms; gene regulation, transcription and translation; recombinant DNA technology; nuclear trafficking, the secretory pathway, and endocytosis.

Not open to undergraduate students. Three lectures per week. Loros and associates.

102. Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology II (Identical to and described under Biochemistry 102, also identical to Biology 102 and Genetics 102.)

05W, 06W: 9

The second term of a year-long graduate-level course in biochemistry, cell and molecular biology. A continuation of 101. Topics include introductory immunology, microbial pathogenesis, principles of genetics; model organisms, genomics, proteomics and bioinformatics.

Prerequisite: Biochemistry 101, Biology 101, Genetics 101 or Microbiology and Immunology 101 or permission of the instructor. Not open to undergraduate students. Three lectures per week. Wade, Cole, and associates.

103. Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology III (Identical to and described under Biochemistry 103, also identical to Biology 103 and Genetics 103)

05S, 06S: 9

The final term of a year-long graduate-level course in biochemistry, cell and molecular biology. A continuation of 101 and 102. Topics include cell signaling, neurobiology, metabolism, cytoskeleton, cell shape and movement; mitosis and meiosis, regulation of cell growth and division, oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes, proteosomes and protein turnover, and apoptosis.

Prerequisites: Biochemistry 101 and 102, Biology 101 and 102, Genetics 101 and 102, Microbiology and Immunology 101 and 102 or permission of the instructor. Not open to undergraduate students. Three lectures per week. Compton and associates.

142. Advanced Cellular and Molecular Immunology

04F: Arrange Offered in alternate years

Advanced immunology including contemporary topics of humoral and cell-mediated immune responses. Development and differentiation, lymphoid sub-populations, cell cooperation, cytokines, immunogenetics and major histocompatibility restriction, antigen receptor systems, antigen processing pathways, clinical aspects, including the interactions of retroviruses, particularly the AIDS (HIV) virus, with the immune system, and the use of immunologic systems to study gene regulation, receptor-ligand interactions, and other fundamental molecular processes.

Lectures and discussion. Prerequisite: Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology 102 or an equivalent, or permission of the instructor. Noelle, Green, and staff.

145. Human Genetics (Identical to Genetics 145)

05S: Arrange Offered in alternate years

This course will consider the structure, organization and function of the human genome, with an emphasis on how human genetics will develop now that the genome of humans and many other organisms have been sequenced. The mouse and other model organisms will also be discussed in regard to how they may genetically differ or be similar to humans. The course will have two sessions a week (110 minute sessions). Each session will cover a specific topic and for most sessions the topic will be presented by one of the students enrolled in the course.

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor. Fiering.

146. Immunotherapy

05F: Arrange Offered in alternate years

This course will consider both basic scientific and therapeutic aspects of four important areas of immunology: vaccination, tumor immunology, autoimmunity, and mucosal immunology. The vaccination module will consider current vaccination strategies and new advances in vaccinology. The tumor immunology module will consider the challenges of tumor antigen identification and mechanism of delivery to the immune system to combat malignancies. Autoimmunity will be discussed to describe basic mechanisms behind the disease and what can be done to modulate the immune response to prevent or treat such diseases. Mechanisms of immunity and intervention strategies at sites such as the gut and lungs will be considered in the mucosal immunology module. Each session will consist of a 45 to 60 minute lecture outlining the topic followed by a 60 to 90 minute discussion of current papers (assigned reading).

Prerequisite: A previous immunology course and/or permission of an instructor. Gorham, Usherwood, Berwin, and staff.

148. Advanced Molecular Pathogenesis

05F: Arrange Offered in alternate years

An advanced course in molecular pathogenesis with emphasis on genetic aspects of host- microbe interactions and modern model genetic systems for the study of important human pathogens. Each session will begin with a 50- to 80-minute lecture pertaining to the topic area and will be followed by a 1.5- to 2-hour discussion of current papers (assigned reading) pertaining to the topic area. Discussion of the assigned reading for a particular session centers around a set of questions developed by the student presenter in collaboration with the instructor and based upon a short written report that the student has prepared on the topic.

Prerequisite: permission of the instructor. Bzik, Cheung, and staff.

149. Emerging Model Systems in Microbiology: Using Molecular and Genetic Approaches to Study Complex Systems

04F, 06F: Arrange Offered in alternate years

This course uses the discussion of emerging model systems to illustrate important concepts in microbiology. The format will combine lectures and the discussion of primary literature/review articles—similar to the format of the Molecular Pathogenesis course (M/I 148). An important goal of the course is to introduce graduate students to potential topics for post-doctoral research and to some of the faculty that work in these areas. Each course period will focus on an individual topic in some depth. There will be a 1 hour lecture followed by 1 hour for the discussion of papers related to the topic of the day. Students will be expected to present papers in one class (which have been selected and compiled), prepare a series of questions to facilitate discussion (prepared in consultation with the instructor and distributed to the class in advance), and discuss these papers (using the prepared questions as a guide) in the context of material covered in the lecture portion of the class. Guests will include 2-3 people from the Microbiology and Immunology Seminar Series who work on model systems discussed in the class. The schedule of the course will be arranged such that the papers are discussed the week before the visiting speaker’s seminar. The students will meet with the speaker immediately after the seminar for an informal discussion and reception. Attending this discussion/reception will be required for the students in the class, but open to any students that want to attend.

Prerequisite: permission of the instructor. O’Toole.

169. Supervised Teaching in Microbiology and Immunology

All terms: Arrange

This course is required for all graduate students, based on the assertion that an essential element of graduate education is the experience gained in teaching other students. Such teaching experience is of particular relevance to students interested in academic careers. Students will conduct laboratory or discussion sessions in undergraduate courses under the supervision of the course faculty. The faculty and student teaching assistant work very closely to develop lab and discussion assignments. In some cases, the students are encouraged to present lectures for which they receive detailed feedback on their teaching style. In all cases students will receive instruction on effective teaching techniques through weekly preparation sessions. Topics for discussion include how to teach the material, how to run a discussion, how to evaluate student responses, and grading. Performance will be monitored throughout the term and appropriate evaluation, coupled with detailed suggestions for improvement, will be provided. This course is not open to undergraduates. Prerequisite: At least one year of graduate study. Staff of the Program.

197. Graduate Research I: Level I

All terms: Arrange

An original individual experimental or theoretical investigation beyond the undergraduate level in Microbiology and Immunology. This course is open only to graduate students, prior to passing their qualifying exam; it may be elected for credit more than once. This course carries one course credit and should be elected by students conducting research and also electing two or more other graduate or undergraduate courses. Staff of the Program.

198. Graduate Research I: Level II

All terms: Arrange

An original individual experimental or theoretical investigation beyond the undergraduate level in Microbiology and Immunology. This course is open only to graduate students, prior to passing their qualifying exam; it may be elected for credit more than once. This course carries two course credits and should be elected by students electing only departmental colloquia in addition to research. Staff of the Program.

199. Graduate Research I: Level III

All terms: Arrange

An original individual experimental or theoretical investigation beyond the undergraduate level in Microbiology and immunology. This course is open only to graduate students, prior to passing their qualifying exam; it may be elected for credit more than once. This course carries three course credits and should be elected by students conducting research exclusively in any one term. Staff of the Program.

264, 265, 271. Graduate Research Colloquium in Microbiology and Immunology

F, W, S: Arrange

This course is required of all students during each term of residence, except summer. An essential element of scientific training is in the critical analysis and communication of experimental research in an oral format. Evaluation will be based on quality of the work described, quality of critical analysis, and on presentation style, including effective use of audio-visual materials. All students will be required to participate in at least one Journal Club/Research in Progress series. Although minor variations in format exist among the several series, all students will make oral presentations that describe work from the current literature or their own research. Normally these series meet every other week for two hours. This course is not open to undergraduates. Please enroll for one of the specific journal clubs listed below:

M/I 264. Immunology

M/I 265. Molecular Pathogenesis

M/I 271. Chromatin Structure

297. Graduate Research II: Level I

All terms: Arrange

An original individual experimental or theoretical investigation beyond the undergraduate level in Microbiology and immunology. This course is open only to graduate students, subsequent to passing their qualifying exam; it may be elected for credit more than once. This course carries one course credit and should be elected by students conducting research and also electing two or more other graduate or undergraduate courses. Mentor from the Program.

298. Graduate Research II: Level II

All terms: Arrange

An original individual experimental or theoretical investigation beyond the undergraduate level in Microbiology and Immunology. This course is open only to graduate students, subsequent to passing their qualifying exam; it may be elected for credit more than once. This course carries two course credits and should be elected by students electing only departmental colloquia in addition to research. Mentor from the Program.

299. Graduate Research II: Level III

All terms: Arrange

An original individual experimental or theoretical investigation beyond the undergraduate level in Microbiology and Immunology. This course is open only to graduate students, subsequent to passing their qualifying exam; it may be elected for credit more than once. This course carries three course credits and should be elected by students conducting research exclusively in any one term. Mentor from the Program.