| Department of Veterinary Pathobiology | |||||||||||||||||
| Earliest Possible Year | BSc. 3 year to MSc. 2 year | ||||||||||||||||
| Duration | One block | ||||||||||||||||
| Credits | 7.5 (ECTS) | ||||||||||||||||
| Course Level | Joint BSc and MSc | ||||||||||||||||
| Examination | Final Examination oral examination All aids allowed Description of Examination: Data collected from laboratory experiments are compiled into a report, which also contains a theoretical background and a discussion of the results. 7-point scale, internal examiner | ||||||||||||||||
| Requirement For Attending Exam | Participation in more than 80% of the course activities and writing of the report that form the basis for the evaluation of the course. | ||||||||||||||||
| Organisation of Teaching | Practical exercises, lectures, and colloquia | ||||||||||||||||
| Block Placement | Block 3 Week Structure: C | ||||||||||||||||
| Teaching Language | English | ||||||||||||||||
| Optional Prerequisites | 270009 Food Microbiology 240025 Microbiology Food microbiology (270009) or microbiology (240025) | ||||||||||||||||
| Areas of Competence the Course Will Address | |||||||||||||||||
| Basic science . Advanced knowledge of the molecular mechanisms that enable pathogenic bacteria to cause disease in animals and humans. Topics covered include virulence factors and their regulation, persistence, and development of antibiotic resistance. . Skills to design experiments using molecular methods to answer research hypothesis in the field of pathogenic bacteria, and to interpret the results. . Experience in reading and communicating scientific literature within this field Applied science Experience in the use of state of the art molecular methods to study the biology of pathogenic bacteria. Ethics and Values Critical evaluation of molecular techniques. | |||||||||||||||||
| Course Objectives | |||||||||||||||||
| The aim of the course is to provide an understanding of the genes and the gene regulatory mechanisms that are central for the ability of pathogenic bacteria to persist and cause disease in a host. Emphasis will be on how advanced molecular techniques can be used to answer research hypothesis relevant to these topics. | |||||||||||||||||
| Course Contents | |||||||||||||||||
| Infectious diseases remain one of the major threats to human health. Development of new antimicrobial drugs requires detailed knowledge on the molecular mechanisms exploited by pathogens to cause disease. In this course, students will obtain advanced knowledge on all aspects of biology that allow pathogenic bacteria to cause infections in the host, including persistence in the environment, production of virulence factors and development of antibiotic resistance. Focus will be on how specific genes/proteins contribute to these processes. Moreover, the students will gain insight into the complex regulatory networks employed by pathogenic bacteria to accurately time expression of virulence genes in response to progress of the infection. The theoretical and experimental parts of the course will be tightly linked. In the practical course advanced molecular techniques will used to demonstrate key features of pathogenic bacteria. The practical exercises will include the topics: construction of genetically modified mutants to study the function of virulence genes, measuring of virulence gene expression, formation of biofilm, identification of secreted virulence factors, cell-assays to study host-pathogen interactions. | |||||||||||||||||
| Teaching And Learning Methods | |||||||||||||||||
| Teaching will take the form of general introductory lectures, colloquia, and practical exercises. Primary literature forms the basis for the colloquia and will partly be presented by students. In the practical exercises the students will be guided through relevant molecular techniques used in scientific literature. Data collected from laboratory experiments are compiled into a report that should also include a theoretical introduction, a discussion of the obtained results, and answers to specific questions. This report forms the basis for the oral examination. | |||||||||||||||||
| Learning Outcome | |||||||||||||||||
| Stipulated in "Areas of Competence the Course Will Address" | |||||||||||||||||
| Course Coordinator | |||||||||||||||||
| Dorte Frees, df@life.ku.dk, Department of Veterinary Pathobiology/Section for Microbiology, Phone: 35332719 | |||||||||||||||||
| Study Board | |||||||||||||||||
| Study Committee NSN | |||||||||||||||||
| Course Scope | |||||||||||||||||
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