MICRO 3000 - Infection & Immunity IIIA

North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2025

This advanced course examines the molecular basis of host-pathogen interactions for bacterial, viral and parasite infections of significant global and medical importance. This includes how these interactions contribute to the pathogenesis (i.e. mechanisms of disease) and subsequent transmission of the pathogens to new hosts, their dependence on access to nutrients and evasion of host clearance mechanisms. Key strategies used by pathogens to survive in the host, along with the importance of vaccines, antimicrobial drugs, the microbiome and tools used to research and identify pathogens will also be discussed. The lecture program is complemented by tutorials, which extend skills in exploring and critically assessing the scientific literature, and practicals which develop advanced experimental skills for the study of pathogenic mechanisms.

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Course Details

Course Code	MICRO 3000
Course	Infection & Immunity IIIA
Coordinating Unit	Molec & Biomedical Science
Term	Semester 1
Level	Undergraduate
Location/s	North Terrace Campus
Units	6
Contact	Up to 8 hrs per week
Available for 国模福利在线 Abroad and Exchange	N
Prerequisites	MICRO 2500 or MICRO 2504; or equivalent
Incompatible	MICRO 3007, MICRO 3102
Assessment	Written assignments; Scientific Communication Assignment; Tests

Course Staff

Course Coordinator: Professor Michael Beard

Course Timetable

The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from .

Course Learning Outcomes

1	To gain an understanding of the molecular mechanisms that underpin the pathogenesis and control of bacterial, virus, and parasite infections, and the interaction of microbial pathogens with the immune system.
2	To gain a body of experimental skills and techniques frequently used in molecular microbiology research which are fundamental to understanding how research in these disciplines is conducted.
3	To develop essential skills in experimental design, techniques and execution which are highly relevant to solving problem in microbial pathogenesis and many other areas of scientific research.
4	To develop organisational and time management skills and the capacity for multi-tasking.
5	To foster the ability to work in small teams and to communicate and coordinate outcomes with a larger group of colleagues.
6	To become exposed to experimental processes that develop over many weeks, building up a framework of experience with techniques and concepts that could not readily be obtained in the course of a semester within a single research laboratory.
7	To be adequately educated and mentored through close contact with academic staff.

University Graduate Attributes

This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

University Graduate Attribute	Course Learning Outcome(s)
Attribute 1: Deep discipline knowledge and intellectual breadth Graduates have comprehensive knowledge and understanding of their subject area, the ability to engage with different traditions of thought, and the ability to apply their knowledge in practice including in multi-disciplinary or multi-professional contexts.	1, 2, 3, 6, 7
Attribute 2: Creative and critical thinking, and problem solving Graduates are effective problems-solvers, able to apply critical, creative and evidence-based thinking to conceive innovative responses to future challenges.	1,2,3,6
Attribute 3: Teamwork and communication skills Graduates convey ideas and information effectively to a range of audiences for a variety of purposes and contribute in a positive and collaborative manner to achieving common goals.	1,2,3,4,5,6,7
Attribute 4: Professionalism and leadership readiness Graduates engage in professional behaviour and have the potential to be entrepreneurial and take leadership roles in their chosen occupations or careers and communities.	1,2,3,4,5,6
Attribute 5: Intercultural and ethical competency Graduates are responsible and effective global citizens whose personal values and practices are consistent with their roles as responsible members of society.	2,3,4,5,6,7
Attribute 8: Self-awareness and emotional intelligence Graduates are self-aware and reflective; they are flexible and resilient and have the capacity to accept and give constructive feedback; they act with integrity and take responsibility for their actions.	4,5,6,7

Learning Resources

Required Resources

Textbook

The recommended text book is:

"Bacterial Pathogenesis. A Molecular Approach" Third edition. Wilson, B.A., Salyers, A.A., Whitt, D.D., and Winkler, M.E. ASM Press.

Additional resourses

Please refer to MyUni for additional reading and video material

Practical laboratory

An essential component of the physical fabric is a large modern and well-equipped teaching laboratory, designed and maintained for advanced practical experiments. This laboratory can be at most only be marginally removed from research standard and should be in close proximity to Biological Sciences. This close juxtaposition of research and undergraduate education is entirely in keeping with the aspirations of a research-intensive university where active research informs and stimulates in the classroom.

A combined course and practical manual will be supplied during orientation/week 1.

Recommended Resources

Recommemded reading will be posted on MyUni.

Online Learning

Teaching materials and course documentation will be posted on the MyUni website (http://myuni.adelaide.edu.au/).

Learning & Teaching Modes

This course will be delivered in the following means:

Internal

3 x 1 hour lectures per week,
1 x 2 hour tutorial per fortnight (total of 5 sessions)
3 x 5 hours practical per fortnight

Practical sessions of 5 hours on
Wednesday and Thursday afternoons in odd weeks and 5 hours in even weeks.
Practicals include: wet lab sessions and dry lab bioinformatics sessions.

Workload

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

A student enrolled in a 6 unit course, such as this, should expect to spend, on
average 24 hours per week on the studies required. This includes both the
formal contact time required to the course (e.g., lectures and practicals), as
well as non-contact time (e.g., reading and revision).

Learning Activities Summary

Week	Type of learning activity	Topic
1	Lecture	Bacteria-host interactions and innate defences
Tutorial
2	Lecture	Bacteria-host interactions and Intracellular bacterial pathogens
Tutorial 1	Critical thinking and analysis of primary research papers related to lecture material
3	Lecture	Bacterial infection and stress responses
Tutorial
4	Lecture	Antimicrobials and microbiome
Tutorial 2	Critical thinking and analysis of primary research papers related to lecture material
5	Lecture	Antibiotic Resistance and Surveillance
Tutorial
6	Lecture	Recap and Q&A
Tutorial 3	Critical thinking and analysis of primary research papers related to lecture material
Mid-Semester Break
7	Lecture	Parasitology: Malaria, Toxoplasma and Cryptosporidium
Tutorial
8	Lecture	Parasitology: Malaria, Toxoplasma and Cryptosporidium
Tutorial 4	Critical thinking and analysis of primary research papers related to lecture material, including problem solving questions
9	Lecture	Virology: RNA virus replication, SARS-CoV-2
Tutorial
Practical
10	Lecture	Virology: Pathogenesis
Tutorial 5	Critical thinking and analysis of primary research papers related to lecture materia, including problem solving questions
11	Lecture	Virology: Emerging viral pathogens, SARS-CoV-2 vaccines
Tutorial
12	Lecture	Recap and Q&A
Tutorial

The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
Assessment must maintain academic standards.

Assessment Summary

The assessments for I&IA (MICRO3000) are as follows:

Assessment	% of total
Tutorials (5x 3% submissions)	15%
Term 1 Content	45%
Experimental Summary #1	10%
Bioinformatics (Bacteriology)	10%
Test #1	25%
Term 2 Content	40%
Experimental Summary #2	10%
Bioinformatics (Virology)	10%
Test #2	20%
Total	100%

Tutorials: You will have one week to answer a series of questions based on a supplied journal article. All students will submit at the beginning of the relevant tutorial week (i.e. you will have access to the questions in week 3, and submit responses in week 4). Marks for the submitted responses will only be awarded if you attend your tutorial, during which time the article and questions are discussed. Note the usual rules for medical/compassionate absences still apply.

Experimental summaries: These are worksheets that are based on the experiments carried out in the practical sessions. While the specific content will differ between the two, the overall structure and goal of both is the same i.e. to help you improve your skills in analyzing and summarizing experimental data using concise and accurate scientific writing, with appropriate reference to the original hypothesis. You will be encouraged to use feedback from the first summary to help with preparing the second summary.

Bioinformatics: This assessment focuses on using web- and application based software to analyse DNA, RNA and protein sequence data. You will be characterising specific sequences and identifying relatedness between sequences. Training in using the required tools will take place during the F2F sessions. While an individual exercise, students are encouraged to collaborate and help each other understand the wide variety of concepts that are covered.

Tests: There will be two tests, one to cover the content for each term. There is slightly more content in Term 1, hence the higher weighting on Test #1. These will have a mixture of question types, and are designed to assess your understanding of key concepts and your ability to synthesize concepts to address more complex questions. Details for the specific format will be made available in due course.

Assessment Detail

see assessment summary for details

Submission

Submission Guidelines

It is your responsibility to ensure that your work is submitted on time. All assessments are to be submittedvia the relevant
submission links MyUni. Templates will be provided as needed. Turnitin will be used, and any evidence of plagiarism will be investigated to determine whether there has been a breach of academic integrity.

Late submission of assessments

If an extension is not applied for, or not granted then a penalty for late submission will apply. A penalty of 10% of the value of the assignment for each calendar day that is late (i.e. weekends count as 2 days), up to a maximum of 50% of the available marks will
be applied. This means that an assignment that is 5 days or more late without an approved extension can only receive a maximum of 50% of the mark

Course Grading

Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
Grade	Mark	Description
FNS		Fail No Submission
F	1-49	Fail
P	50-64	Pass
C	65-74	Credit
D	75-84	Distinction
HD	85-100	High Distinction
CN		Continuing
NFE		No Formal Examination
RP		Result Pending

Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

Final results for this course will be made available through .

Student Feedback

The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.
Student Support
Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
Fraud Awareness

Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student鈥檚 disciplinary procedures.

The University of Adelaide is committed to regular reviews of the courses and programs it offers to students. The University of Adelaide therefore reserves the right to discontinue or vary programs and courses without notice. Please read the important information contained in the disclaimer.

Authorised by:	Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Academic)
Maintained by:	Course Outlines Administrator

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