BIOTECH 7004 - Molecular Microbiology and Vaccines

North Terrace Campus - Semester 2 - 2017

Recent advances in medical and microbial molecular biotechnology, have led to great strides in the understanding and treatment of human diseases. Recognising the impact of these advances on human health and economic development, scientists and industry are harnessing these enabling technologies to meet the new challenges in medical microbiology and infectious diseases. This course develops key concepts in molecular bacteriology and virology, identifying key targets for rational vaccine design, use of animal models to determine immune responses to vaccines and assessment of efficacy, development of new generation vaccines, and regulation of vaccine production and quality control.

  • General Course Information
    Course Details
    Course Code BIOTECH 7004
    Course Molecular Microbiology and Vaccines
    Coordinating Unit School of Biological Sciences
    Term Semester 2
    Level Postgraduate Coursework
    Location/s North Terrace Campus
    Units 3
    Contact Up to 4 hours per week
    Available for Study Abroad and Exchange N
    Assumed Knowledge BIOCHEM 2500, MICRO 2500 or equivalent
    Restrictions Available to GCBIBIOM, GDBIBIOM, MBIBIOM students only
    Course Description Recent advances in medical and microbial molecular biotechnology, have led to great strides in the understanding and treatment of human diseases. Recognising the impact of these advances on human health and economic development, scientists and industry are harnessing these enabling technologies to meet the new challenges in medical microbiology and infectious diseases.
    This course develops key concepts in molecular bacteriology and virology, identifying key targets for rational vaccine design, use of animal models to determine immune responses to vaccines and assessment of efficacy, development of new generation vaccines, and regulation of vaccine production and quality control.
    Course Staff

    Course Coordinator: Dr Antonio Focareta

    Course Timetable

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

  • Learning Outcomes
    Course Learning Outcomes
    1 Demonstrate an awareness of the global burden of infectious diseases and understand its impact on world health and future implications for under-developed countries.
    2 Demonstrate an understanding of the importance of the factors that influence vaccine design and development.
    3 Develop an understanding of how research based discovery has driven vaccine development in current, emerging and,re-emerging infectious diseases.
    4 Critically analyse and interpret the model systems and data used to test the efficacy of vaccines.
    5 Develop the skills to critically assess the different types of vaccines available and their suitability for different diseases.
    6 Demonstrate an understanding of the importance of the development of next generation of vaccines to meet future global needs.
    7 Demonstrate an understanding of the importance of vaccines as a public health strategy.
    8 Demonstrate an understanding of the importance of strict quality control and regulation in the vaccine production process, and an awareness of issues associated with the manufacturing of vaccines such as good manufacturing practice.
    9 Demonstrate an understanding of the nature and variability of bacterial and virus antigens relevant to vaccine development.
    10 Develop ability to critically analyse, evaluate, and integrate information from scientific
    data and literature.
    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)
    Deep discipline knowledge
    • informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies
    • acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1
    • accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)
    2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9
    Critical thinking and problem solving
    • steeped in research methods and rigor
    • based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development
    • demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment
    1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10
    Teamwork and communication skills
    • developed from, with, and via the SGDE
    • honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies
    • encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning
    1, 3, 5, 7, 10
    Career and leadership readiness
    • technology savvy
    • professional and, where relevant, fully accredited
    • forward thinking and well informed
    • tested and validated by work based experiences
    1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10
    Intercultural and ethical competency
    • adept at operating in other cultures
    • comfortable with different nationalities and social contexts
    • able to determine and contribute to desirable social outcomes
    • demonstrated by study abroad or with an understanding of indigenous knowledges
    1, 3, 5, 6, 7
    Self-awareness and emotional intelligence
    • a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal
    • open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers
    • able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate
    4, 5, 10
  • Learning Resources
    Required Resources
    No specific text book is required. A manual outlining lecture topics and reference lists will beprovided.Suggested
    reading lists, journal articles, web sites and databases will also be
    provided as a basis for tutorial discussions and workshop assignments.
    Online Learning
    MyUni is an essential resource for this course and it is important for
    students to login regularly to check on important course-related
    announcements and material.
    Students will find the following on MyUni:
    All lectures are recorded 
    All lecture notes
    Tutorial papers
    Assignments
  • Learning & Teaching Activities
    Learning & Teaching Modes
    Lectures
    Two 50 minute lectures per week with a total of 18 lectures over the semester which are recorded for MyUni.

    Tutorials
    Eight 2 hour tutorials over the semester.


    Workload

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


    A student enrolled in this 3 unit course, should expect to spend, up to 12 hours per week on the studies required. This includes both the formal contact time required for the course (e.g., lectures, tutorials and workshop), as well as non-contact time (e.g., lecture revision and tutorial preparation).
    Learning Activities Summary
    Lecture Content:
    The lectures cover the following areas: Molecular Bacteriology and Virology, Contemporary vaccine use in controlling infectious disease, Immunological responses to vaccines, Next generation vaccines, Contemporary vaccine production and regulation and Case studies of Bacterial and Viral Vaccines.

    Tutorials:
    Tutorials are based on publications relating to the topics covered in lectures.
  • Assessment

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

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

    Assessment Summary
    Assessment Task Task Type Percentage of total assessment for grading Hurdle Learning Outcome
    Tutorial presentation and participation Formative and Summative

       25%

    NO 1 -5, 9, 10
    Written assignment on a selected topic on vaccines Formative    25% NO 1 - 10
    Written exam Formative
        50%

    NO
    2, 3, 5 - 7, 9
    Assessment Detail
    Tutorial presentation and participation:
    Each student will give two oral tutorial presentations based on published research articles
    relating to lecture topics over the semester (10% each).
    The contribution of each student to tutorial discussions is also assessed for the remaining four tutorials (5% over the course of the tutorial series).

    One written assignment (of 2,500 words) on a selcted topic relating to vaccines.

    Final written Examination: A three hour exam covering lecture material only is held during the November examination period.
    Submission

    Late Submission
    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 the assignment 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 late or more without an approved extension can only receive a maximum of 50% of the marks available for that assignment.

    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 Access Adelaide.

  • 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
  • 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’s disciplinary procedures.

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