Undergraduate Course: Translational Immunology and Infection Research (IMMU10019)
Course Outline
| School | School of Biological Sciences |
College | College of Science and Engineering |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 4 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course aims to develop an understanding of how we translate knowledge derived from fundamental Immunology and Infection Research into applied therapeutics. We will place particular emphasis on how we currently treat human diseases and how we might improve treatment in the future with more effective, directed therapies. Each teaching session will involve a mixture of lecture material and problem-based learning with an emphasis on group discussion of the controversial aspects of the subject. By the end of the course, students will be expected to have an understanding of therapies that directly target the pathological processes underlying many common human diseases. |
| Course description |
We will first examine current understanding of the pathological processes (that can take place over just a few days or several decades) that lead to infection or immune-mediated disease. We will then discuss current treatment options (their limitations and the cost-benefit analysis that has to be performed for every patient) and ask what the future holds. It is here that we will spend most of our time, taking a deep dive into the latest mechanistic discoveries about what triggers or promotes disease and then asking how this new knowledge could be used to design next-generation therapies. We will therefore be developing skills in problem solving and critical analysis to examine how we make those big leaps from scientific understanding to medical interventions. Importantly, we will stop to take a look at research ethics and patient safety (as well as current funding models) for the development of new treatments.
This course will focus on primary scientific literature and clinical trial reporting, and will combine short lecture-style introductions to each session with group-based discussion and activities. We will spend only a short time on experimental design and quantitative skills (which will be covered in greater depth in other electives) and instead explore how we use knowledge to develop ideas and how we support those ideas with evidence. We will then use peer review to provide constructive and supportive feedback to continuously develop these ideas as the course progresses. In this way, we will emphasise iterative learning, a key skill for science and beyond.
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Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2025/26, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Quota: 0 |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 6,
Supervised Practical/Workshop/Studio Hours 26,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
164 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Pamphlet 20%«br /»
Poster 50%«br /»
Oral presentation and poster defence 30% |
| Feedback |
Feedback will be provided on the course assessments, from staff and peers. Teaching sessions will be interactive, facilitating ongoing feedback. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- To develop advanced skills in critically assessing the current field of therapeutics.
- To illustrate how mechanistic knowledge of disease processes can be used to design therapeutics.
- To evaluate the ethical, financial and technical challenges in designing and implementing therapeutics.
- To effectively implement visual and oral communication of information and ideas.
- To incorporate critical analysis and personal insight into peer review.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Knowledge and understanding: The teaching sessions provide the framework to develop an in-depth knowledge of the latest developments in understanding disease processes. Most of the teaching staff lead active research teams and are up to date with the latest cutting edge data, ideas and approaches as well as therapeutic options.
Research and Enquiry: These skills are enhanced in fourth year as we task the students with leading their own independent research into the causes, treatments and future outlook for a disease that is not covered directly during the teaching sessions. This makes up a major part of this course and through mentoring allows students to build their confidence in independent learning.
Personal and Intellectual Autonomy: The students will autonomously formulate an idea for new therapeutic approaches that could change the way we treat diseases over the next 5 to 10 years. This task asks the students to demonstrate their scientific and intellectual judgement, synthesise their own views and develop evidence-based arguments. We also provide opportunities (through discussion of ethics, safety and funding) for students to develop their own opinions on areas that often have no clear right or wrong answer.
Communication: Working in groups to develop the rough guide, writing a peer review of a pamphlet prepared by another group, preparing a poster and then presenting and defending the poster are all based upon good communication either in small or large groups, or less often one to one. We will continuously refine communication skills throughout each teaching session as we break out into groups to discuss areas of interest and then re-convene to fit all viewpoints together at the end of the session.
Personal Effectiveness: Students will work on their organisational skills to meet the deadlines of the course and will be encouraged during every discussion to reflect upon their thoughts, ideas and approaches. |
| Keywords | infection,immunity,immunology |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Maddie Moule
Tel:
Email: Maddie.moule@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Miss Janna James
Tel: (0131 6)50 8649
Email: Janna.James@ed.ac.uk |
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