IMMU2911: Semester 1, 2020

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Units IMMU2911 Semester 1 2020 [Normal day]

Unit of study_

IMMU2911: Immunobiology (Advanced)

Semester 1, 2020 [Normal day] - Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

Overview

Immunobiology is the study of defence mechanisms that protect living organisms against life-threatening infections. In this unit of study you will explore the essential features of the host immune responses and how it evolved from unicellular organisms to complex multi-cellular organisms. Studies in animal and microbial immunobiology are leading to breakthroughs in veterinary and clinical medicine, including combatting infectious diseases, maximising transplant success, treating allergies, autoimmune diseases and cancer, as well as development of new vaccines to prevent disease. Understanding the immunobiology of plants also enables us to protect crops from disease which enhances our food security. In this unit of study you will be provided with a detailed overview of immunobiology as a basic research science. We will explore in detail the nature of the immune cells and molecules that recognise danger and how the immune system of animals and plants respond at the cellular and molecular level. Advanced practical and tutorial sessions are designed to illustrate particular concepts introduced in other face-to-face activities. Further self-directed learning activities, including online learning activities, will facilitate integration of fundamental information and help you apply this knowledge to the ways in which the host organism defends against disease. This advanced version of Immunobiology has the same overall concepts as the mainstream unit but material is discussed in a manner that offers a greater level of challenge and academic rigour. Students enrolled in the advanced stream will participate in alternative components which may for example include guest lectures from experts. The nature of these components may vary from year to year.

Unit details and rules

Unit code	IMMU2911
Academic unit
Credit points	6
Prohibitions ?	IMMU2011
Prerequisites ?	A mark of 70 or above in [BIOL1XX7 or (BIOL1XX8 or BIOL1XX3 or MEDS1X01) or BIOL1XX2 or MBLG1XX1]
Corequisites ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	CHEM1XX1 or CHEM1903
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Mainthan Palendira, umaimainthan.palendira@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Skills-based evaluation	Practical assessment 1 Online presentation	15%	-	2.5 minutes
Outcomes assessed:
Final exam	Final exam Final exam - online multiple choice questions only	40%	Formal exam period	2 hours
Outcomes assessed:
Small continuous assessment	Pre-practical quiz Quiz from practical notes	10%	Multiple weeks	5 minutes
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Title and abstract written task Understanding an Immunology-based Scientific Article	15%	Week 09	250 words
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Graphical abstract Graphical summary of scientific data	5%	Week 09	I figure
Outcomes assessed:
In-semester test	Practical assessment 2 Theory of practical exam - online assessment in Canvas	15%	Week 13	60 minutes
Outcomes assessed:

Assessment summary

A penalty of 20% of the total possible marks for each day your assessment task is overdue will be applied. Assessments submitted more than 4 calendar days late without approved special consideration will receive zero marks.

Assessment criteria

HD (14-15): Excellent responses. The student has clearly understood every aspect of the article. They have thought deeply about the results and the implications for human health. The additional original article cited was an outstanding choice. The short title was highly appropriate and very informative.

D (12-14): Very good responses. The student appears to have understood almost every aspect of the article. They have given some careful thought to the results and the implications for human health. The additional original article cited was an excellent choice. The short title was appropriate and informative.

Cr (11-13): Good responses. The student appears to have understood most, but not all aspects of the article. They have given some thought to the results and the implications for human health. The additional article cited was a very good choice. The short title was appropriate but may not have been particularly informative.

P (9-11): Average responses. The student appears to have understood some, but clearly not all aspects of the article (at least not the important ones). They have given some thought to the results and the implications for human health although it appears they may have “missed the point” or didn’t understand the “big picture”. The additional article cited was appropriate but not directly relevant or was a review article (not original research). The short title was mostly appropriate but may have lacked sufficient information to be useful.

F (<9): Poor to Very poor responses. The student has clearly missed or not understood the important aspects of the article. They have given little thought to the results and the implications for human health. They have “missed the point” or didn’t understand the “big picture”. There was no additional article cited or the one that was cited was a poor choice with little relevance. The short title was absent or not appropriate or lacked sufficient information to be useful.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

You may only use artificial intelligence and writing assistance tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator, and if you do use them, you must also acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section.

Studiosity is permitted for postgraduate units unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	What is an immune system and why is it important?	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 01	The components of the immune system I – cells	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 02	The components of the immune system II – organs & lymphatics	Lecture (1 hr)
	The basis of pathogen recognition (Evolution & type of innate receptors)	Lecture (1 hr)
	Components of the immune system	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 03	Evolution of innate immune cells	Lecture (1 hr)
	How do immune cells move around?	Lecture (1 hr)
	Understanding a scientific journal article	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 04	How do immune cells communicate?	Lecture (1 hr)
	Strengths and limitations of Innate Immunity	Lecture (1 hr)
	Identifying different immune cells	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 05	Evolution of the adaptive immune system	Lecture (1 hr)
	How do plants defend against infections?	Lecture (1 hr)
	Investigating different types of immune cells and learning how to present data	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 06	What Lymphocytes “See”: MHC molecules & antigens	Lecture (1 hr)
	How lymphocytes “See” their antigens: BCR & TCR	Lecture (1 hr)
	Introduction to microscopy & immunohistology	Practical (3 hr)
Week 07	Generation of diversity in lymphocyte receptors	Lecture (1 hr)
	How are lymphocytes activated? & Choosing the right warriors: Clonal selection	Lecture (1 hr)
	Fundamental immunology laboratory techniques	Practical (3 hr)
	Scientific communication	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 08	The weapons of adaptive immunity I: Killer & helper T cells	Lecture (1 hr)
	The weapons of adaptive immunity II: diverse antibody responses	Lecture (1 hr)
	Agglutination, an example of antigen-antibody Interaction	Practical (3 hr)
Week 09	The complement system	Lecture (1 hr)
	Comparative immunology – from marsupials to humans	Lecture (1 hr)
	Monoclonal antibodies in research and the clinic	Practical (3 hr)
Week 10	The Immune Response to Infections in mammals	Lecture (1 hr)
	How do we boost the resistance to infections in plants?	Lecture (1 hr)
	Principles & practical applications of immunoassays	Practical (3 hr)
Week 11	What did we learn from the devil facial tumour disease?	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 11	How do vaccines protect?	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 12	Revision	Lecture (1 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

Attendance will be recorded from students' arrival date on campus or from March 31st, whichever is the earliest. From February 24 (week 1), students enrolled in this unit should engage with and study all online content, as directed in the Canvas site, including the submission of any required formative tasks and completion of any asynchronous activities.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

Abbas, Lichtman and Pillai (2016) Basic Immunology: Functions & Disorders of The Immune System, 5th Edition

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. Differentiate the types of immunity
LO2. Compare and contrast the cells & molecules of immunity in more multiple organisms
LO3. Describe, using multiple examples, how plants and animals recognise and respond to pathogens
LO4. Demonstrate how principles of immunology can be used to tackle health problems
LO5. Master cutting edge immunology techniques, analyse & interpret the data generated from experiments and effectively communicate the results

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

No changes have been made since this unit was last offered

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

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