Short Course Description
The goal of the course is to introduce the students to most aspects of the microbial world, including prokaryotes, fungi and viruses.
Three home exams will be given during the course and will serve as a partial protective grade for the final exam.
The syllabus of the course is:
Virology (of Eukaryotic viruses) ? 10 hours
? Introduction: The discovery of viruses; Cultivation; Detection; Classification, Structure.
? Viral replication: Attachment, Entry, uncoating, genome replication and expression, assembly and release.
? Types of viral infection: Acute, Persistence, Latent
? Examples for viral diseases with an emphasis on oncogenic viruses
? Anti virals (HIV as an example)
? Vaccination (Poliovirus as an example)
Mycology ? 3 hours
? Introduction to fungi: General characteristics, Ecology, Human impact
? Classification and life styles: Fungal systematics, Morphology and growth, Asexual and sexual life cycles and reproduction
? Fungal interactions: Symbiosis, Interaction with plants, Human fungal pathogens
Bacteriology ? 26 hours
? Introduction: Bacterial Diversity and importance.
? Growth: Cell Division, Chromosome replication, growth characteristics and life cycles, batch and continuous cultures, biofilms.
? Nutrition: Chemical composition of a bacterium, Nutrient sources, limiting nutrients, growth media
? Bacterial energetics: Electron donors and acceptors, aerobic and anaerobic growth, respiration chain, fermentation, Photosynthesis and related subjects.
? Bacterial biosynthesis: Carbon and nitrogen fixation.
? Classification ? classic and modern, archaea and bacteria.
? Microbial genetics ? Basic, Screening, selection and enrichment, transposons
? Horizontal gene transfer ? transformation, conjugation and transduction
? Phages and plasmids - mechanisms of regulation
? Regulation of gene expression in bacteria & Quorum-sensing
? Bacterial cell wall - membranes PGN, LTA, LPS. Peptidoglycan synthesis
? Antibiotics - mode of action, mechanisms of antibiotic resistance.
? Bacterial pathogenesis: intracellular pathogens: listeria monocytogenes and Legionella pneumophila.
? Recognition of bacteria by the innate immune system: Toll-like receptors, NLR and few examples.
Prerequisite course:biochemistry
Recommended course: genetics
Full syllabus is to be published