Undergraduate Specialization - Immunology

After taking the following three courses, biological sciences majors will be recognized as having completed a specialization in immunology. For those who wish further study, an elective is available to provide an in-depth understanding of key general immunological questions.

• Required Courses
• BIOS 25256. Immunobiology (Autumn)
• BIOS 25257. Advanced Immunology (Winter)
• BIOS 25258. Immunopathology (Spring)

• Elective Course
• BIOS 25259. Fundamental Issues in Immunology (Autumn)
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• Course Descriptions
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• 25256. Immunobiology. PQ: BIOS 20180s or 20190s, and consent of instructor. This course presents an integrated coverage of the tactics and logistics of immune phenomena and conveys the elegance of the biological solutions evolved by multicellular organisms in their fights against infectious agents. Immune phenomena are presented as unique evolutionary adaptations of vertebrates operating in the context of ancillary defense mechanisms. The various types of countermeasures evolved by pathogens are also discussed, with particular emphasis on HIV and discussions on AIDS. J. Quintans. Autumn.
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• 25257. Advanced Immunology. PQ: BIOS 25256. This is a seminar-based course that examines current questions in immunology. Primary research papers describing landmark discoveries are discussed thoroughly with a special focus on experimental data and concepts. There are typically five selected topics (e.g., lymphocyte development, immunological memory, immune tolerance, innate immunity, lymphocyte homeostasis, T cell fate decisions). Emphasis is placed on a critical understanding of the literature and the development of hypotheses to explain current issues in immunology. P. Ashton-Rickardt, B. Jabri. Winter.
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• 25258. Immunopathology. (=IMMU 30010, PATH 30010) PQ: BIOS 25257. This course explores the immunological basis of diseases. Five examples of diseases are selected each year among the following categories: autoimmune diseases, inflammatory bowel diseases, infection immunity, immunodeficiencies and gene therapy, and transplantation and tumor immunology. Each disease is studied in depth with general lectures that include, where applicable, histological analysis of diseased tissue samples and discussions of primary research papers on experimental disease models. Special emphasis is placed on understanding immunopathology within the framework of general immunological concepts and on experimental approaches to the study of immunopathological models. B. Jabri, P. Ashton-Rickardt. Spring.
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• 25259. Fundamental Issues in Immunology. PQ: BIOS 25258. This course is based on the study of fundamental areas of immunology, using exclusively the primary literature. Topics, which rotate yearly over a five-year cycle, may include immunological tolerance, immunological memory, regulation of the class of immune responses, innate and adaptive immune recognition, and lymphocyte development (hemopoiesis excluded). Our aim is to grasp the conceptual and technological milestones in a historical perspective, from some old classics up to recently published work. We emphasize the detailed analysis and discussion of experimental data and concepts. A. Bendelac. Autumn.

For more information, consult Bana Jabri, Department of Pathology and the Committee on Immunobiology (834-8670, bjabri@bsd.uchicago.edu).