Biomaterials and immune regulation BIOL5438

  • Academic Session: 2024-25
  • School: School of Molecular Biosciences
  • Credits: 10
  • Level: Level 5 (SCQF level 11)
  • Typically Offered: Semester 1
  • Available to Visiting Students: Yes
  • Collaborative Online International Learning: No

Short Description

Treatments modulating immunity offer the opportunity for a wide range of conditions including infectious diseases, cancer, and autoimmunity. Immunomodulatory biomaterials regulate the action of therapeutic agents, or vaccines, and are also used for tissue engineering applications and stem cell therapy. This course is designed to provide a general understanding of immune cellular networks and their applications in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.

Timetable

This course is made up of lectures, guided group discussions and workshops in semester 1.

Requirements of Entry

None

Excluded Courses

None

Co-requisites

None

Assessment

1. Students will prepare a graphical abstract (ILO1,3)  (30%)

The abstract represents 30% of total. The abstract will fit in an A4 page and must consist of visual elements and text, with a primary focus on the first ones.

 

2. Students will write a "letter to the editor" as the lead researcher of their chosen paper, no more than 1000 words (ILO 1 - 3) (70%)

Are reassessment opportunities available for all summative assessments? No

Reassessments are normally available for all courses, except those which contribute to the Honours classification. Where, exceptionally, reassessment on Honours courses is required to satisfy professional/accreditation requirements, only the overall course grade achieved at the first attempt will contribute to the Honours classification. For non-Honours courses, students are offered reassessment in all or any of the components of assessment if the satisfactory (threshold) grade for the overall course is not achieved at the first attempt. This is normally grade D3 for undergraduate students and grade C3 for postgraduate students. Exceptionally it may not be possible to offer reassessment of some coursework items, in which case the mark achieved at the first attempt will be counted towards the final course grade. Any such exceptions for this course are described below. 

Course Aims

The course aims to provide participants with the confidence to integrate two scientific disciplines, immunology, and biomaterial science. The course also teaches practical skills in academic writing and scientific publication in multidisciplinary research.

Intended Learning Outcomes of Course

By the end of this course students will be able to: 

ILO1: Critically appraise the structure and main effector mechanisms of the immune system.  

ILO2: Design experimental strategies to study how biomaterials influence and modify immune responses.

ILO3: Critically evaluate the relevance of experimental data.

Minimum Requirement for Award of Credits

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.