Barbara May, Ph.D.

College of St. Benedict/St. John's University

Department of Biology

BIOL319: basic immunology

spring 2007 syllabus:

The germ is nothing;
the terrain is everything.
(Louis Pasteur)

Class schedule:

Lecture:  days 2,4,6: 9:40-10:50 (PENGL248)

Lab:    one of  the following

Day 2 1-3:50 (NSC203)

Day 3 2:40-5:30 (NSC203)

Instructor: Barbara May (Office: NSC204)

            email: bmay@csbsju.edu

            phone: x3173 home: 763-258-0798 cell: 763-443-4477

            office hours: day 5: 10-12, day 1: 10-12, day 6: 11-2 or by appointment

Textbook: Kuby Immunology: Kindt, Goldsby, and Osbourne,  6^th addition, W.H. Freeman; there will be additional handouts

Goals of the course: Immunology is a vast and very interesting field.  It is my goal that you will be able to address and answer the following questions upon completing this course:

-what is the goal of the immune system? (i.e. what is its role in the human body?)

-what components make up the immunes system?

-what are the functions of the immune components?

-how do the components of the immune system work together to make the immune system work?

-what can happen when something goes awry in the immune system?

Attendance policy:

LAB is MANDATORY!  If there is an extreme emergency, please contact me BEFORE lab via phone or in person (emails are unacceptable) as to why you cannot attend lab.  It is not standard policy to switch labs.  We will be working as partners and often this is an inconvenience to them and me.  If there is an EMERGENCY where you must switch labs, please talk with me well in advance of the lab.    No MAKEUPS will be allowed.

CLASS attendance is expected! I am here to help you learn.  If you are not in class participating in discussions and lectures, this will only hurt your ability to learn and understand the material.  In addition, exam material will come from classtime!

Assignments:                                                                                    Points:                       

Exams (3 @ 100 points each)                                                           300

Literature review (due 4.13 )                                                          50

Nonscience report (due 3.12)                                                         20

Lab

            Lab notebook                                                                        20 points

Lab manuscripts

Innate response                                                        25 points

Cellular response                                                     35 points

Antigen assignment                                                             20 points

Journal club                                                                          10 points

Lab presentation                                                                     20 points

Final                                                                                                   100

Total                                                                                                   600

I keep an extra 10 points (on top of the total 600) for those students who may have made significant progress and may be on the border of a grade.  I reserve the right to “help” with these 10 points, but will not take any points away that have been earned.

The standard scale of 92-100%=A, 88-91%=AB, 82-87%=B, 78-81%=BC, 72-77%=C, 68-71%=CD, 60-67%=D will be used.  I reserve the right to adjust the scale downwards if necessary.

S/U grading is an option if you wish.  You must earn a “C” in order to receive an “S”.  If you decide to take the course S/U, you must notify me in writing by February 20^th.

EXAMS:  As shown above, there will be three exams.  There will be two components to each exam.  The first will be on the date stated in the syllabus and this will be primarily multiple choice, true/false, and some short answer questions.  This will usually be worth 75 points of your grade for the particular exam. The second portion will be a take-home exam. I will give you one week to finish this portion of the exam.  You can use any sources EXCEPT OTHER PEOPLE (including other students, faculty, parents, friends, colleagues).  These take home portions are given to test your ability to critically analyze and sort out a potential answer to a question.  If I find that you have used other people to answer these questions, you will receive a ZERO for the entire exam (all 100 points). 

FINAL: The final will be cumulative and will be similar to the first portion of the regular exams (there will be no take-home portion).

IMPORTANT NOTES:

-If you have questions/concerns, please do not hesitate to talk with me.  I am here to help you learn this material, please use me as a source.

-Disabilities: If you have a documented disability that will impact your work in this class, please contact me or the Advising Office immediately to discuss your needs.  All such discussions will be confidential.

-Email: I use email FREQUENTLY for reminders or important information I forgot to mention in class.  Please make sure you check your St. John’s or St. Ben’s account on a regular basis.

-Additional information: Additional readings and lecture presentations will be available in Moodle.  You can access moodle by going to the following website: http://moodle.csbsju.edu.  Click on our course.  I will have lectures submitted by cycle and will upload any other pertinent papers and assignments via this route.

-Last but not least:  I do not know everything!  If you think something I’ve said is incorrect, please point this out.  I also may not be able to answer every question, but that is the fun of science, I can always try and get back to you or help you find the answer to your question. 

Lecture schedule: This is meant as a guide and is likely to change.  Exam dates will not change.