530641 and 530642 Literature Course Molecular Immunology

Instructors of Record: Dr. Zeynep Hein, Prof. Sebastian Springer

(Prof. Springer's home page, contact details)

The course is organized by Dr. Zeynep Hein, zeynephein@googlemail.com

The location of the course is Seminar 1 in Research II. It takes place at 09:45 to 11:15 every Friday in Seminar I, Research II.

Course Description

In this course, the most recent literature from molecular immunology and related fields is studied through detailed presentation and discussion. Emphasis is on the evaluation of the quality and novelty of the data, the stringency of the conclusions, and the contributions of the findings to the knowledge in the field. New avenues for research are discussed. Presentations of research from the Springer group may be added as appropriate.

The course is suitable for graduate students in MoLife who have a strong background in biochemistry and/or cell biology (e.g. those in the specialization area Cellular and Molecular Biology) but also for third-year undergraduates from the BCCB major. The course Cellular Biochemistry is an excellent companion to this course since it provides the background on the same topics. In addition to lectures by the instructor, the students who attend the course present papers, possibly several times during the semester, upon which grading is based. Individual presentation training is provided.

Topic

The general subjects of the course are intracellular transport of proteins and other substances, especially in the context of the immune system. There are no lectures, instead, selected papers from the current literature are discussed in the atmosphere of a journal club: the paper is presented by one member of the course in a presentation that lasts about 45 minutes, and the remaining time is taken by discussions about the context, understanding, and the importance of this paper. Papers can be selected by the instructor or suggested by the students. Each participating student will present at least once. The members of the Springer lab will participate in the course, and may from time to time report on their own research.

The Syllabus of the course is found not here but on the Journal Club page of the internal Springer lab Wiki. To access it, use the ID MHCwiki, and the password mhcWiki.

Expectations:

All students are expected to

• attend classes
• bring a printed copy of the paper to be presented
• participate in the discussions that follow the presentations.

Presenters are expected to

• Email the entire course two days in advance of the presentation, enclosing a copy of the paper to be presented
• Meet with the instructor beforehand (apply for an appointment yourself, about 1 week before the talk) to discuss specific questions that arise from the paper
• Follow the advice for preparing the presentations
• Lead the discussion that follows the presentation of your paper.

Grading:

30% Presence in class and contributions to the discussions;

50% Scientific quality of the presentation;

20% Style and fluency of the presentation.

No midterm, quizzes, or final.

Students who are not confident talking in class may petition me for an additional final exam, or some independent work, to make up for participation :-)

Materials:

Advice for preparing the presentations

Advice on obtaining additional scientific information

Link to the Springer MHC Wiki: http://springerwiki.jacobs-university.de/MHCwiki/Wikka/wikka.php?wakka=LiteratureOverview ; access: ID = MHCwiki, password = mhcWiki