Marcia C. Coss, Ph.D.                                  King Hall Room 3014
Phone: 993-4031                                  E-mail: mcoss@gmu.edu
Office Hours: Tues & Weds 1:00 - 2:30 PM or by appointment
 
 

DATE	TOPIC	SPEAKER
Jan. 24	Introduction and Overview Round Table Discussion*	Marcia C. Coss, Ph.D.
Jan. 31	Techniques & How to read a paper Round Table Discussion	M. Coss, Ph.D.
Feb.  7	Regulation of the Immune System Round Table Discussion	M. Coss, Ph.D.
Feb. 14	Neuroendocrine-Immune Interactions Round Table Discussion	M. Coss, Ph.D.
Feb. 21	Infection & Immunity Round Table Discussion	M. Coss, Ph.D.
Feb. 28	Mucosal Immunity and Oral Tolerance Round Table Discussion	M. Coss, Ph.D.
Mar.  7	Vaccines to Protect against Mucosal HIV Infection Round Table Discussion	Rob Kaminski George Mason University
Mar. 14	SPRING BREAK	HOLIDAY
Mar.  21	Immunology and Pregnancy Round Table Discussion	Karen K. Oates, Ph.D., Professor of Biology & Integrative Studies New Century College, GMU
Mar. 28	Cancer & Tumor Immunology Round Table Discussion	M. Coss, Ph.D.
Apr.   4	Tolerance & Autoimmunity Round Table Discussion	M. Coss, Ph.D.
Apr. 11	Interferon-gamma: Multiple ways to control expression of a key immunoregulatory cytokine Round Table Discussion	Howard Young, Ph.D. Cell Mediated Immunity Laboratory National Cancer Institute, FCRDC
Apr. 18	Yin and Yang of Signal Transduction Round Table Discussion	Daniel W. McVicar, Ph.D. Laboratory of Experimental Immunology National Cancer Institute, FCRDC
Apr. 25	Student Presentations
May   2	Student Presentations
May  9	Final Exam Due	Final Exam Due

*A round table discussion will follow each lecture on pre-selected, current journal articles.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Your final grade in this course will be derived from the three sections of this course.

Section 1: Lectures given by the instructor or guest speakers. These lectures/seminars will be approximately 75 minutes long and contain material on select topics as listed in the syllabus. Background reading material for these topics will be from various sources including: Immunobiology, 5th edition by Janeway, Travers, Walport and Capra 2001, Garland Publishing and/or other resources available in the Fenwick Library. Attendance is strongly encouraged as many of the guest speakers will have traveled a considerable distance to present their information to you and are experts in their fields. In addition, they will be submitting questions for the exams. The midterm and final exams will each be worth 25% of your final grade.

Section 2: Review of recently published scientific articles in a Round table discussion format. These discussions will usually be held AFTER the lecture period, however due to the distance some of the speakers are traveling, one or more of the discussions may be held during the first 75 minutes of the class period. All articles will be available two weeks prior to class so that everyone will be able to participate. Your grade will represent your participation in the discussions, so it is strongly recommended that you finish reading these articles prior to the class period so that you have sufficient time to review them prior to the discussion. Your participation in these discussions will represent 15% of your final grade.
The above-described format will be followed until the student presentations begin.

Section 3: Student seminar/presentations. Each student will be responsible for presenting a 25-minute lecture on a specific topic to be arranged with the class instructor. Each student must have available 2 weeks prior to their seminar the following:

• An outline of the seminar with any key figures given to the instructor at that time.
• Two or three KEY articles put on reserve in the library for all class members to read prior to your presentation.
• Two questions from the material you will present that you feel should be able to be answered from your presentation and readings. Note: Some of these may be included on the final exam.

Grading Policy
 

STUDENT PRESENTATION GUIDELINES

Each student will present a 25-minute lecture on a specific topic to be arranged with the course instructor. When you have chosen a topic please inform me as soon as possible. I would like to have input into your lecture outline so that the most important aspects of the topic are properly covered.

Remember, each student must have the following available 2 weeks prior to their lecture:

1) An outline of the seminar with any key figures given to the instructor at that time.
2) Two or three KEY articles put on reserve in the library for all class members to read prior to your presentation.
3) Two questions from the material you will present which you feel should be able to be answered from your presentation. These questions should be given to the instructor AND attached to one of the reference articleson reserve in the library. Students are encouraged to use these reference materials as well as other materials in the library for the final.

As far as your presentation, you should divide it into the following sections:

1) Background and significance
2) Data/results, if a particular technique/assay is being shown be sure to give a brief description of the procedure
3) Discussion/conclusion.

You should allow no more than the first half of the lecture for background. Everyone will be required to evaluate each student presentation using a standardized evaluation form. These evaluations will be used to determine your grade on your presentation.
 

SUGGESTED LIST OF TOPICS
Immunology and Aging
Immunological cytotoxicity
Use and production of Immunotoxins
Immunopathology of persistent viral infections
Immunology of Rheumatoid Arthritis
Immune response and nutrition
Mechanisms of drug allergies
Immunological implications of breast feeding
MHC and Human Disease
Immunological Memory
Gamma/delta T cells and Ag recognition
Immune deficiencies
Regulation of Antigen-Specific IgE Responses
 

SEMINAR EVALUATION FORM
 

SPEAKER:______________________________________DATE:______________________
Please indicate your evaluation of the seminar for each category by placing a check mark in the appropriate box. Do not sign your name to the form.
 
 

	Excellent	Good	OK	Poor	Other (explain)
Organization of presentation
Content of presentation
Clarity of presentation
Relevance of topic to course
Use of Audio/Visual materials
Outline distributed
Appropriateness of readings
Overall serminar effectiveness

 Please use the space below for any other comments or suggestions.
 
 

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Page last updated: January 24, 2002