Syllabus

Science Prerequisites for Health Professionals

BIOL 1060: Immunology – Summer 2021

Credits - 3

Description

This immunology course provides students with an in-depth understanding of the human immune system. It first introduces students to the structure, functions and capabilities of immune cells, tissues, and organs. Globally, the course informs students of different modes of action and the ability of immune effector populations in combating various types of infections. This course will also emphasize current immunological techniques such as recombinant antibody, flow cytometry, and ELISPOT technology. Further, issues related to vaccine development and therapeutics will also be included in the course. Finally, students will develop disciplinary appreciation through reviews of case studies, research articles, and current perspectives in the field of immunology.

Materials

Textbooks

Web Resources

  • Provided literature material in each week including review articles. original research, and notes. 
  • Online videos and other information

Hardware

Mandatory UNE-approved webcam – To be used during proctored exams

Learning Objectives and Outcomes

Program Outcomes

In lecture courses, students should be able to:

  • Communicate scientific concepts and information clearly.
  • Illustrate fundamental laws, theories, and principles of scientific disciplines.
  • Apply knowledge and critical thinking skills to scientific problems.

Course Objectives

  • Identify the cellular and molecular basis of immunity and immune systems.
  • Summarize the cellular effector populations involved in generation of immunity.
  • Distinguish between the contribution of the immune system in maintaining balance in healthy versus diseased conditions
  • Recognize and distinguish triggers of immunological response
  • Differentiate between the types of immunological responses and the types of effector cell populations involved 
  • Critique molecular events involved in generating humoral and cell mediated immunity
  • Determine the immunological basis of vaccinations
  • Explore the history and development of immunity against diseases and pandemics
  • Discriminate between the immunological basis of autoimmunity, cancer, and neurological diseases.

SELF PACED DESIGN

On the course start date, students will have access to orientation. This must be completed to be able to gain access to the first module in the course. Students must complete the first module to gain access to the next one. We recommend that students spend about 15 hours per week to complete a course in 16 weeks. When trying to complete the course in less than 16 weeks, we typically see students do this successfully within 12-14 weeks. Instructors will be timely in grading and feedback, but it will not be instant.

Assignments

There are four major assignments in the course:

  • Knowledge Checks (14)
  • Presentation on Cancer, Autoimmunity, and Congenital/Acquired Immunodeficiencies (1)
  • Proctored Midpoint Exam (1)
  • Proctored Final Exam (1)

There are 19 other activities throughout the course. These include notes, discussions, and presentations, for example, that are distributed across the 16 weeks. Each aims to provide students practice in understanding and visualizing key immunological concepts. Please see the schedule for more information. Grading rubrics are provided with each activity’s prompt in the learning management system. 

Both exams must be taken through ProctorU. See UNE’s ProctorU page for information about signing up and scheduling your exam. The official UNE webcam is required. 

Proctored exams are closed for review. You will not be able to review them at any time. Please contact your instructor for specific feedback.

Weekly Project and Presentation Work

  • Infographics (3)
  • Powerpoint Presentations (2)
  • Prospective Write-up and Project Design (2)

Formative Practice Activities 

  • Summary Assignments (2) 
  • Note Write Ups (4)
  • Diagrams and Tables (3)
  • Discussion Posts (3)

Grading Policy

Your grade in this course will be determined by the following criteria:

Grade Breakdown

Assignment CategoryGrade
Knowledge Checks20% (14 at 1.42% each)
Projects, Presentation, and Other Activities55% Presentation on Cancer, Autoimmunity, and Congenital/Acquired Immunodeficiencies (1 at 15%) Weekly Project and Presentation Work (7 totaling 20%, 2.85% each) Formative Practice Activities (12 totaling 20%, 1.67% each)
Exams25% (12.5% each)
Total100%

Grade Scale

Grade Points Grade Point Average (GPA)
A 94 – 100% 4.00
A- 90 – 93% 3.75
B+ 87 – 89% 3.50
B 84 – 86% 3.00
B- 80 – 83% 2.75
C+ 77 – 79% 2.50
C 74 – 76% 2.00
C- 70 – 73% 1.75
D 64 – 69% 1.00
F 00 – 63% 0.00

Schedule

Week

Topic

Readings/Resources

Assignments

1

Introduction to Immunology

Read textbook chapters

Read website article

Watch primer video and external videos

Label Diagram Indicating Barrier Sites

Types of Immune Responses Table

Knowledge Check

2

Types of Cells and the Disease/Healthy Paradigm

Read textbook chapters

Read web articles

Watch primer video and external videos

Determining Cell Types Figure and Infographic

Prospective Write-up on Host Immunity

Knowledge Check

3

Recognizing Immunological Triggers Part 1

Read textbook chapter 

Read web article

Watch primer video and external videos

Summary of Different Immune Response

Week 3 discussion

Knowledge Check

4

Recognizing Immunological Triggers Part 2

Read textbook chapters 

Read web articles

Watch primer video and external video

PowerPoint Video Presentation on Mucosal Immunity

Knowledge Check

5

Humoral Immunity Part 1

Read textbook chapters

Read web articles

Watch primer video and external video

Antigen-Antibody Project Design

Knowledge Check

6

Humoral Immunity Part 2

Read textbook chapter

Watch primer video

Note Write Up on Humoral Immunity

Knowledge Check

7

Cellular Immunity Part 1

Read textbook chapter

Read web article

Watch primer video and external video

Infographic on Cellular Immunity to COVID-19

Knowledge Check

8

Cellular Immunity Part 2

Read textbook chapters

Watch primer video and external video

One-Page Note Write Up on T Cells

Immunology Midpoint Exam

9

Immunological Assays

Read textbook chapter

Read web article

Watch primer and external videos

PowerPoint Video Presentation on Immunological Assays

Knowledge Check

10

Principles of Vaccination

Read web chapter

Watch primer video

Note Write Up on Principles of Vaccination

Knowledge Check

11

Immunological Basis of Vaccinations

Read web chapter

Watch primer and external videos

How Vaccines Work: Reflective Discussion Post on Vaccines Part 1

Knowledge Check

12

Vaccination Strategies and History of Vaccines and Pandemics

Read web articles

Watch primer and external videos

How Vaccines Fail: Reflective Discussion Post on Vaccines Part 2

Timeline Infographic on Pandemics

Knowledge Check

13

Immediate Hypersensitivity (Allergies)

Read textbook chapters

Watch primer and external videos

Table Describing Types of Allergic Reactions and Treatments

Knowledge Check

14

Tumor Immunology/ Cancer

Read textbook chapter

Read web articles

Watch primer and external videos

News Article Summary

Begin Video Presentation on Cancer, Autoimmunity, and Congenital/Acquired Immunodeficiencies 

Knowledge Check

15

Autoimmunity and Tolerance

Read textbook chapters

Watch primer video

Knowledge check 

Continue working on Video Presentation on Cancer, Autoimmunity, and Congenital/Acquired Immunodeficiencies 

16

Congenital and Acquired Immunodeficiencies

Read textbook chapter

Watch primer video

Note Write Up on Congenital & Acquired Diseases

Submit Video Presentation on Cancer, Autoimmunity, and Congenital/Acquired Immunodeficiencies 

Immunology Final Exam

Student Resources

Online Student Support

Your Student Support Specialist is a resource for you - they will monitor course progression and provide assistance or guidance when needed. Please don’t hesitate to contact them for assistance, including, but not limited to course planning, course materials, billing, current problems or issues in a course, technology concerns, or personal emergencies.

Questions? Visit the Student Support Science Prerequisites page

Online Peer Support

Togetherall is a 24/7 communication and emotional support platform monitored by trained clinicians. It’s a safe place online to get things off your chest, have conversations, express yourself creatively, and learn how to manage your mental health. If sharing isn’t your thing, Togetherall has other tools and courses to help you look after yourself with plenty of resources to explore. Whether you’re struggling to cope, feeling low, or just need a place to talk, Togetherall can help you explore your feelings in a safe supportive environment. You can join Togetherall using your UNE email address.

Instructor and Support Contact Information

Check Brightspace for specific instructor and support specialist contact information.

Student Lounge

The Student Lounge Discussion Forum is a designated support forum in which students may engage with each other and grapple with course content. Feel free to post questions, seek clarification, and support each other, but be mindful of UNE's Academic Integrity Policy.

Your instructor will monitor this forum. However, if you are seeking specific and timely answers to questions about course content or your personal grades, please contact your instructor via course messages. For questions about course materials, program policy, and how to navigate and proceed through the course, please contact your Student Service Advisor through the Student Portal.

Policies

Proctored Examinations

Your course may have proctored exams. The University of New England has contracted with ProctorU to provide students with the most convenient online exam proctoring system. This system provides a simple, no cost to the student, secure, online proctor for exams and allows the student to take all the exams at home and on their own schedule.

Upon enrollment into the course, each student will register with ProctorU and establish a login name and password. This will give the student access to all of ProctorU's services. When ready, students will schedule each of their proctored exams with ProctorU. Exams must be scheduled at least 72 hours in advance to avoid fees. Prior to taking their exams, students must be sure that they have downloaded any required additional software. They must also be sure their testing site's connection meets the minimum requirements by using ProctorU's "Test It Out" utility.

Upon the exam day and hour, students will log in to ProctorU and click on "exams". After following the procedures outlined at ProctorU's website, the student will log in to Brightspace and locate their correct exam. The proctor will then allow student access to that exam.

Students must follow all proctoring requirements for their exams to be credited. Please contact your instructor for specific feedback.

Exam Attempts Policy

Students will receive two attempts at all proctored examinations. The higher score of the two attempts will be calculated into the final grade. Students can schedule their second attempt by following the same ProctorU instructions as with the original exam.

All students are encouraged to utilize a second attempt on their exams in order to improve their overall performance in the course.

Course Discussions

Discussion topics cover events or materials related to this course that contribute to a deeper understanding of key concepts and allow you to interact with your classmates and the instructor. Each discussion topic may require you to conduct internet research, read additional materials, visit a specific webpage, AND/OR view a short video before writing a response following the specific guidelines in the discussion topic prompt.

To earn full credit you will need to post a response to the discussion topic, respond to the original posts of other students, and then contribute meaningfully to an ongoing discussion. You may need to post your initial response before you will see any posts from your classmates. For special cases where one or two students are accelerating faster through the course, the instructor will participate in the discussion so that everyone has the opportunity to interact.

Please see Brightspace for a full description, along with specific guidelines, for each discussion topic. Discussion board assignments should be completed, along with all other assignments in the course, in the order that they appear. Due to the course design, you may be unable to take a proctored exam if you do not complete all assignments that appear prior to that exam.

Please also refer to the Grading Policy/Grade Breakdown section of the syllabus to learn the percentage of your grade that each discussion is worth.

Technology Requirements

Please review the technical requirements for UNE Online Programs: Technical Requirements

Course Length

A schedule of lectures and assignments is included in this syllabus. This is, however a self-paced course and you can complete the course in less time.

  1. Courses in the SPHP program are equivalent to one-semester courses designed to be completed in 16 weeks
  2. Enrollment in the course begins the day your section opens which is listed in the Academic Calendar found on the Student Success Portal.
  3. Course start and end dates are in respect to Eastern Time.

Withdrawal and Refund Policies

Please visit the enrollment page to review the withdrawal and refund policies.

Grade Policy

Students are expected to attempt and complete all graded assignments and proctored exams by the end date of the course. View the incomplete grade policy..

Transcripts

Due to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, only the student may request official transcripts. This may be done online by going to the University of New England Registrar website and following the directions on the page.

Academic Integrity

The University of New England values academic integrity in all aspects of the educational experience. Academic dishonesty in any form undermines this standard and devalues the original contributions of others. It is the responsibility of all members of the University community to actively uphold the integrity of the academy; failure to act, for any reason, is not acceptable.

Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to the following:

  1. Cheating, copying, or the offering or receiving of unauthorized assistance or information.
  2. Fabrication or falsification of data, results, or sources for papers or reports.
  3. Action which destroys or alters the work of another student.
  4. Multiple submission of the same paper or report for assignments in more than one course without permission of each instructor.
  5. Plagiarism, the appropriation of records, research, materials, ideas, or the language of other persons or writers and the submission of them as one's own.

Charges of academic dishonesty will be reviewed by the Program Director. Penalties for students found responsible for violations may depend upon the seriousness and circumstances of the violation, the degree of premeditation involved, and/or the student’s previous record of violations. Appeal of a decision may be made to the Dean whose decision will be final. Student appeals will take place through the grievance process outlined in the student handbook.

Using Generative AI When Completing Coursework

Generative AI (GenAI) applications (like ChatGPT) have proven to be powerful and effective tools, and students are encouraged to become familiar with and use them. However, as with any tool, students must use GenAI in ways that support learning, not replace it. Learning to use AI responsibly and ethically is an important skill in today’s society.

In their courses, students are not allowed to use advanced automated tools, such as generative AI tools, on assignments unless explicitly directed to do so. Each student is expected to complete each assignment, including labs and quizzes as applicable, without substantive assistance from others, including automated tools.

Using AI-content generators to complete assignments without proper attribution violates academic integrity. By submitting assignments in UNE courses, you pledge to affirm that they are your own work and you attribute use of any and all tools and sources.

Unauthorized Use

Unauthorized use of AI is treated as a violation of academic integrity.

Citing AI Use

If permitted, students should indicate and cite any use of AI tools. 

Instructor responsibility

Instructors should clearly reiterate, using UNE Online’s Policy, how students can use AI tools in their courses, and communicate this policy to students at the beginning of the semester. 

Student responsibility

Students must follow the academic integrity policy of the University of New England.