MICR 451 / BMED 851 - Viral Pathogenesis | Biomedical and Molecular Sciences | School of Medicine

MICR 451 / BMED 851 - Viral Pathogenesis

Winter 2025 (On-Campus)

Year 4

9-10 hours/week

3 units

Available

On-Campus Course

This molecular virology course covers viral replication strategies and virus-host interactions, with an emphasis on mechanisms of viral pathogenesis, focusing on human pathogenic viruses such as coronaviruses, hepatitis viruses, HIV, and herpesviruses. Tutorials will be in journal club format with group discussion and analysis of recent literature.

Prerequisites

Level 3 or above and registration in the LISC Major or Specialization Plan, or BHSc program and a minimum CGPA of 2.50 and (MICR 221/3.0 or MICR 271/3.0) and (BCHM 218/3.0 or BIOL 330/3.0).

Method of Delivery

In class

Learning Outcomes

Appreciate how viruses impact health and society
Develop ability to interpret and evaluate primary scientific literature
Understand virological assays and how to interpret them
Learn strategies for viral entry, genome organization, protein expression and replication
Acquire basic understanding of virus-host interactions
Compare mechanisms of viral pathogenesis

Evaluations

Midterm exam – 30%

Quizzes (5, only top 4 counted) – 10%

Virus life cycle essay – 10%

Journal article presentation – 15%

Presentation participation – 5%

Final exam – 30%

Flint et al. Principles of Virology. It is not required, only recommended. There are two copies on reserve in the library.
Fundamental Virology, Edited by Fields et al., Raven Press. On-line textbook in Braken Library. Here is the link to the ebook: https://qcat.library.queensu.ca/vwebv/holdingsInfo?bibId=4114420.