MCBI 602: Eukaryotic Infections: Protozoan, Helminthic and Fungal

This course will aim to teach the biology of eukaryotic pathogens with an emphasis on the molecular mechanisms underlying pathogen success. Treatments will elucidate diseases caused by both protozoan parasites (e.g., Plasmodia, Trypanosomes, Leishmania, and Toxoplasma) and selected pathogenic fungi and helminths. The uniqueness of each host-pathogen interaction will be developed, including pathways for infection and host cell invasion, host pathophysiology, and the survival strategies by each pathogen (e.g., immune evasion by antigenic variation). Modern efforts at vaccine development and the identification of new drug targets will be discussed, as well as the resistance mechanisms by these pathogens