MOLECULAR EPIDEMIOLOGY OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES (2052)
ORGANISER: Professor Judith Glynn
TIMETABLE SLOT: Term 1, Monday a.m., weeks 8-12
DATES: 03 October 2011 to 16 December 2011
AIM
To give students a basic understanding of the techniques used and an appreciation of the importance and potential of molecular epidemiology in infectious disease epidemiology.
OBJECTIVES
By the end of this module students should be able to:
- understand papers which describe molecular epidemiological findings;
- appreciate the roles of molecular techniques in furthering our understanding of the epidemiology of infectious diseases;
- apply basic epidemiological principles to the critical interpretation of molecular epidemiological studies.
CONSTITUENCY
The course is open to those attending at least basic epidemiology, or with equivalent experience.
CONCEPTUAL OUTLINE
This course will consider the use of genetic variation of pathogens in the epidemiological study of infectious diseases. Students will be given an outline of molecular biological techniques and an introduction to the principles of phylogenetic trees. This will be followed by three sessions on epidemiological applications covering studies of geographical distribution, transmission, and pathogenesis.
TEACHING STRATEGY
Teaching will consist of lectures and practical classes in which students will work in small groups. There is no laboratory component.
LEARNING TIME
The module is made up of 50 Notional Learning Hours – 15 hours contact time, 30 hours directed self-study, and 5 hours self-directed learning.
