BI2BO4-Virology

Module Provider: School of Biological Sciences
Number of credits: 10 [5ECTS credits]
Terms in which taught: Autumn
Module Convenor: Professor IM Jones
Pre-requisites:
Co-requisites:
Modules excluded:
Module version for: 2008/9

Email: i.m.jones@reading.ac.uk

Aims:
To provide students with:
1. Knowledge and understanding of viruses, their life cycles and the consequences of infection.
2. A thorough grounding in virological techniques including virus isolation, amplification and quantitation.

Assessable learning outcomes:
At the end of the module the student should be able to: 1. Describe the structure and replication of the main virus groups. 2. Know how viruses are classified. 3. Know how to isolate, propagate and quantitate viruses.

Additional outcomes:
Students will be able to suggest ways to identify and quantify viruses including new isolates. They will have gained experience of accuracy and the importance of aseptic technique.

Outline content:
Practical Virology offers a blend of lectures on major virus groups and laboratory practicals aimed at providing hands on experience of working with viruses. Lectures include introductions to bacteriophage, the viruses of bacteria whose study initiated modern molecular biology, and examples of important viruses of animals such as the common cold virus (rhinoviruses) and the smallpox virus. Methods used to classify and quantitate viruses are compared and the factors affecting transmission of viruses within a population are discussed. Lectures are accompanied by laboratory classes which provide a thorough grounding in virological techniques including virus isolation, amplification and quantitation. A variety of assay formats that measure virus presence directly (plaque assay and bioassay) or through a key property such as receptor binding (red blood cell agglutination) are investigated.

Brief description of teaching and learning methods:
There will be one 50 minute lecture each week followed by two hours of laboratory and problem solving exercises.

Contact hours:

	Autumn	Spring	Summer
Lectures	20
Tutorials/seminars
Practicals	20
Other contact (eg study visits)
Total hours	40
Number of essays or assignments	1 - practical notebook
Other (eg major seminar paper)

Assessment:
Coursework:
Periodic monitoring of laboratory books (15%), module test (15%)
Relative percentage of coursework: 30%
Examinations: - 70%
A one and a half hour written examination in May/June.
Requirements for a pass:
40% overall.
Reassessment arrangements:
Re-examination in August/September.