The main objective of the course is to provide a fundamental understanding of the microbial world. Through the course, the student will acquire theoretical skills related to microbiology. By the end of the course, students will learn about the structure of microorganisms, specifically bacteria, viruses, and Archaea, and comprehend the connections between the structure, organization, metabolism of bacterial cells and the environment. Additionally, students will be able to employ precise terminology when describing microorganisms.
Prerequisiti
Understanding the topics covered in the Basic Microbiology course requires the student to have a basic knowledge of molecular biology, biochemistry and genetics and in particular, structure of biomolecules, function of genes, replication, transcription and translation processes, enzymatic reactions and basic metabolism. If the student lacks these concepts, it is recommended to attend the following courses: Basic Molecular Biology - 1st semester 1st year, Basic Biochemistry - 1st semester 1st year.
Metodi didattici
Teaching is based on lectures. Students will be involved in group activities and self-assessment exercises during class. Power Point presentations are used for the lectures and are made available to the students in the teaching section of the KIRO moodle platform. Lectures (classroom hours/year): 48
Verifica Apprendimento
Learning will be tested through a written examination consisting of several questions: - Questions asking for a brief description of a process, designed to test the student's ability to summarise and understand the theoretical concepts explained during the lecture. -critical thinking questions, for example, a practical problem to be solved, will be presented.
The use of appropriate scientific language will be considered. The duration of the examination is two hours.
Testi
Madigan, Bender, Buckley, Sattley, Stahl. 2022. Brock Biology of Microrganisms. XVI edition, Pearson. Joanne Willey, Kathleen Sandman and Dorothy Wood. 2023. Prescott's Microbiology, 12th Edition, McGraw Hill.
Contenuti
Microbial world: structure, and functions of prokaryotic cells. Microbial metabolism and biosynthesis. Microbial growth (dynamics), environmental effects on growth and cultivation. Antibiotics and microbial growth. Essential virology: the nature of viruses and overview of the viral replication cycle. Genome plasticity. Regulation of gene expression. Gene transfer. Mechanism of microbial evolution. Microbial phylogeny and classification systems. Metabolic and ecological diversity of bacteria. Archaea: overview of the principal groups. Fungi: overview of the kingdom.
Lingua Insegnamento
INGLESE
Altre informazioni
Ad hoc inclusive teaching activities will be provided to students who fall into the categories identified by the Academic Senate at its meeting on 23 March 2023 to support their learning.
