Immunobiology
CAB S531, 785.3857
Ph.D. (M.S., M.Phil. en route)
Chair
Richard Flavell
Director of Graduate Studies
Alfred Bothwell (CAB S621, 785.4020, alfred.bothwell@yale.edu)
Director of Graduate Admissions
David Schatz (CAB S625, 737.2255, david.schatz@yale.edu)
Professors
Jeffrey Bender (Internal Medicine), Alfred Bothwell,
Kim Bottomly, Joseph Craft
(Internal Medicine), Ruslan Medzhitov, Peter Cresswell, Richard
Flavell, Sankar Ghosh, Paula Kavathas (Laboratory Medicine),
Ira Mellman (Cell Biology), Jordan Pober, Nancy Ruddle (Epidemiology
& Public Health), David Schatz, Robert Tigelaar (Dermatology)
Associate Professors
Fadi Lakkis (Nephrology), Mark Shlomchik (Laboratory
Medicine), Warren Shlomchik (Internal Medicine)
Assistant Professor
Akiko Iwasaki (Epidemiology & Public Health)
Fields of Study
Thee
graduate program in Immunobiology is designed to prepare students
for independent careers in research and teaching in Immunology
or related disciplines. Training and research focus on the
molecular, cellular, and genetic underpinnings of immune system
function and development, and on host-pathogen interactions.
Specific areas of interest include: B- and T-cell development,
activation and effector functions; the role of cytokines in
immunoregulation; intracellular signaling and the control
of transcription in lymphocytes; antigen processing and presentation;
immunoglobulin and T-cell receptor gene rearrangement; B-cell
memory; the immunobiology of vascular endothelial cells; innate
immunity; and B- and T-cell tolerance. Mechanisms of autoimmunity
and immunodeficiency are a major interest, and a number of
important human diseases are under study, including diabetes,
systemic lupus erythematosus, multiple sclerosis, AIDS, and
a variety of other infectious diseases.
The program emphasizes interdisciplinary training and collaborative
and interactive research, an approach based on the idea that
solving difficult problems requires the integration of individuals
with common goals but differing expertise. Students enter
the Immunobiology graduate program after completing their
first year in the Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BBS)
graduate program. Students from any of the tracks of BBS may
enter the program. Hence, Immunobiology has close ties with
other graduate programs in the biological sciences at Yale.
Students are encouraged to supplement core courses in molecular
and cellular immunology with additional courses selected from
the wide range available in cell biology, molecular biology,
developmental biology, biochemistry, genetics, pharmacology,
molecular medicine, and neurobiology. Research seminars and
informal interactions with other graduate students, postdoctoral
fellows, and faculty also form an important part of graduate
education. Three laboratory rotations ensure that first-year
students quickly become familiar with the variety of research
opportunities available at Yale. Thesis research begins at
the end of the first year, and students are encouraged to
develop rigorous and creative approaches to examine significant
problems in immunology and biology. At the end of the program,
the completed research is presented in the form of a written
dissertation and a formal seminar.
Special Admissions Requirements
Applicants should have strong previous research
experience and a strong academic background in biology, chemistry,
and genetics with course work in physics and mathematics preferred.
Submission of the GRE General Test is required. Submission
of the Subject Test in Biology or Biochemistry is preferred.
To enter the Ph.D. program, students apply to an interest-based
track within the interdepartmental graduate program in the
Biological and Biomedical Sciences.
Special Requirements for the Ph.D. Degree
Students take two to three courses in the Yale Graduate
School during each of their first four terms. Required courses
are: IBIO 530a, Biology of the Immune System; IBIO 531b, Advanced
Immunology; IBIO 600a, Introduction to Research; IBIO 601b,
Fundamentals of Research; and two seminar courses covering
special topics in immunology (these courses emphasize the
methods and logic of research, how to read and critically
evaluate the literature, and how to write a research proposal).
Additional courses are determined based on the individual
needs of the student, and include courses in biochemistry,
cell biology, genetics, molecular biology of prokaryotes,
molecular biology of eukaryotes, animal viruses, the structure
of nucleic acids and proteins, microbiology, and disease mechanisms.
Students choose courses after consulting an advisory committee
made up of faculty from the Section of Immunobiology, as well
as the director of graduate studies.
The Graduate School uses grades of Honors, High Pass, Pass,
or Fail. Students are required to earn a grade of Honors in
at least two courses in the first two years, and are expected
to maintain a High Pass average. There is no foreign-language
requirement.
Early in their fourth term, students make a thirty-minute
presentation to the section of their proposed research and
initial results. Thereafter, they meet with their prospectus
committee, which assigns four or five broad areas of biology
and immunology that are of particular relevance to the proposed
research and on which the student will be examined in the
prospectus exam. During the next several months, students
prepare a formal research proposal (in NIH grant format) concerning
the proposed thesis research and study for the exam. The exam
is oral, and covers all aspects of immunology generally, with
a focus on the assigned areas mentioned above. The student
is also questioned on aspects of the thesis proposal. Requirements
for admission to candidacy, which usually takes place after
six terms of residence, are: (1) completion of course requirements;
(2) completion of the prospectus examination; and (3) certification
of the student’s research abilities by vote of the faculty
upon recommendation from the student’s thesis committee.
Progress in thesis research in the third and later years
is monitored carefully by the student’s thesis committee
(composed of the adviser and three or four other faculty).
All students are required to have two meetings with their
thesis committee annually, to provide an update on progress
and an opportunity for the committee to provide feedback and
suggestions.
Students are expected to teach two one-term courses during
their graduate careers, usually during the second and third
years.
M.D./Ph.D. Students Majoring in Immunobiology
Required: seven courses for a grade.
Out of the seven courses the following are mandatory:
1. IBIO 530a, Biology of the Immune System
2. IBIO 531b, Advanced Immunology
3. Two Immunobiology seminar courses: IBIO 536a, 537a, 538a,
539a (Seminars can be audited if a student has grades in seven
other courses)
Also required:
Two grades of Honors. Yale University graduate courses taken
for a grade at the School of Medicine may be counted towards
the Honors fulfillment and the seven total required courses.
Verification must be provided to the DGS.
One semester of teaching. Previously taught courses in the
School of Medicine may count toward this requirement. To request
credit for previous teaching experience, a note from the course
director describing the teaching experience (duration of the
teaching experience, frequency of class meetings, number of
students taught, materials covered, dates, and for whom) should
be provided to the Immunobiology DGS.
M.D./Ph.D. students are not required to take IBIO 600a,
Introduction to Research, but may if they wish.
IBIO 601b (Fundamentals of Research) Ethics. A note from
the DGS of the M.D./Ph.D. program must be forwarded to the
Immunobiology DGS stating that the student has taken IBIO
601b, Fundamentals of Research, or its equivalent in the School
of Medicine. Include dates, titles, and faculty. If the student
has not taken 601b or the equivalent, then registration in
this class is required.
Following successful completion of the prospectus examination,
the student will be entitled to the M.Phil. degree. Once all
the above requirements have been met, the student will advance
to candidacy and be A.B.D. (“all but dissertation”).
At that point the student will normally focus on research
and the writing of the dissertation.
Biannual committee meetings. Each student is required by
the Immunobiology Section to have a committee meeting every
six months. Departmental Research in Progress talks can count.
The committee supervisor will then prepare a letter to the
DGS summarizing the student’s progress.
Master’s Degree
M.S. may be awarded to a student who is in good standing upon
completion of at least two terms of graduate study. Note that
a High Pass average is required for obtaining a master’s
degree. Our Web site at http://info.med.yale.edu/bbs/
offers complete information on the BBS, Biological and
Biomedical Sciences Program, and the more than 200 participating
faculty.
Courses
IBIO 530a, Biology of the Immune System. Kim
Bottomly and staff. MWF 9.30–10.20
The development of the immune system. Cellular and molecular
mechanisms of immune recognition. Effector responses against
pathogens; autoimmunity. Also MCDB 530au.
IBIO 531b, Advanced Immunology. Ruslan Medzhitov
and staff.
The historical development and central paradigms of key
areas in immunology. The course attempts to develop a clear
understanding of how these paradigms were established experimentally.
Landmark studies are discussed to determine how the conclusions
were obtained and why they were important at the time they
were done. Lecture and discussion format; readings of primary
research papers and review articles. Prerequisite: IBIO 530a
or equivalent. Enrollment limited to fifteen.
IBIO 538a, Advanced Immunology Seminar: Lymphocyte Receptors/Signal
Transduction/Regulation of Expression. Paula Kavathas,
Sankar Ghosh, Alfred Bothwell. HTBA
This course starts at the cell surface studying receptors,
then moves to signal transduction through receptors, and then
studies how the signals are interpreted in terms of gene regulation.
Topics on receptors include the role of sugars in modifying
receptor ligand interactions and the molecular basis for receptor
ligand interactions focusing on the MHC with TCR, CD8, and
Ly49. Alternatively spliced forms of receptors and implications
for signaling are discussed. We then cover how signals are
transmitted from the cell surface using the toll receptors
and the T cell receptor complex as examples. Signaling to
death and negative regulation are also covered. The interpretation
of these signals in terms of gene regulation is then discussed.
Topics include chromatin remodeling, integration of signals
through promoter analysis, and regulation of transcription
factors that are activated during immune responses.
IBIO 600a, Introduction to Research. David
Schatz and staff. Th 5
Introduction to the research interests of the faculty.
Required for all first-year students. Pass/fail.
IBIO 601b, Fundamentals of Research. David
Schatz and Staff. Th 5
Seminar discussing proper conduct of research. Required
for first-year Immunobiology track and second-year Immunobiology
graduate students.
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