Immunobiology
The Anlyan Center (TAC) S531, 785.3857
Ph.D. (M.S., M.Phil. en route)
Chair
Richard Flavell
Director of Graduate Studies
Paula Kavathas (Acting) (TAC S621, 785.3857, paula.kavathas@yale.edu)
Director of Graduate Admissions
David Schatz (TAC S625, 737.2255, david.schatz@yale.edu)
Professors
Jeffrey Bender (Internal Medicine), Alfred Bothwell, Kim Bottomly, Joseph Craft (Internal Medicine), Peter Cresswell, Richard Flavell, Sankar Ghosh, Paula Kavathas (Laboratory Medicine), Ruslan Medzhitov, 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 Professors
Akiko Iwasaki (Epidemiology & Public Health), Susan Kaech
Fields of Study
The 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, neurobiology, and bioinformatics. 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 are required to take seven courses for a grade in the Yale Graduate School.
Required graded courses for first- and second-year students are:
IBIO 530a, Biology of the Immune System
IBIO 531b, Advanced Immunology.
Two Immunobiology seminar courses are also required for second-year students and beyond. They are listed under the following numbers:
IBIO 536, IBIO 537, IBIO 538, IBIO 539.
A seminar course is offered every term and covers special topics in immunology, emphasizing the methods and logic of research, i.e., how to read and critically evaluate the literature, and how to write a research proposal.
One seminar course can be taken for audit if the student has previously taken seven graded courses and has completed one of the above Immunobiology seminars for a grade.
All first- and second-year students must take:
IBIO 600a, Introduction to Research, taught every fall, credit-only course
IBIO 601b, Fundamentals of Research, taught every other spring, credit-only course.
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.
Honors:
The Graduate School uses grades of Honors, High 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.
Teaching:
Students are required to serve as TA (teaching assistant) for two terms before the end of their sixth term.
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 and teaching requirements; (2) completion of the prospectus examination; and (3) certifi-cation 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.
M.D./Ph.D. Students Majoring in Immunobiology
Required: seven courses for a grade.
Out of the seven courses the following are mandatory:
- IBIO 530a, Biology of the Immune System
- BIO 531b, Advanced Immunology
- 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 toward 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 536b, Advanced Immunology Seminar: Immunological Memory and Lymphocyte Homeostasis. Mark Shlomchik, Fadi Lakkis, Susan Kaech.
HTBA
In this seminar course we review classical and recent papers that have shed light on immunological memory. Topics include the generation of memory lymphocytes, factors that control their survival and longevity (relative to naïve cells), the unique differentiation state of the memory cell, and the function of memory cells and how they contribute to memory immune responses. CD4 and CD8 T cells as well as B cells are covered, with emphasis on similarities and differences among these different lymphocyte types. In addition, it is clear that there is functional and phenotypic heterogeneity within these major types of lymphocyte memory populations and this is considered throughout the course. The format is discussion of several assigned papers in an approximately two-hour weekly session. Near the end of the term, students write and review a mini-grant on a relevant topic. Meeting time and location to be determined.
IBIO 539a, Advanced Immunology Seminar, “Innate Immunity.” Ruslan Medzhitov, Jeffrey Bender, Akiko Iwasaki.
W 4–6
The innate immune system has received broad attention in the past few years because of increasing understanding of its fundamental role in all aspects of host defense as well as in inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. This seminar course covers basic and advanced topics related to innate immunity, including the most recent findings in these areas. Specifically, the following aspects of innate immunity are covered in detail: innate immune recognition, cell types and tissues of the innate immune system, effector mechanisms of innate immunity, host-pathogen interactions, cytokines and chemokines, the inflammatory response, innate control of adaptive immunity, Toll-like receptors, NK cells, anti-viral and anti-bacterial immunity, innate immune system and disease. The seminar course focuses on fundamental concepts of innate immunity and primary literature that lead to these concepts. Students in this course are required to actively participate in discussions and presentations.
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 603, Teaching in the Science Education Outreach Program (SEOP). Paula Kavathas.
Students teach seventh-graders in the New Haven schools as part of the Science Education Outreach Program (SEOP). In addition, they are required to take the course Science Teaching 101, which is offered by the McDougal Graduate Teaching Center. Additional possibilities include working with students on Science Fair projects, being a Science Fair judge, or developing a new project. Dates and times to be determined. Please contact the course director, Paula Kavathas, at 785.6223. Also GENE 603.
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