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Micro 5129

Micro 5129

Molecular Parasitology: Cellular and Molecular Biology of Pathogenic Eukaryotes

Credit Hour(s): 3 Units
Instructor(s): Rajaram
Offered: Spring
Prerequisite(s): Micro 4100
Role in Microbiology Major: Group 1 Elective

Lecture Topics:

  • The origins of parasitism
  • Apicomplexan parasites – Malaria, Toxoplasma, Theileria, Cryptosporidium
  • Kinetoplastid parasites – Trypanosomes, Leishmania
  • Metamonads – Giardia, Trichomonas
  • Amoebomastigotes – Naegleria
  • Specialized protozoan organelles – biogenesis and metabolic integration of the apicoplast, mitochondrion, hydrogenosomes, glycosomes

Learning Objectives:

  1. To acquire knowledge about the general characteristics of eukaryotic microbial pathogens with special emphasis on their molecular, cellular and metabolic features.
  2. To gain knowledge about biochemical and molecular genetic approaches that may lead to a better understanding of this group of pathogens.
  3. To raise awareness of questions that, if answered, could lead to beneficial effects on human health by decreasing the frequency and severity of diseases caused by these pathogens.

Course syllabus for Spring 2026