BMB835: Cancer Cell Biology

The Study Board for Science

Teaching language: Danish or English depending on the teacher, but English if international students are enrolled
EKA: N210041112, N210041102
Assessment: Second examiner: None, Second examiner: Internal
Grading: Pass/Fail, 7-point grading scale
Offered in: Odense
Offered in: Spring
Level: Master

STADS ID (UVA): N210041101
ECTS value: 10

Date of Approval: 23-10-2018


Duration: 1 semester

Version: Archive

Comment

The course can not be chosen by students who have taken  BMB810.
The course cannot be chosen by students who: are not enrolled in BMB or Biomedicine.
The course has limited seats and in case of too many applications, priority is given to the timely registration by date of registration.
01015701(former UVA) is identical with this course description. 

Entry requirements

Bachelor degree in BMB or Biomedicine

Academic preconditions

Students taking the course are expected to:
  • Have fundamental knowledge of cell biology and molecular biology
  • Be able to use basic techniques within the area of cell biology and molecular biology.

Participant limit

20

Course introduction

The aim of the course is to provide extensive knowledge on the
molecular and cell biology of cancer. The first part of the course gives
a detailed overview of the factors and mechanisms that contribute to
the development of this disease while the second part focuses on
specific types of cancer highlighting similarities and differences. 

It
is the goal of the course to strengthen the specific academic profile
of the students within the area of Biomedicine and
Biochemistry/Molecular Biology.

The course establish a
logical connection with some of the courses followed earlier in the
area of BMB and Biomedicine and bring the students to an upper-level
knowledge and expertise expanding specific skills and competence with
which they have familiarized earlier. An intensive practical training
gives the students the possibility to put into practice the theory they
have been learning follows the theoretical part of the course.

The
course builds on the knowledge acquired in the Bachelor degree in
BMB/Biomedicine and gives an academic basis for studying topics cancer
cell biology – typically in a masters project.

In relation to the competence profile of the degree it is the explicit focus of the course to make the students able to:
  • Describe and explain relevant concepts related to the biology of cancer
  • Develop and formulate constructive criticism on peer-reviewed articles
  • Understand how scientific knowledge is acquired by an interplay between theory and experiments
  • Muster modern techniques in the fields of Cell Biology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
  • Formulate a critical assessment of the results obtained relating them to each other

Expected learning outcome

The learning objective of the course is that the student demonstrates the ability to:
Part 1:
  • Understand and use appropriately the terminology within the cancer cell biology field
  • Understand the nature of cancer and cell processes leading to uncontrolled cell proliferation
  • Explain the molecular and cellular basis of frequently occurring forms of cancer
  • Analyse molecular and cellular aspects of rare forms of cancer
  • Discuss the most common types of childhood cancers and the major differences between cancers in adults and children 
Part 2:
  • Design
    a strategy for the cloning of cDNA into mammalian expression plasmids
    for the expression of a recombinant tumour suppressor protein in
    mammalian cells
  • Elucidate the intracellular regulation of a tumour suppressor gene product
  • Analyse the role of tumour suppressor proteins as master guardian of the genome

Content

The following main topics are contained in the course:
  • Molecular mechanisms in cell cycle regulation
  • The biology and genetics of cancer 
  • The role of oncogenes and tumour suppressor genes
  • Cell signalling
  • Maintenance of genomic integrity and cancer development
  • Tumour angiogenesis
  • Tumour metastasis
  • The rational treatment of cancer
  • Molecular
    and cellular features of cancers of the central nervous system,
    pancreatic cancer, skin cancer, gastrointestinal tract malignancies,
    blood cell cancers, germ cell tumours, rare forms of cancer, cancers of
    childhood 

Literature

See itslearning for syllabus lists and additional literature references.

Examination regulations

Exam element a)

Timing

Spring

Tests

Written report based on lab. work

EKA

N210041112

Assessment

Second examiner: None

Grading

Pass/Fail

Identification

Full name and SDU username

Language

Normally, the same as teaching language

Examination aids

Allowed, a closer description of the exam rules will be posted under 'Course Information' on Blackboard.

ECTS value

5

Additional information

The report is submitted as group work.
The examination form for re-examination may be different from the exam form at the regular exam.

Exam element b)

Timing

June

Tests

Written exam

EKA

N210041102

Assessment

Second examiner: Internal

Grading

7-point grading scale

Identification

Student Identification Card

Language

Normally, the same as teaching language

Examination aids

Not allowed, a closer description of the exam rules will be posted in itslearning.

ECTS value

5

Additional information

The exam is conducted as a multiple choice test.
The examination form for re-examination may be different from the exam form at the regular exam.

Indicative number of lessons

70 hours per semester

Teaching Method

At the faculty of science, teaching is organized after the three-phase model ie. intro, training and study phase.

The intro-phase comprises lectures, which will be carried out in
the form of a dialog between the teachers and the students. The lectures
will cover relevant topics that are part of the course and will supply
the selected literature with additional notions and perspectivation. The
lecture slides will, in fact, contain information that is not
necessarily part of the assigned literature. The relevant theory for
carrying out the practical part of the course will be discussed during
the lectures.
In the training phase, the students will have
the opportunity to apply the acquired knowledge by performing
experiments related to some of the topics discussed during the lectures.
The students will be acquainted with modern techniques in the fields of
Molecular Biology, Biochemistry and Cell Biology. In the study phase,
the students are expected to re-elaborate the knowledge acquired during
the lectures and the practical part of the course with the help of the
selected literature. The lectures and laboratory training are meant to
complement each other and provide the students with optimal learning
tools.

Educational activities:
  • To read and study text-book chapters, scientific articles and websites which should complement the content the lecture slides 
  • To prepare for the practical part of the course
  • To write an obligatory report

Teacher responsible

Name E-mail Department
Barbara Guerra bag@bmb.sdu.dk Institut for Biokemi og Molekylær Biologi

Additional teachers

Name E-mail Department City
Paolo Ceppi pceppi@bmb.sdu.dk Institut for Biokemi og Molekylær Biologi

Timetable

Administrative Unit

Biokemi og Molekylær Biologi

Team at Educational Law & Registration

NAT

Offered in

Odense

Recommended course of study

Profile Education Semester Offer period