spring 2017 BIO-8303 Molecular and Clinical Aspects of Cancer - block II - 10 ECTS

Application deadline

Application deadline is 1 December for Spring semester and 1 June for Autumn semester. Application code 9303 in Søknadsweb.

Registration for class and exam in Studentweb by 1 February for Spring semester and 1 September for Autumn semester.

Ph.d.-students and students at the Medical Student Research Programme at UiT The Arctic University of Norway go directly to Studentweb to register for class and exam. Others need to apply, and be graned admission prior to register for class and exam.


Type of course

PhD Course. This course is available as a singular course.

Admission requirements

PhD students, Masters students at a Medical Student Research Program, or holders of a Norwegian master´s degree of five years or 3+ 2 years (or equivalent) may be admitted. Valid documentation is a statement from your institution that you are a registered PhD student, or master student at a Medical Research Program or a Master´s Diploma with Diploma Supplement / English translation of the diploma. PhD students are exempt from semester fee.

For more information regarding PhD courses at the Faculty of Health Sciences go to: http://uit.no/helsefak/forskning/phd/emner


Course content

The course is divided into three modules:

Module I cover the topics DNA repair, Transcriptional regulation, Chromatin and Epigenetics and the impact of these processes for maintenance and proper proliferation and differentiation of the cell. How dysregulation of any these processes may contribute to cancer development is discussed.

The topics of Module II are infectious agents and their involvement in different cancer types, cancer stem cells, and cancer epidemiology. The infectious agents discussed are mainly prokaryotes and viruses, and how some of their encoded proteins have the ability to disturb the normal regulation of a eukaryotic cell. The cancer stem cell hyphothesis will be discussed. The epidemiology part highlights the impact of genetic and environmental factors in cancer development.

Module III discusses factors that may have a preventive effect on cancer development, molecular medicines and how such medicines specifically hit the oncoproteins and thereby inhibit growth of cancer cells.

More information about the course, visit the course web site. https://uit.no/om/enhet/artikkel?p_document_id=130276&p_dimension_id=88110


Objectives of the course

Knowledge

  • Know the main mechanisms of DNA repair, Transcriptional regulation, Chromatin and Epigenetics and the impact of these processes for maintenance and proper proliferation and differentiation of the cell.  
  • Know how proteins encoded by infectious agents have the ability to disturb the normal regulation of a eukaryotic cell and contribute to cancer development.
  • Know the impact of genetic and environmental factors in cancer development.

Skills

  • Be able to describe factors that may have a preventive effect on cancer development, molecular medicines and how such medicines specifically hit the oncoproteins and thereby inhibit growth of cancer cells.
  • Describe how dysregulation of epigenetic and DNA repair processes may contribute to cancer development.
  • Be able to review and present high impact research papers within the field of basic and translational cancer research.

Competence:

  • Interpret results from own research and link it scientifically into the context of international basic and translational cancer research.

Language of instruction and examination

English.

Teaching methods

Lectures (30 hours) and Seminars (24 hours).

Assessment

Work requirements Lectures and seminars are obligatory

Exam and evaluation 3 oral presentations of articles (1 for each module); presented in plenary discussions. Evaluated with passed/not passed

The three exams are evaluated separately and all three parts have to be passed to pass the course.

Re-sit exam A re-sit exam is given early in the following semester. Application deadline for the re-sit exam is August 15th.


Recommended reading/syllabus

The lectures, seminars and the "hand outs" that are given during the course defines the curriculum.

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  • About the course
  • Campus: Tromsø |
  • ECTS: 10
  • Course code: BIO-8303