Handbook

Microscopic life pervades every aspect of our lives, influencing our health, diet, and environment. In this course students will gain an appreciation of the diverse roles that microbes play in our everyday lives. The course starts with a general introduction to microbiology that will discuss cell structure and function, physiology, diversity and phylogeny. The course then focuses on introducing students to specific areas of microbiology: environmental microbiology including metabolism, microbial communities and archaea; microbes and synthetic biology; and medical microbiology including bacterial, viral, and fungal pathogens, as well as foodborne pathogens. There is additional focus on the pathological processes and pharmaceutical treatment of microbial infections in humans. 

The lecture program is complemented by laboratory practicals where students will learn how to cultivate, identify, and utilise microbes. During this course, students will isolate and characterise a microbe from a sample of their choice, using both traditional approaches and DNA sequencing technologies to identify the microorganisms in their sample.  

Tutorial sessions reinforce concepts and skills from the lectures and practical sessions and support the development of groupwork and communication skills.

By the end of the course, students will have a broad appreciation of how the unseen microbes all around us influence us every day.