Chronic Toxoplasma infection has been linked to interesting behavioral alterations. For example, infected mice lose their fear of cats, increasing their chance of being eaten and so completing the parasite's life cycle. (Image by rubyblossom on Flickr. License BY-NC-SA.)
Instructor(s)
Clare Harding
Diego Huet
MIT Course Number
7.341
As Taught In
Fall 2016
Level
Undergraduate
Course Description
Course Features
Course Description
Parasites require a hospitable organism to reproduce and spread and have evolved multiple strategies to subvert their hosts. Parasites scavenge nutrients directly from host cells, evade the host immune system and even modify host behavior to increase their transmission. This course will explore the strategies used by a ubiquitous and harmful class of parasites to hijack the biology of their host cells. We will discuss pathogens such as Plasmodium and Toxoplasma, responsible for some of the deadliest and most pervasive infectious diseases on the planet.
By exploring how these pathogens invade a host cell and replicate while evading the immune system, students will gain a broad understanding of basic cell biology, biochemistry and immunology, as well as learn techniques commonly used in cell biology. Students will be challenged to think creatively and flexibly to understand, critique, interpret, and design scientific experiments in the field of host-pathogen interactions.