2011 UCSF Mini-Course Roster

BMS participates in a collaborative program with other UCSF graduate programs to offer a spring quarter curriculum designed around mini-courses formatted as intensive, round-table discussions of current literature on specific topics.

The quarter is divided into three modules of two to three weeks each with programs offering several mini-courses choices per module. Students enrolled in the BMS program must take one mini-course per module for a total of three mini-courses. Two of the selections must be chosen from the BMS list, and the third may be chosen from other program offerings depending on availability. BMS mini-courses include translational, single disease or organ systems topics. Topics will change every year.

Spring 2011 Mini-Courses Modules:
Module I: Monday, March 28 – Friday, April 15, 2011
Module II: Monday, April 18 – Friday, May 6, 2011
Module III: Monday, May 9 – Friday, May 27, 2011

Click a Program Name to jump to listings

BMS
CCB
DSCB
iPQB including BMI & Biophysics
Neuroscience
PSPG
Tetrad

Spring 2011 BMS Mini-Course Topics:

The Energy Problem: obesity, starvation and diabetes
Course Directors: Michael German, MD and Allison Xu, PhD
Description: The BMS mini course "The Energy Problem: Obesity, Starvation & Diabetes" is a graduate level course using an open discussion format. The students will learn about the major concepts, molecular and cellular mechanisms governing short-term and long-term energy balance and glucose homeostasis. The students will also learn about the experimental approaches in basic research settings and how to apply basic scientific knowledge to the therapeutic treatment of obesity and diabetes in humans.
Prereq: None
Module: 1
Days/Times: March 28-April 12, except the two Wednesdays, 2pm‐4pm
Location: Parnassus

Epigenetics of Reprogramming and Disease
Course Directors: Robert Blelloch, MD, PhD; Miguel Ramalho-Santos, PhD; Daniel Lim, MD, PhD
Description: This course will cover latest topics in the role of epigenetics in normal development, reprogramming, and disease. Topics will include the role of DNA methylation, histone marks, chromatin remodeling and non-coding RNAs in cellular differentiation, reprogramming and disease. The course will involve the reading and discussion of recent select seminal papers in the field. The instructors will provide some background and then papers (1-2 per session) will discussed as a group.
Module: 1
Days/Times: March 29-April 15, 3pm-5:15pm
Location: Parnassus

Neuro-Oncology
Course Director: David James, PhD
Description: Survey course covering basic, translational, and clinical research topics.  Class meetings will consist of lectures that are followed by related journal club style student presentations.
Prereq: Enrollment in UCSF PhD program
Module: 1
Days/Times: March 28-April 15, M-Th (possible Friday meetings), 5pm-7pm
Location: Mission Bay

Practical Bioinformatics without Programming
Course Director: Mark Voorhies, PhD
Description: Through a series of lectures and exercises, students will learn core skills for analyzing large data sets and documenting their analysis. Exercises will focus on using interactive programs and web resources to analyze gene expression data. There will be no programming component, but the content will have significant overlap with the "Practical Bioinformatics with Programming" minicourse. Students will need a laptop.
Prereq: None
Module: 1
Days/Times: March 28-April 08 (M,T,W,Th,F) 3pm-5pm
Location: Parnassus

Angiogenesis and Vascular Biology   
Course Director: Matt Springer, PhD
Description: This minicourse will focus on the different forms of blood vessel growth and function. Concepts to be explored in depth will include basic cellular and molecular mechanisms of angiogenesis and arteriogenesis (developmental biology that occurs even in the adult), sprouting angiogenesis vs. cell-based vasculogenesis (including the controversy of whether endothelial progenitor cells are actually endothelial progenitor cells), potential for angiogenic therapy and why it has been so slow to become a reality, tumor vasculature and issues of anti-angiogenesis, and endothelial vasodilatory function.
Prereq: None
Module: 2
Days/Times: April 18-May 06, (M, T, Th, F) 3pm-5pm
Location: Parnassus

Communicating in a complex world: the reciprocal interactions between commensal micro-organisms and their hosts
Course Directors: Anita Sil, MD, PhD; Jeff Cox, PhD; Suzanne Noble, MD, PhD
(co-listed with the Tetrad program)
Description: Animals and plants associate with a coevolved set of microbial partners that are essential for health. Even in the simplest examples, these interactions involve highly intricate molecular "conversations" between host and symbiont. Furthermore, the recent development of deep-sequencing technologies has led to an explosion of studies on the fundamental instructive role of the much more complex mammalian microbiome and its role in gut development, immunity, and disease. This course will explore the mechanisms of the host-symbiont relationship using experimental examples that range from the study of "simple", genetically tractable model systems to that of the human gut flora.
Prereq: None
Module: 2
Days/Times: April 18-22 (M-F), April 25-27 (M-W), May 2-3 (M-T), 3pm-5pm
Location: Parnassus

Practical Bioinformatics with Programming
Course Director: Mark Voorhies, PhD
Description: Through a series of lectures and exercises, students will learn core skills for analyzing large data sets, documenting their analysis, and converting analysis protocols into reusable computer programs. Exercises will focus on using the Python programming language to analyze gene expression data, with an emphasis on concepts applicable to many programming languages and many areas of research. No prior programming experience is required. Students will need a laptop.
Prereq: None
Module: 2
Days/Times: April 18-May 06 (M, W, F, plus April 19) 3pm-5pm
Location: Parnassus

Principles and Implications of Oncogene Addiction   
Course Directors: Martin McMahon, PhD; Davide Ruggero, PhD; Scott Oakes, MD
Description: Participants in this course will conduct an in-depth and rigorous evaluation of the concept of "Oncogene Addiction" and the implications of this phenomenon to the treatment of patients with pathway-targeted cancer therapeutics. Papers to be discussed will span the history of oncogene research from the first description of temperature-sensitive forms of Rous Sarcoma Virus through the identification, validation and drug targeting of oncogenes directly relevant to human cancer. Specific disease and treatment paradigms to be discussed will include the use of pharmacological and antibody based anti-cancer therapeutics to target leukemia, breast cancer and melanoma. 
Prereq: This course is most appropriate for 2nd year BMS or Tetrad graduate students, although students from other programs may apply. Familiarity of concepts described in "The Biology of Cancer" by Robert A. Weinberg is recommended for participation in this Mini-course.
Module: 2
Days/Times: April 18-May 05 (M, W, Th) 4pm-6:30pm
Location: Mission Bay

Cytoskeleton and Disease
Course Directors: Diane Barber, PhD and Torsten Wittmann, PhD
Description: This Mini-Course will focus on how the structural properties, dynamics, and regulation of the actin, microtubule, and intermediate filament cytoskeleton cause or contribute to selective disease processes. Pathologic conditions discussed may include cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, structural cytoskeleton diseases, genetic disorders with known mutations in cytoskeleton regulators, and/or pathogens hijacking the host cytoskeleton.
Prereq: Graduate level cell biology course (BMS260 or CB245)
Module: 3
Days/Times: May 9-27 (Mon. 2-5pm, Tues. 2pm-5pm, & Thur from 9am-12pm)
Location: Parnassus

Hematopoiesis and Leukemia Biology
Course Director: Emmanuelle Passegue, PhD
Description: The cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying how differentiated progeny are derived from hematopoietic stem cells throughout life is understood in great depth relative to other mammalian tissues. Many of the same genes and proteins that control these cell fate decisions are mutated in leukemia. Basic knowledge about hematopoiesis and the identification of mutant proteins that contribute to leukemic growth have fostered the development of novel treatments. This course will address: (1) our current understanding of hematopoiesis; (2) how normal hematopoietic stem cells undergo malignant transformation; (3) experimental methodologies for interrogating normal and malignant hematopoietic cells; and (4) how this basic knowledge is informing the development of new treatments.
Prereq: BMS Cell Biology & genetics or equivalent; 1st & 2nd year medical students may also apply
Module: 3
Days/Times: May 9-24, except the two Wednesdays, 4pm-6pm
Locations: Mission Bay & Parnassus

“Queerer Than We Can Suppose”:  Transformational Discoveries in Genetics
Course Director: Jane Gitschier, PhD
Description: Through research articles and other literature, we will analyze and discuss discoveries in genetics that broke through the scientific dogma of their times. Topics will include the discoveries of DNA as the genetic material, host restriction and modification, intervening sequences and splicing, RNA catalysis, prions, and micro RNAs. This mini-course will be a unique opportunity to revisit some of our field’s most interesting discoveries and to help with developing a book project on the subject.
Prereq: None
Module: 3
Days/Times: 3X per week (M, W, F) 9am-11am
Location: Parnassus

Small RNA regulation of the immune system
Course Directors: Mark Ansel, PhD & Michael McManus, PhD
Description: MicroRNAs are tiny regulators of gene expression with a BIG impact on plant and animal development and physiology. Recent research has started to unravel the many ways that microRNAs and other small RNAs regulate the development and protective function of the immune system. Through short introductory lectures and in-depth discussion of key papers from the recent literature, this course will cover an up-to-date introduction to miRNA biogenesis and mechanisms of gene regulation, the expression and function of small RNAs in lymphocytes and myeloid cells, their role in immunity and immune tolerance, and the future trajectory of this fast-moving field of research.
Prereq: None
Module: 3
Days/Times: May 9-27, daily, 1-3pm
Location: TBD

Listeria and Yersinia: from classic studies to cutting edge bacterial pathogenesis
*This course is postponed*

Spring 2011 CCB Mini-Course Topics:

Synthetic Chemistry
Course Directors:    Jack Taunton and Adam Renslow

Fundamentals of NMR
Course Directors: Mark Kelly

Mass Spectrometry
Course Directors: Al Burlingame

A Chemical View of Synaptic Transmission and Plasticity
Course Directors: Pam England

Spring 2011 DSCB Mini-Course Topics:

Cell Polarity
Course Directors: Keith Mostov and Didier Stainier

Spring 2011 GEMS Mini-Course Topics:

Introduction to Human Biology
Course Directors: Andrew Leavitt

Spring 2011 iPQB Mini-Course Topics:

History and Philosophy of Evolution
Course Directors: David Mindell

Protein Crystallography
Course Directors: Bob Stroud

Allostery
Course Directors: Matt Jacobson

Statistical Methods for Array and Sequence Data
Course Directors: Mark Segal

Spring 2011 NS Mini-Course Topics:

The Multifaceted Roles of Glia in the Nervous System
Course Directors: Jonah Chan

Neuroscience of Speech Perception and Production
Course Directors: Christoph Schreiner, John Houde

Genetics of Human Neurological Disorders
Course Directors: Louis Ptacek

Spring 2011 PSPG Mini-Course Topics:

Principles of Pharmacogenomics
Course Directors: Nadav Ahituv

Advanced Drug Delivery
Course Directors: Francis C. Szoka, Jr.

Pharmacokinetics in Drug Development
Course Directors: Leslie Benet, Kathy Giacomini and Deanna Kroetz

Spring 2011 Tetrad Mini-Course Topics:

Current Problems in the Cytoskeleton or Frontiers in the Cytoskeleton
Course Directors: Ron Vale and Dyche Mullins

Understanding the Basis of Monoallelic Expression
Course Directors: Stavros Lomvardas and Barbara Panning

Metabolism in Cells and Model Organisms
Course Directors: Bob Farese and Cynthia Kenyon

ER Quality Control
Course Directors: Peter Walter and Jonathan Weissman

Communicating in a complex world: the reciprocal interactions between commensal micro-organisms and their hosts
Course Directors: Anita Sil, Jeff Cox, Suzanne Noble