Innovative Immunotherapies

Objectives

At the end of the course, the student should have the ability to:

1. Understand the Immunotherapy and its clinical applications;
2. Evaluate the role of various immunotherapeutic strategies in the treatment of diseases;
3. Report based on acquired knowledge, important issues related to the design of therapeutic measures;
4. Interpret scientific articles and pre-clinical and clinical trials in this area communicate/explain published results;
5. Develop a critical evaluation of therapeutic approaches and new discoveries, compared to more traditional approaches;
6. Relate the concepts of Immunotherapies in the discussions and integration of information.

General characterization

Code

11192

Credits

3

Responsible teacher

Prof.ª Doutora Paula Videira

Hours

Weekly - Available soon

Total - Available soon

Teaching language

Portuguese

Prerequisites

 

Bibliography

Cancer Immunotherapy- Paradigms, Practice and Promise, Curiel, Tyler J. (Ed.) 2013, IX,
Cellular and Molecular Immunology, Saunders/Elsevier, 2011 by Abbas, Lichtman, and Pillai
Janeway's Immunobiology 9th Ed. Kenneth Murphy, Casey Weaver ISBN:9780815344452
Kuby Immunology; Kindt, Goldsby, Osborne
Fundamentos de Imunologia, Lidel, Fernando A. Arosa, Elsa M. Cardoso, Francisco C. Pacheco
Artigo científicos recentes publicados em revistas internacionais da especialidade.

Teaching method

The course is organized in, 12 theoretical classes and 16 theoretical-practice classes, either in person or remotely. Theoretical classes include general and specific themes and seminars, followed by theoretical-practical classes, where students will be divided by groups to work in discussion of related articles, clinical cases and/or teamwork.

Evaluation method

The student will be evaluated according to the weighted average of: 1) a written examination that includes material on themes explored in all classes, subject of student presentations or  written article of course unit themes (40% weighting); 2) presentation of seminars of course unit themes (40% weighting); 3) forum (weighting 20%). In the case of an improvement exam or special period, the student can choose a 100% global exam or an exam that includes the subject of the test with a value of 50% and in this case the student maintains the grade achieved for the component "presentation seminar” and “forum”.

Subject matter

General themes:
1. Introduction to immunotherapy;
2. Immune Tolerance: Autoimmunity, Transplantation and hypersensitivity;
3. Vaccination and new vaccines;
4. Tumor Immunology;
5. Cellular circuits in chronic inflammation: identification of biomarkers and therapeutic targets;
6. Antibody Engineering;
7. Antigen immunotherapy targets.

Specific themes:
1. Clinical applications of therapeutic antibodies;
2. T-cell based therapies;
3. Dendritic cell based therapies;
4. Others cell therapies in clinical practices;
5. Cytokines as therapeutic targets;
6. Genetic engineering in immunotherapy;
7. Ethical / legal and commercial considerations in new immunotherapies.

Programs

Programs where the course is taught: