Upper Division Requirements, Sample 4-yr Plans, Elective Lists
(formerly Immunology and Pathogenesis emphasis) Humans inhabit an environment teeming with microbes and their toxins. The omnipresent threat of infection and the emergence of new infectious diseases has catapulted immunology to the forefront of modern biomedical science. Immunology is the study of the cellular and biochemical mechanisms which protect us from these threats. Infectious agents such as human immunodeficiency virus which causes AIDS and immune-based diseases such as asthma have increased the public awareness about the importance of immunology in examining the causes and treatments of these diseases. Immunology is unique amongst the natural sciences in that it covers and integrates aspects of modern biological science including cell and developmental biology, biochemistry, genetics, and molecular biology.
Using approaches from many disciplines and techniques as diverse as recombinant DNA, flow cytometry, physical chemistry, mouse transgenesis, and targeted mutation in mice, immunologists have made major advances and striking discoveries leading to an ever-growing understanding of the immune system. We continue to explore questions such as how the immune system distinguishes self from non-self, how antibodies, T cells, and natural killer cells specifically recognize and distinguish millions of different foreign invaders, why some individuals are more susceptible to the development of autoimmune diseases, and how the immune system rejects transplanted organs but often fails to reject tumors. In addition, immunologists study questions of broader biological significance including how gene expression is regulated during animal development, the biochemistry and regulation of gene rearrangement, the mechanism and function of immune surveillance, and the control of programmed cell death.
These recent advances in basic knowledge have in turn led to potential treatments for autoimmune diseases and cancers, new approaches to the design of effective vaccines, strategies to combat AIDS, and treatments to prevent tissue transplant rejection. Students with an emphasis in Immunology will be exposed not only to the unique aspects of the immune system but also to a broad array of disciplines across the full spectrum of modern biomedical sciences.
Upper Division Requirements
| Immunology and Molecular Medicine | ||
| Track 1: Immunology and Pathogenesis | Track 2: Infectious Disease | Track 3: Immunology and Molecular Medicine |
| MCB C100A: Biophysical Chemistry (Fa,Sp; 4 un) | MCB 102: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (Fa, Sp, Su; 4 un) | MCB 102: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (Fa, Sp, Su; 4 un) |
| MCB 110: Molecular Biology: Macromolecular Synthesis & Cellular Function (Fa, Sp; 4 un) | MCB 104: Genetics, Genomics, & Cell Biology (Fa, Sp, Su; 4 un) OR MCB 140: General Genetics (Fa, Sp; 4 un) | MCB 104: Genetics, Genomics, & Cell Biology (Fa, Sp, Su; 4 un) OR MCB 140: General Genetics (Fa, Sp; 4 un) |
| MCB 104: Genetics, Genomics, & Cell Biology (Fa, Sp, Su; 4 un) OR MCB 140: General Genetics (Fa, Sp; 4 un) | MCB 150: Molecular Immunology (Fa, Sp; 4 un) | MCB 150: Molecular Immunology (Fa, Sp; 4 un) |
| MCB 150: Molecular Immunology (Fa, Sp; 4 un) |
MCB 150L: Immunology Lab (Fa, Sp; 4 un)
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MCB 153: Molecular Medicine (Fa; 4 un) |
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MCB 150L: Immunology Lab (Fa, Sp; 4 un)
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IMM Elective A (see list below) | MCB 153L: Molecular Therapeutics Lab (Sp; 4 un) OR petition to substitute with research units |
| IMM Elective C (see list below) | IMM Elective A or B (see list below) | IMM Elective D (see list below) |
Sample 4-yr Plans
These are just examples, for more sample schedules including spring start and transfer see guide.berkeley.edu or meet with an advisor to explore your options. It is recommended by MCB advisors and faculty to take the upper division lab as early as you can if you are interested in research and/or honors research.
| Track 1: Immunology & Pathogenesis | Track 2: Infectious Disease | Track 3: Immunology and Molecular Medicine | |||||||||||
| Year 1 | Year 1 | Year 1 | |||||||||||
| Fall | Un | Spring | Un | Fall | Un | Spring | Un | Fall | Un | Spring | Un | ||
| Math 10A | 4 | Math 10B | 4 | Math 10A | 4 | Math 10B | 4 | Math 1A | 4 | Math 10B | 4 | ||
| Chem 1A/1AL | 5 | Chem 3A/3AL | 5 | Chem 1A/1AL | 5 | Chem 3A/3AL | 5 | Chem 1A/1AL | 5 | Chem 3A/3AL | 5 | ||
| Year 2 | Year 2 | ||||||||||||
| Fall | Un | Spring | Un | Fall | Un | Spring | Un | Fall | Un | Spring | Un | ||
| Chem 3B/3BL | 5 | Biology 1A/1AL | 5 | Chem 3B/3BL | 5 | Biology 1A/1AL | 5 | Chem 3B/3BL | 5 | Biology 1A/1AL | 5 | ||
| Physics 8A | 4 | Physics 8B | 4 | Physics 8A | 4 | Physics 8B | 4 | Physics 8A | 4 | Physics 8B | 4 | ||
| Year 3 | Year 3 | ||||||||||||
| Fall | Un | Spring | Un | Fall | Un | Spring | Un | Fall | Un | Spring | Un | ||
| MCB C100A | 4 | MCB 150 | 4 | MCB 102 | 4 | MCB 104 or 140 | 4 | MCB 102 | 4 | MCB 104 or 1400 | 4 | ||
| Biology 1B | 4 | MCB 150L | 4 | Biology 1B | 4 | Elective A | 3-4 | Biology 1B | 4 | Elective D | 4 | ||
| Year 4 | Year 4 | ||||||||||||
| Fall | Un | Spring | Un | Fall | Un | Spring | Un | Fall | Un | Spring | Un | ||
| MCB 110 | 4 | Elective C | 3-4 | MCB 150 | 4 | IMM Elective B | 3-4 | MCB 153 | 4 |
MCB 150 |
4 | ||
| MCB 104 or 140 | 4 | MCB 150L | 4 | MCB 153L | 4 | ||||||||
Approved Electives Lists
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IMM Elective List C |
IMM Elective Lists A/B |
IMM Elective List D |
|---|---|---|
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Molecular & Cell Biology
Bioengineering
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Elective List A
Elective List B
Neuroscience
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Molecular & Cell Biology
Bioengineering
Neuroscience
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Approved Courses but Not Regularly offered
- MCB 143 Evolution of Genomes, Cells, and Development (F; 3 units)
- MCB C145 Genomics
- MCB C146 Topics in Computational Biology & Genomics
- MCB 168 Sensory Neuroscience (F; 4 units)