91817 Medical Biotechnology
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Subject handbook information prior to 2020 is available in the Archives.
Credit points: 6 cp
Result type: Grade and marks
Requisite(s): 91142 Biotechnology
Description
This subject is designed to enable students to consolidate and apply already gained scientific and molecular biology knowledge to discovery and development of medical biotechnologies. Research in the field of medical biotechnology has created breakthrough treatments for cancer, life-changing diagnostics and treatments for heart disease and diabetes, and disease-eradicating vaccines which have significantly improved and extended human life. In this subject, during a series of tutorials, workshops and inquiry-orientated learning activities, students develop comprehensive understanding of the use of cutting-edge technologies in discovery and development of biotechnologies for the management and treatment of human diseases. Students also learn about the clinical translation of research and utilisation of digital platforms for commercialisation of novel concepts and discoveries. Innovative assessments enable students to critically appraise the literature, identify gaps in the knowledge, design and recommend experimental techniques, analyse and interpret datasets, and communicate scientific findings. Ethical considerations in experimental design are also discussed. Students develop up-to-date understanding of the clinical needs in a range of medical areas and are able to demonstrate the use of 'omics' and imaging techniques for biomarker and drug discovery, and other current research techniques for cell-based, biologics or gene therapy development, or drug delivery applications. Therefore, the students gain in-depth understanding of the state-of-the-art technologies employed in research to create original discoveries and develop medical biotechnologies, from a molecule to patient.
Subject learning objectives (SLOs)
Upon successful completion of this subject students should be able to:
| 1. | Critically appraise published literature in a range of medical specialities. |
|---|---|
| 2. | Design and develop experimental plan to interrogate important research questions. |
| 3. | Demonstrate understanding of ethical considerations in medical research. |
| 4. | Critically analyse experimental findings in light of the hypothesis, experimental design and already published literature. |
| 5. | Describe clinical applications of different cutting-edge biotechnologies. |
| 6. | Compare and contrast different biotechnology methodologies and their application in the medical field. |
| 7. | Evaluate the latest discoveries and report on the scientific findings to both scientific audience and general public. |
| 8. | Develop creative thinking to address gaps in the knowledge and clinical needs. |
| 9. | Consolidate and improve scientific written and oral communication skills. |
Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)
This subject also contributes specifically to the development of following course intended learning outcomes:
- Apply: Employ current and emerging technologies for the discovery, research, and development of biotechnology processes and products. (1.1)
- Analyse: Critically evaluate information from sources such as databases and literature to identify novel research questions. (2.2)
- Synthesise: Apply critical, strategic and creative reasoning to articulate issues related to biotechnology. (2.3)
- Apply: Display knowledge of risk management, accurate record keeping, and an understanding of the legal and regulatory requirements in biotechnology. (3.1)
- Synthesise: Articulate how science underpins society, in particular the role and place of bio-business in the economy. (3.3)
- Synthesise: Identify opportunities to innovate and develop strategies to achieve meaningful outcomes. (4.3)
- Apply: Display communication skills using a variety of methods (oral, written, visual) to communicate with scientists, business, and the general public. (5.1)
- Analyse: Develop the capacity to communicate applied research and creative critical analysis to generate defensible, convincing arguments. (5.2)
- Synthesise: Communicate as an effective member or leader of diverse teams within a multi-disciplinary setting. (5.3)
Contribution to the development of graduate attributes
The Faculty of Science has six new graduate attributes that you will develop during your course at UTS. This subject is intended to develop 5 of these attributes:
Graduate Attribute 1 - Disciplinary Knowledge
You will learn about the fundamental principles and clinical applications of cutting-edge technologies important for the development of improved monitoring and treatments of human diseases. By actively participating in pre-reading, tutorials, workshops and assignments you will learn the fundamental principles and application of cutting-edge technologies in medical biotechnology field. You will develop the transdisciplinary knowledge and comprehension of a diverse range of new and emerging technologies in “omics”, advanced imaging, and patient-orientated research tools and their application to address clinical needs.
As part of inquiry based learning to compete all assessments, an up-to-date understanding of the clinical needs in a certain research area will be achieved through reading published research and review papers as well as white papers and media releases. Evaluation of the advancement in the management and treatment of patients through the use of biotechnology will require chronological and in-depth understanding of the research being carried out in a certain medical area. This will lead to identification of the knowledge gaps and clinical needs as well as the application of the knowledge to design experimental plan to address these gaps/needs.
Graduate Attribute 2 – Research, Inquiry and Critical Thinking
During the tutorials and workshops you will be encouraged to think creatively to solve clinical needs through research by choosing suitable research methodologies. You will also be able to design your own project addressing the gaps in clinical knowledge therefore demonstrating your understanding of the application of the research methodologies and technologies to different types of medical discoveries.
You will learn how to critically and systematically appraise the literature to identify knowledge gaps or synthesise new knowledge by conducting systematic reviews and meta-analysis, completing a literature review assignment and creating your own short grant application to solve a clinical problem. This thought-provoking and authentic assignment will develop critical and conceptual thinking as well as problem-solving skills. The "News and Views" presentation will also facilitate research inquiry to evaluate the latest break-through technologies and critical thinking to identify strengths and limitations of the research conducted that led to discovery.
You will develop the ability to follow a line of scientific inquiry from hypothesis to clinical application through addressing a scientific hypothesis, developing experimental plan, analysing and interpreting datasets, reporting the findings and describing the impact of your discovery on patient care.
Graduate Attribute 3 – Professional, Ethical and Social Responsibility
This subject will equip you with the fundamental skills required for pursuing a research degree or jobs in academia, industry, clinical practice or government. It might even lead to the development of an innovative idea that could be translated into a start-up. The skills that will be gained include but are not limited to conceptual thinking, analytical and numerical skills. These graduate attributes will be developed as part of all assessment tasks.
Research skills, such as critically appraising the literature, evaluating and appropriately using relevant information from a variety of sources (including databases, scientific literature, websites, and textbooks), data analysis and interpretation, and reporting of the findings will be developed and practised during participation in the tutorial and workshop series and completion of the assessments 1&3.
Time management, organisational and prioritisation skills will be developed through attending the tutorials/workshops on time, meeting the deadlines, preparing for the tutorials/workshops, managing time effectively during the tutorials/workshops and completing the assignments. Late submission of the assessments will incur a 5% reduction in the mark per day.
Interpersonal skills important for working within a team will be developed as part of the workshops, active participation in the tutorials and working through the case studies aimed at finding creative and suitable methods to address a clinical problem.
Ethics and professional conduct in science will be learned and practiced through tutorials, workshops and inquiry-orientated learning. You will learn how to describe and manage ethical consideration in addressing clinical questions, evaluate and translate findings to patient care.
Comprehension of the suitability and application of the latest cutting-edge technologies in research to improve the management and treatment of human diseases will be obtained through tutorials, online courses and workshops.
Understanding of clinical translation of research discoveries from the laboratory to the clinic will also be developed. News and Views presentation and associated workshops will teach you how to describe scientific concepts to the public and lay audience in order to keep the public informed on the latest and the most important medical discoveries by being socially responsible.
Graduate Attribute 4 – Reflection, Innovation, Creativity
You will develop skills in designing exploratory research strategies based on selection of suitable methodologies to address a clinical question, interpret results and communicate your findings. In the assessment 1, you will use your critical, conceptual and creative thinking to appraise the literature, identify gaps in the knowledge and propose experimental plan to address these gaps and unmet clinical needs. You will practice creativity in proposing to address a clinical need through research.
The ability to make effective judgements about one’s own work will be developed during workshops and peer evaluations of the “News and views” assignment on the most prominent discovery in biotechnology field. You will use your creativity to report on the selected innovation to the general public as part of an oral presentation.
The ability to act on constructive feedback received during the workshops and assessments will also be developed. For example, in assessment 3, you will receive a formative feedback half-way through the semester which will give you the opportunity to improve your scientific report by acting on the feedback provided.
Graduate Attribute 5 - Communication Skills
Consolidation and further development of effective oral and written communication skills in reporting scientific findings to both scientific and general public will be enabled through active participation in the workshop tasks and assessment tasks 1&2&3. Communication skills will also be utilised and improved during interactive lectures, workshops and group work.
Teaching and learning strategies
This Medical Biotechnology subject will be delivered using a combination of pre-reading material, tutorials, workshops, self-directed learning and assessments. Students should make the most out of the pre-reading material to be able to participate during tutorials and workshop to develop knowlegde and understanding of medical biotechnology. They will also have an opportunity to be creative and apply or develop the knowledge gained to a real case scenario. Tutorials and workshops will be delivered as a mixture of online/Zoom and face to face sessions. For face to face sessions, social distancing rules must be adhered to. The pre-reading material will be provided in the form of online courses and tools, research or review papers and links to clinical/industry guidelines through UTSonline.
You will work collaboratively in a group to complete tasks in the tutorials and workshops using creative and conceptual thinking whilst working as part of a team. The assessments are authentic which will be developed over a number of weeks through inquiry-based learning, critical literature appraisal and application of learnt concepts. These assessments will empower you to think creatively and solve a clinical problem or address knowledge gap. The findings will, then, be communicated through oral and written scientific reports suitable for a range of audiences.
Feedback will be provided verbally during workshops from both peers and facilitators. Written feedback will also be provided in relation to the assessments submitted. For assessment 1, the students will get an opportunity to receive one summative feedback half-way through the semester and before receiving formative feedback upon submission.
Content (topics)
Patient-orientated research tool: This topic will discuss how to review published literature critically with particular emphasis on using systematic review and meta-analysis approaches to evaluate an effect of a drug or usefulness of a biomarker in managing human diseases. In the subsequent workshop, you will use the “RevMan” software to perform meta-analysis to address certain clinical questions. Students will be provided with online learning tools on how to use this software and will be expected to practice using the software before the workshop. In the workshop, students will be working in groups to carry out an assessment of a drug or biomaker using meta-analysis and a short report will be generated at the end of the workshop. The importance of carrying out meta-analysis rigorously will be debated and their application in generating clinical guidelines discussed.
“Omics” for biomarker and drug discovery: This topic will be delivered through a series of lectures, self-directed learning and online learning material which will provide fundamental principles of the next generation sequencing (mRNA, miRNA, circRNA and tRNAs), proteomics and metabolomics methodologies and their application for biomarker and drug discovery. Examples of the successful applications of these methodologies to address a range of clinical needs will also be described, from a molecule to patient. During the workshops, you will evaluate these cutting-edge technologies and decide on the suitability of their application to address a clinical problem.
Human Microbiome: The application of various techniques used to assess microbiome with reference to the importance of well-balance or imbalanced microbiome will be discussed in relation to the healthy status and various human diseases. During workshops you will further explore the association between microbiome and health or disease and determine how this knowledge can be utilised for personalised and effective treatments of a number of diseases.
Application of advance imaging techniques in biotechnology: This topic will discuss how advanced imaging techniques are used in research to make discoveries and how novel imaging technologies are currently employed in the clinic. In relation to research, particular emphasis will be placed on the fundamental principles and use of the following imaging technologies: electron microscopy, confocal microscopy, ultra-high resolution microscopy, multi-photon microscopy, immunofluorescence and in vivo imaging. The development and application of clinically relevant imaging tools to understand the risk, symptoms, extent and pathogenesis of a disease such as MRI, PET/CT scan, MEG, 3D Ultrasound, Endoscopy and Mammography will be appraised.
Drug and biologics design and discovery: Here, the differences between chemical and biological compounds for the treatment of a disease will be compared and contrasted. The discovery and development processes of important therapies focused on small molecule inhibitors or mimics, peptides or monoclonal antibodies will be discussed. Certain medical areas where these types of treatments have been particularly successful in improving the survival and the quality of life of patients will be evaluated from discovery to clinical application.
The use of cell-based therapies for the treatment of human diseases: The main focus in this topic is the treatment, development and clinical utilisation of stem cell-based therapies. We will evaluate the timeline from discovery to clinical application of cell-based therapies considering all steps in the process but also what is required, in terms of development, for other stem-cell based technologies, particularly iPSCs, to get to the clinic. Ethical issues, advantages and disadvantages will also be analysed. As part of the workshop, you will collaboratively design a clinical trial protocol for developing iPSCs as a treatment of ischaemic heart disease.
Application of pharmaceutical technology to monitor or treat disease: This topic will focus on the delivery or detection of biologics using advanced pharmaceutical technologies such as microneedles, nanoparticles or nanodrug delivery systems. You will learn about biosensing, biomedical and materials applications of these pharmaceutical technologies in medicine. Also, the utilisation of nanomedicines to turn molecular discoveries arising from genomics and proteomics into widespread benefit for patients will be discussed.
Clinical translation of research: Commercialisation of a discovery is a challenging path. However it is more important than ever for researchers translate their findings into clinical or industrial use therefore making an impact on society and industry all the while advancing the knowledge. You will expand on the knowledge gained during Biotechnology (91142) through the evaluation of the commercialisation journey of a selection of biomarkers or treatments discovered using biotechnology. You will consider the patent positioning, regulatory issues, commercial landscape and market evaluation. The focus here would be to consider a scenario of working collaboratively with big pharma on the development of a test or treatment. What needs to be in place for this to happen?
Digital healthcare technologies: Recent global interest and advancement in digital technology has been particularly beneficial for the healthcare sector. Remote or home monitoring of the patients has the potential to reduce the stress on the patient, the healthcare cost associated with increasing number of patients managed by the healthcare professionals and the well-being of the society in general. The utilisation of digital technology for connected health will be discussed as well as translation of biomarker discoveries into point of care devices. The advantages and disadvantages associated with the use of digital technologies for the management of a disease will be evaluated. The concepts of health informatics, artificial intelligence, data analytics and visualisation as well as health application will be illustrated in the context of digital healthcare technologies.
Assessment
Assessment task 1: News and views on a latest break-through discovery in medical biotechnology
| Intent: | This assessment task contributes to the development of the following graduate attributes: 1, 2, 4, 5 |
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| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s): 5, 7, 8 and 9 This assessment task contributes to the development of course intended learning outcome(s): 2.2, 3.3, 4.3 and 5.1 |
| Type: | Presentation |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 30% |
| Length: | 5 min presentation |
| Criteria: | The students will be assessed on the following criteria: 1) Comprehension of the appropriateness of the design and findings reported in the scientific papers; 2) Data interpretation and significance; 3) Communication skills and the use of appropriate language to report to the general public; 4) Time management skills. |
Assessment task 2: Scientific report
| Intent: | This assessment task contributes to the development of the following graduate attributes: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s): 1, 2, 4, 5 and 9 This assessment task contributes to the development of course intended learning outcome(s): 1.1, 2.3, 3.1, 4.3 and 5.2 |
| Type: | Report |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 30% |
| Length: | 3,000 words |
| Criteria: | Each section in the report will be assessed. The critical appraisal of the background literature and conceptual thinking leading into the development of hypothesis for the study will be evaluated. The methodology description, logical order of presenting the findings with appropriate referencing to already published literature as well as graphical presentation of the results, reporting and interpretation of the results will be assessed. The application of the findings to appropriate medical field and future work will also be assessed. The standard of written English and communication will also be taking into consideration. |
Assessment task 3: Critical literature review with a short grant proposal to address the gaps in the knowledge
| Intent: | This assessment task contributes to the development of the following graduate attributes: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s): 1, 2, 3, 6 and 9 This assessment task contributes to the development of course intended learning outcome(s): 1.1, 2.3, 3.1, 4.3 and 5.3 |
| Type: | Report |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 40% |
| Length: | 5,000 words including references |
| Criteria: | The following criteria will be used for the assessment and grading: 1) The choice and understanding of the relevance and application of the literature included; 2) Systematic and critical evaluation of the methods used and findings reported; 3) Accurate application of technologies to evaluate or lead to discovery; 4) Identifying important knowledge gaps relevant to unmet clinical needs; 5) Synthesising suitable methods to propose a way of addressing this gap in the knowledge; 6) Significance and medical applicability of the proposed discovery project. |
Minimum requirements
In order to pass this subject, you MUST achieve 40 % in your review article and grant proposal report. If 40% is not reached, an X grade
fail may be awarded for the subject, irrespective of an overall mark greater than 50.
You must attend a minimium of 80% of the weekly lectures. 90% of the weekly workshop attendance is required otherwise no mark will be allocated for the Assessment 1. There are several learning enhancement activities embedded within this subject, including online courses, pre-reading material, quizzes, formatively assessed group work in the workshops, and students must participate in all of the subject activities in order to pass the subject, even if the activity does not count towards to the subject assessment.