Immunotherapy (BIOT7062)

Course overview

This course provides a current overview of cutting-edge innovations/technologies in immunotherapy. We will cover, in detail, the background and approaches to immune-based therapy of cancers, infection and autoimmune disease. The course will include workshops and lectures associated with site visits to the Translational Research Institute (TRI) / manufacturing facility to experience state of the art technologies used in immunotherapy.

This course is intended to be a comprehensive introduction to immunotherapy. Some of the main concepts covered include:

• Key cells of the immune system and their function
• Use of monoclonal antibodies and immune modulators to provide therapy against cancers/autoimmunity/infectious disease
• The role of immune checkpoint molecules in cancer and understanding of therapies that target these molecules
• The diversity and mechanisms of immune cell-based therapies against cancer
• The mechanisms, challenges and targets of cancer vaccines
• An evaluation of immunotherapy combined with other therapies such as chemotherapy, radiation therapy in the treatment of cancer
• The use of immunotherapy to treat infectious disease, inflammatory diseases and autoimmunity
• Use of genomics/proteomics in guiding and monitoring immunotherapy
• Delivery technologies for immunotherapies

Course requirements

Prerequisites

You'll need to complete the following courses before enrolling in this one:

Science degree or equivalent

Recommended prerequisites

We recommend completing the following courses before enrolling in this one:

MICR7002 or MICR6000 or BIOT7018

Course contact

Course staff

Timetable

The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.

Additional timetable information

Check your online timetable regularly.

Aims and outcomes

This course aims to provide an extensive understanding of the principles, mechanisms, techniques and clinical applications associated with immunotherapeutic approaches for the treatment of human disease.

Learning outcomes

After successfully completing this course you should be able to:

Assessment

Assessment summary

A hurdle is an assessment requirement that must be satisfied in order to receive a specific grade for the course. Check the assessment details for more information about hurdle requirements.

Assessment details

Grant Proposal

• Hurdle
• Online

Mode

Written

Category

Paper/ Report/ Annotation, Essay/ Critique

Weight

30%

Due date

29/08/2025 2:00 pm

Other conditions

Work integrated learning.

See the conditions definitions

Learning outcomes

L01, L02

Task description

Hurdle requirements

Submission guidelines

Submit your Grant Proposal through the course Turnitin submission point in Blackboard. Before submitting your assessment item to Turnitin please name your file in the following way. FAMILY NAME_GivenName_StudentID_CourseCode_AssignmentName For example: Bob Smith (ID: 54329876) would name his ABCD1234 Grant proposal in the following way. SMITH_Bob_54329876_ABCD1234_Grant Proposal

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

Applications for extension

Extension applications must be received no later than 24 hours after the published assessment due date and time.

Read the information contained in the following links carefully before submitting an application for extension to assessment due date.

For guidance on applying for an extension, information is available here.

For the policy relating to extensions, information is available here (Part D).

Information on medical certificates

Please note the University's requirements for medical certificates here.

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

You are required to submit assessable items on time. If you fail to meet the submission deadline for any assessment item, then 10% of the maximum possible mark for the assessment item (assessment ‘marked from’ value) will be deducted as a late penalty for every day (or part day) late after the due date. For example, if you submit your assignment 1 hour late, you will be penalised 10%; if your assignment is 24.5 hours late, you will be penalised 20% (because it is late by one 24-hour period plus part of another 24-hour period). 10% will be deducted per day for up to 7 calendar days, at which point your submission will receive a mark of zero (0) unless an extension has been approved.

In most instances one or more hurdles will apply to your assessment item so you will need to submit it to fulfil the requirements of the course regardless of how late it is and the mark you are likely to be awarded.

In-semester exam

• Hurdle
• Identity Verified
• In-person

Mode

Written

Category

Examination

Weight

30%

Due date

17/09/2025 6:00 pm

Learning outcomes

L01, L03

Task description

Hurdle requirements

Exam details

Submission guidelines

Deferral or extension

You may be able to defer this exam.

TRI reflection - flow cytometry/microscopy

• Hurdle

Mode

Written

Category

Essay/ Critique, Reflection

Weight

15%

Due date

10/10/2025 2:00 pm

Other conditions

Work integrated learning.

See the conditions definitions

Learning outcomes

L01, L03

Task description

Hurdle requirements

Submission guidelines

Submit your [Assessment Name] through the course Turnitin submission point in Blackboard. Before submitting your assessment item to Turnitin please name your file in the following way. FAMILY NAME_GivenName_StudentID_CourseCode_AssignmentName For example: Bob Smith (ID: 54329876) would name his ABCD1234 TRI reflection in the following way. SMITH_Bob_54329876_ABCD1234_TRI reflection

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

Applications for extension

Extension applications must be received no later than 24 hours after the published assessment due date and time.

Read the information contained in the following links carefully before submitting an application for extension to assessment due date.

For guidance on applying for an extension, information is available here.

For the policy relating to extensions, information is available here (Part D).

Information on medical certificates

Please note the University's requirements for medical certificates here.

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

You are required to submit assessable items on time. If you fail to meet the submission deadline for any assessment item, then 10% of the maximum possible mark for the assessment item (assessment ‘marked from’ value) will be deducted as a late penalty for every day (or part day) late after the due date. For example, if you submit your assignment 1 hour late, you will be penalised 10%; if your assignment is 24.5 hours late, you will be penalised 20% (because it is late by one 24-hour period plus part of another 24-hour period). 10% will be deducted per day for up to 7 calendar days, at which point your submission will receive a mark of zero (0) unless an extension has been approved.

In most instances one or more hurdles will apply to your assessment item so you will need to submit it to fulfil the requirements of the course regardless of how late it is and the mark you are likely to be awarded.

Oral Presentation

• Hurdle
• In-person

Mode

Oral

Category

Creative Production/ Exhibition

Weight

25%

Due date

23/10/2025 12:00 pm

Other conditions

Work integrated learning.

See the conditions definitions

Learning outcomes

L01, L04

Task description

Hurdle requirements

Submission guidelines

In-person delivery to tutors during scheduled contact class

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

Applications for extension

Extension applications must be received no later than 24 hours after the published assessment due date and time.

Read the information contained in the following links carefully before submitting an application for extension to assessment due date.

For guidance on applying for an extension, information is available here.

For the policy relating to extensions, information is available here (Part D).

Information on medical certificates

Please note the University's requirements for medical certificates here.

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

You are required to submit assessable items on time. If you fail to meet the submission deadline for any assessment item, then 10% of the maximum possible mark for the assessment item (assessment ‘marked from’ value) will be deducted as a late penalty for every day (or part day) late after the due date. For example, if you submit your assignment 1 hour late, you will be penalised 10%; if your assignment is 24.5 hours late, you will be penalised 20% (because it is late by one 24-hour period plus part of another 24-hour period). 10% will be deducted per day for up to 7 calendar days, at which point your submission will receive a mark of zero (0) unless an extension has been approved.

In most instances one or more hurdles will apply to your assessment item so you will need to submit it to fulfil the requirements of the course regardless of how late it is and the mark you are likely to be awarded.

Course grading

Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.

Additional course grading information

Assessment hurdles

1. If you achieve less than 40% for the in-semester exam, the maximum grade you will receive is a 4.

In order to pass this course, you must meet ALL of the following requirements (if you do not meet these requirements, the maximum grade you will receive will be a 3):

2. You must complete and submit an examinable attempt* on 100% of the assessable items in the course.

* An examinable attempt is a submission that demonstrates genuine engagement with the task as evidenced by addressing the task, shows effort, meets basic requirements, is of a coherent structure and demonstrates academic integrity.

Supplementary assessment

Supplementary assessment is available for this course.

Supplementary assessment is available for this course.

Should you fail a course with a grade of 3, you may be eligible for supplementary assessment. Refer to my.UQ for information on supplementary assessment and how to apply. 

Supplementary assessment provides an additional opportunity to demonstrate you have achieved all the required learning outcomes for a course.  

If you apply and are granted supplementary assessment, the type of supplementary assessment set will consider which learning outcome(s) have not been met.  

Supplementary assessment can take any form (such as a written report, oral presentation, examination or other appropriate assessment) and may test specific learning outcomes tailored to the individual student, or all learning outcomes. 

To receive a passing grade of 3S4, you must obtain a mark of 50% or more on the supplementary assessment

Additional assessment information

Assessment Submission

It is the responsibility of the student to ensure the on time, correct and complete submission of all assessment items.

Students are responsible for retaining evidence of submission by the due date for all assessment items, in the required form (for example, screenshot, email, photo, and an unaltered copy of submitted work).

In the case of a Blackboard outage, contact the Course Coordinator as soon as possible to confirm the outage with ITS.

Assessment/Attendance

Notify your Course Coordinator as soon as you become aware of any issue that may affect your ability to meet the assessment/attendance requirements of the course. The my.UQ website and the Course Profile (CP) for your course provide information about your course requirements, the rules associated with your courses and services offered by the University.

A note for repeating students in this course

Only learning activities and/or assessment items completed during the study period of enrolment, including any approved extensions, may contribute to your grade in this course. The whole or partial use of assessment items previously submitted for the same course, for a course at any institution, or for published material, is not permitted without written permission of the Course Coordinator.

Important Note

Turnitin is to be used for assignments/laboratory reports to check for plagiarism. Penalties can be severe for plagiarism.

The University has adopted the following definition of plagiarism: Plagiarism is the act of misrepresenting as one's own original work the ideas, interpretations, words or creative works of another either intentionally or unintentionally. These include published and unpublished documents, designs, music, sounds, images, photographs, computer codes and ideas gained through working in a group. These ideas, interpretations, words or works may be found in print and/or electronic media.

Students should read the UQ Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy.

Learning resources

You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.

Library resources

Library resources are available on the UQ Library website.

Other course materials

Learning activities

The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.

Policies and procedures

University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:

• Student Code of Conduct Policy
• Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
• Assessment Procedure
• Examinations Procedure
• Reasonable Adjustments for Students Policy and Procedure

Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.