Welcome to the World of Molecular Parasitology

The Advance Parasitology cours

This course allows you to perform real experiments in an S2 laboratory, using Toxoplasma gondii or Trypanosoma brucei as model organisms.

How Does It Work?

The course is divided into two parts:

• Morning lectures covering general parasitology, molecular biology techniques, omics, and imaging. Don’t worry—you’re not expected to memorize everything! These lectures provide a broad overview of molecular parasitology, research techniques, image processing, data analysis, and scientific presentation skills.
• Afternoon experiments, where you will work directly with parasites and perform cell culture.

For example, students working on Toxoplasma will replicate a phenotypic screen using a Cas9 library to identify genes involved in actin regulation—from Cas9 design to parasite transfection, candidate gene identification, and functional characterization. This involves a wide range of techniques:

• Molecular Biology: Bacterial transformation, plasmid purification, PCR, electrophoresis
• Cell Culture: Parasite culture, transfection, characterization assays
• Microscopy: Immunofluorescence assays (IFA) and advanced microscopy

At every step, detailed explanations will help you understand not just how to perform the experiments but why they matter. These sessions are designed to be accessible to students from all backgrounds, and you will always have supervision and guidance from our team.

If you’re feeling unsure about lab work, don’t worry—you are not graded based on experimental results. Science is unpredictable, and this course is designed for discovery and enjoyment, not just success in outcomes.

How Is the Course Evaluated?

Grades are based on three components:

1. Group Presentation – Students are divided into two groups (Toxoplasma and Trypanosoma). Each group presents their model organism, research objectives, results, and a literature comparison in a 25-minute presentation (~5 minutes per student).
2. Personal Report – You will have up to one month to submit a 5–10 page personal report. The group presentation will help structure your report, including results, graphics, and images.
3. General Participation & Conduct – Attendance and punctuality are required for both lectures and experiments. Missing more than three days without a valid reason will result in course failure. If you have exams or medical appointments, inform us in advance so arrangements can be made without affecting your grade.

Why Take This Course?

• Do you want to experience working in a research lab?
• Are you curious if research is the right path for you?
• Do you prefer hands-on learning rather than just lectures?
• Are you interested in parasitology or molecular biology?

If you answered yes to any of these, this course is for you! Successful completion grants 6 ECTS or 4 WPF, depending on your faculty.

Who Can Participate?

You must be an LMU student:

• Biology – Open to Master's students
• Veterinary Medicine/Medicine – Open to students in the State Exam program (5th semester or higher)

Interested?

📅 Next course dates: February 09 – Febuary 27, 2026

📩 To register, contact Prof. Markus Meissner at:
📧 markus.meissner@lmu.de

For more information, feel free to reach out before registering:
📧 simon.gras@lmu.de & elena.jimenez@lmu.de

🔹 Please include your faculty and student number when contacting us.