At the end of the course, students are expected to have:

- an understanding of the major terms and concepts in plant-pathogen interactions 
and an appreciation of the important unanswered questions in this field

- factual knowledge of the most important pathogen traits that contribute to 
disease and plant traits that contribute to resistance

- a better understanding of genetic and molecular methods and experimental 
approaches used to investigate plant-pathogen interactions

- learned strategies for planing and writing a research grant proposal

Course introduction, key concepts and terms

Bacterial pathogenesis 
	- Current research with Ralstonia solanacearum 
	- Agrobacterium tumefaciens: molecular pathogenesis and plant transformation
	- Two-way communication in Rhizobium-plant interactions
	- Plant cell wall degrading enzymes in disease
	- Hrp gene clusters and type III protein secretion 
Fungal pathogenesis
	- Current research with Ustilago maydis, the corn smut pathogen 
	- Effector molecules secreted by pathogens and the gene-for-gene hypothesis
	- Activities of pathogenic fungi outside the host (prepenetration and 
           penetration)
	- Phytotoxins – structure, mode of action, and roles in pathogenesis
Introduction to viral pathogenesis; Current research in plant pathogenic viruses 
Introduction to plant pathogenic nematodes; Current research on nematode secretions 
Plant resistance
	- Phytoanticipins – preexisting defense mechanisms
	- Resistance genes: structure and function
	- The hypersensitive response and programed plant cell death
	- Systemic Acquired Resistance, Induced Systemic Resistance
	- Induced antimicrobial compounds (phytoalexin) and structural defenses
Converting knowledge of pathogenesis into methods of disease control
Social and ethical issues of using transgenic plants for disease control – 
class discussion

All academic work must meet the standards contained in "A Culture of Honesty." 
Each student is responsible to inform themselves about those standards before
performing any academic work. For this course, students must be most careful 
when preparing the research grant proposal. Beyond not plagiarizing, students 
should not consult other students or research professionals (other than the 
instructor) after the point when they have formulated the initial research 
question to be addressed and the general experimental approach.