Unit Outline

CSA744

Application of Cell Culture in Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Research

Semester 1, 2025

Nuri Guven

School of Pharmacy and Pharmacology

College of Health and Medicine

CRICOS Provider Code: 00586B

What is the Unit About?

Unit Description

This unit will provide advanced training to obtain theoretical, analytical and laboratory skills around the use of mammalian cells, different assays, assay design, analysis, interpretation of results and immunohistochemistry of tissues in the field of pharmaceutical and biomedical science that are essential to successfully complete the required research project you will be conducting in Year 2 of the Master of Pharmaceutical Science program. The purpose of this unit is to enable the you to competently perform and critically assess advanced laboratory methods that are routinely used in Drug Discovery and Development.

Intended Learning Outcomes

As per the Assessment and Results Policy 1.3, your results will reflect your achievement against specified learning outcomes.

On completion of this unit, you will be able to:


1	Analyse diagnostic and investigative applications using mammalian cell culture
2	Develop and analyse different types of assays (cell free, cell based, enzymatic)
3	Design and evaluate methods for histological tissue analysis
4	Analyse and interpret experimental findings.

Requisites


REQUISITE TYPE	REQUISITES
Pre-requisite	CSA741 AND CSA742
Co-requisite	CSA743

Alterations as a result of student feedback

No alterations have been required as a result of student feedback.
As always, the teaching team will greatly appreciate your feedback both informally during the delivery of the unit in 2025, and formally through the University of Tasmania’s Unit Survey following your completion of the unit.

Teaching arrangements


ATTENDANCE MODE	TEACHING TYPE	LEARNING ACTIVITY	CONTACT HOURS	FREQUENCY
On Campus	Lecture (On Campus)	2 hours on campus lecture 2 times per study period	2	Study Period 2 times
	Tutorial	No Description	2	Weekly
	Independent Learning	Self directed learning	10	Weekly
	Tutorial	No Description	4	Once only

Attendance / engagement expectations

If your unit is offered On campus, it is expected that you will attend all on-campus and onsite learning activities. This is to support your own learning and the development of a learning community within the unit. If you are unable to attend regularly, please discuss the situation with your course coordinator and/or our UConnect support team.

If your unit is offered Online or includes online activities, it is expected you will engage in all those activities as indicated in the Unit Outline or MyLO, including any self-directed learning.

If you miss a learning activity for a legitimate reason (e.g., illness, carer responsibilities) teaching staff will attempt to provide alternative activities (e.g., make up readings) where it is possible.

Attending tutorial/workshop/laboratory sessions in this unit are compulsory. Contribution to class discussion is expected and will form an important component of these sessions. If you miss a learning activity for a legitimate reason (e.g., illness, family commitments) teaching staff will attempt to provides alternative activities (e.g., make up readings) where it is possible. If you are unable to attend regularly, please discuss the situation with your course coordinator and/or our UConnect support team.

Please note: To pass this unit it is a prerequisite that you complete the weekly module quizzes with 100% correct answers BEFORE the subsequent session. This is a required hurdle task to pass this unit. If an online module quiz has not been achieved with 100% by a student, the unit coordinator can exclude the student from the subsequent session that covers the practical side related to this module and quiz.

The Head of School may exclude a student from assessment in a unit, including an examination to be conducted during an examination period, if they have not met the conditions specified in this unit outline.

In unit, CSA744, your active engagement will be monitored in the following way:

 - Your attendance will be monitored for all sessions (please see unit schedule for week/day/time information).

 - Your engagement with the module quizzes offered on MyLo will be monitored as their successful and timely completions are counted as a required hurdle task to pass this unit.

 - Whether or not you have completed the first multiple-choice online quiz of assessment task 1, which is scheduled after week four (see unit schedule for more details).

If you do not demonstrate evidence of active engagement with this unit by completing at least the relevant 3 activities of the semester, your enrolment may be cancelled, or you may be withdrawn from the unit.

How will I be Assessed?

For more detailed assessment information please see MyLO.

Assessment schedule


ASSESSMENT TASK #	ASSESSMENT TASK NAME	DATE DUE	WEIGHT	LINKS TO INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Assessment Task 1:	Module-associated online quizzes	See the MyLO site for the due date	0 %	LO1, LO2, LO3
Assessment Task 2:	Submission of excel files	See the MyLO site for the due date	0 %	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4
Assessment Task 3:	Multiple choice question online quizzes	Week 5	20 %	LO1, LO2, LO3
Assessment Task 4:	Online Short Answer Quiz	Week 9	25 %	LO1, LO2, LO4
Assessment Task 5:	Online Short Answer quiz	Week 13	25 %	LO3, LO4
Assessment Task 6:	Practical Exam	Exam Period	30 %	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4

Assessment details

Assessment Task 1: Module-associated online quizzes

Task Description:

You will be required to undertake 9 online quizzes throughout the semester. These quizzes are considered as one hurdle task. You must correctly answer 100% of the questions. You can take as many attempts as possible to achieve the required number of correct answers. Each quiz will remain open for 1 week before the practical session. If you do not complete the required self-directed non-invigilated quiz before the practical session, you will not be permitted to take the associated laboratory session for safety reasons.

Due by date - before the associated face to face session (see MyLO for due dates)
Must Pass (HURDLE TASK)

Task Length:

n/a (no time limit and no limit to the number of attempts)

Due Date:

See the MyLO site for the due date

Weight:

0 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Demonstrate knowledge of the content covered in the online modules. These include the safe use of cell culture techniques and mechanistic understanding of different assays used to assess cellular viability, toxicity and/or cell death.	LO1, LO2, LO3

Assessment Task 2: Submission of excel files

Task Description:

You will be required to submit your excel sheets and associated worksheets after 6 practical assessments. Formative individualised feedback will be provided

Must Pass (HURDLE TASK)

Task Length:

n/a (no time limit and no limit to the number of attempts)

Due Date:

See the MyLO site for the due date

Weight:

0 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Appropriately design analytical experiment using cell based, enzymatic and immunohistochemical staining approaches.	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4
2	Analyse, present and critically interpret experimental results that also includes to identify possible and/or observed problems and to offer potential solutions.	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4

Assessment Task 3: Multiple choice question online quizzes

Task Description:

You will be required to complete 4 supervised online quizzes. Each quiz will have up to 10 multiple-choice questions. This activity will be conducted in class under test conditions.

Due Dates:
Quiz 1 - Week 5b
Quiz 2 - Week 9
Quiz 3 - Week 12
Quiz 4 - Week 13

Task Length:

20 - 30 minutes

Due Date:

Week 5

Weight:

20 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Evaluate various applications of mammalian cells in culture.	LO1, LO2, LO3
2	Evaluate mechanisms of different assays used to assess cellular viability, toxicity and/or cell death.	LO1, LO2, LO3
3	Apply principles of enzymatic assays and enzymatic inhibition.	LO1, LO2, LO3
4	Apply principles of immunohistochemical staining techniques to analyse presented data (including identification of artefacts).	LO1, LO2, LO3

Assessment Task 4: Online Short Answer Quiz

Task Description:

You will be required to complete 1 short answer written online quiz. This activity will be conducted in class under test conditions.
Questions in the Online Short Answer Quiz will be based on the laboratory sessions conducted in weeks 1(29) to 8(37).

Task Length:

60 minutes

Due Date:

Week 9

Weight:

25 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Demonstrate detailed mechanistic and operational knowledge of different assays used to assess cellular viablity, toxicity and/or cell death.	LO1, LO2, LO4
2	Evaluate various principles and applications of enzymatic assays and enzymatic inhibition.	LO1, LO2, LO4
3	Interpret experimental results from different cell- and enzyme-based assays	LO1, LO2, LO4

Assessment Task 5: Online Short Answer quiz

Task Description:

You will be required to complete 1 short answer written online quiz. The quiz will have between 10 and 15 questions. This activity will be conducted in class under test conditions.
Questions in the Online Short Answer Quiz will be based on the laboratory sessions conducted in weeks 9(38) to 12(41).

Task Length:

60 minutes

Due Date:

Week 13

Weight:

25 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Demonstrate knowledge of immunohistochemical staining techniques and their analysis (incl. the identification of artefacts).	LO3, LO4
2	Design, execute and trouble-shoot immunostaining experiments.	LO3, LO4
3	Interpret results from immunostaining experiments.	LO3, LO4

Assessment Task 6: Practical Exam

Task Description:

You will be required to pass a practical online assessment of research-skills learned during the unit. This activity will be conducted in class under test conditions.
Questions in this Practical Assessment will be based on all sessions conducted during weeks 1(29) to week 13(42).

Task Length:

2 hours

Due Date:

Exam Period

Weight:

30 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Appropriately design an analytical experiment using cell based, enzymatic and immunohistochemical staining approaches.	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4
2	Analyse, present and critically interpret experimental results that also includes to identify possible and/or observed problems and to offer potential solutions.	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4

How your final result is determined

To pass this unit, you need to demonstrate your attainment of each of the Intended Learning Outcomes, achieve a final unit grade of 50% or greater, and pass any hurdle tasks.

Academic progress review

The results for this unit may be included in a review of your academic progress. For information about progress reviews and what they mean for all students, see Academic Progress Review in the Student Portal.

Submission of assignments

Where practicable, assignments should be submitted to an assignment submission folder in MYLO. You must submit assignments by the due date or receive a penalty (unless an extension of time has been approved by the Unit Coordinator). Students submitting any assignment in hard copy, or because of a practicum finalisation, must attach a student cover sheet and signed declaration for the submission to be accepted for marking.

Academic integrity

Academic integrity is about acting responsibly, honestly, ethically, and collegially when using, producing, and communicating information with other students and staff members.

In written work, you must correctly reference the work of others to maintain academic integrity. To find out the referencing style for this unit, see the assessment information in the MyLO site, or contact your teaching staff. For more detail about Academic Integrity, see Important Guidelines & Support.

Requests for extensions

If you are unable to submit an assessment task by the due date, you should apply for an extension.

A request for an extension should first be discussed with your Unit Coordinator or teaching support team where possible. A request for an extension must be submitted by the assessment due date, except where you can provide evidence it was not possible to do so. Typically, an application for an extension will be supported by documentary evidence: however, where it is not possible for you to provide evidence please contact your Unit Coordinator.

The Unit Coordinator must notify you of the outcome of an extension request within 3 working days of receiving the request.

Late penalties

Assignments submitted after the deadline will receive a late penalty of 5% of the original available mark for each calendar day (or part day) that the assignment is late. Late submissions will not be accepted more than 10 calendar days after the due date, or after assignments have been returned to other students on a scheduled date, whichever occurs first. Further information on Late Penalties can be found on the Assessments and Results Procedure.

Review of results and appeals

You are entitled to ask for a review of the marking and grading of your assessment task if there is an irregularity in the marking standards or an error in the process for determining the outcome of an assessment. Details on how to request a review of a mark for an assignment are outlined in the Review and Appeal of Academic Decisions Procedure.

Required Resources

Required reading materials

No specific textbooks or reading lists are required for this unit as self-directed searches for information are required and strongly encouraged in this unit. Links to specific information relevant to the tutorials or theoretical background will be distributed via the tutorial material and MyLO.