1. describe common and group-specific virulence factors of pathogens

2. communicate major  key-players (secretion systems and other virulence factors, biofilm formation, quorum sensing and antigenic variation) and the links between them

3. describe disease development process, non-specific and specific host responses

4. integrate knowledge of molecular biology and genetics, microbiology, cell biology and biochemistry to understand processes and mechanisms leading to microbial infections

5. describe and evaluate basic features, methodology and potential use of human microbiome research to understand and cure human diseases other than microbial infections

6. distinguish between the nature of bacterial and viral infections as well as those caused by obligately intacellular pathogenic bacteria

7. evaluate and interpret current literature on pathogens and infections

8. understand the most common mechanisms and communicate effectively by orally presenting and documenting specific examples to most important infections of respiratory, gastrointestinal, urogenital systems

9. apply critical thinking and creativity in the field of molecular pathogenesis of bacteria and viruses

10. integrate the significance of microbial pathogenesis research to the discovery of novel drugs and vaccines