The Microbes Are Coming This Fall!
Don’t worry—it’s not another pandemic, but an exciting new general microbiology course for undergraduates launching in Fall 2025, taught by MCB Assistant Professor Carolyn Elya. The Microbes, aka MCB 121, will offer students an exciting opportunity to explore the microbial world through lecture and lab-based instruction.
With a focus on the genetics, cell biology, and physiology of microbes, the course will emphasize the mechanisms of host-microbe interactions. Students will be introduced to the remarkable diversity of microbial life on Earth and gain a strong foundation in the methods and concepts used to study them.
“I am really excited to provide students with an introductory microbiology experience, both in the lab, and to know more about the deeper aspects of microbiology,” Elya explains, whose research on parasitic fungi and behavioral manipulation in insects has garnered national attention. “Microbe is not a synonym for bacteria,” she adds. “I want students to learn that microbes are so much more diverse than just bacteria and are everywhere, do all kinds of interesting and fascinating things, and impact our lives in countless ways.”
Elya recognized that many students who study at Harvard go on to degrees or positions in the medical field. “Microbiology is a pretty critical course to have in preparation for those future careers, and microbiology lab is actually required for veterinary school,” she adds. “So I’m hoping that it fills a pedagogical gap, and also is an opportunity for students to learn about all the cool, tiny things.”
This course is designed to provide students not just with knowledge, but with hands-on tools for thinking about and working with microbes—especially in the context of their relationships with host organisms. Open to 24 students by instructor consent, the course includes required laboratory sections on Fridays, with two time slots available (9:00–11:45 a.m. or 12:00–2:45 p.m.). The class (Course ID: 127813, Class Number: 16815) requires prior coursework in life sciences: LPS A, LS 1A, or LS 50A and LS 1B or LS 50B.
For students eager to gain hands-on experience and deepen their understanding of the microbial world, this course promises to be a rigorous and engaging journey.
Carolyn Elya
