Part 1: Microbial Worlds
1. Earth, Planet of the Microbes
2. Microbes and the History of Life on Earth
3. Cultivation and Identification of Microorganisms
4. Structural Features of Prokaryotes
5. Bacterial Genetics I: DNA Synthesis and Sequencing
6. Bacterial Genetics II: Transcription, Translation, and Regulation
7. Bacterial Genetics III: Horizontal Gene Transfer
8. Bacterial Energetics
9. Introduction to Eukaryotic Microbes
10. Introduction to Viruses

Part 2: The Delicate Balance between Microbes and Humans
11. Normal Microbiota of the Human Body
12. Nonspecific Defenses of the Host
13. Specific Defenses (Immune System) of the Host
14. Vaccines

Part 3: Microbes and Humans Out of Balance: Major Infectious Diseases
15. Introduction to Infectious Diseases
16. Respiratory Tract Infections
17. GI Tract Infections
18. Urogenital Tract Infections
19. Arthropod-transmitted Infections and Zoonoses
20. Nosocomial and Iatrogenic Infections

Part 4: Microbes in the Environment
21. Analyzing Microbial Communities in the Environment
22. Phototrophs
23. Life in a Gradient (Microbial Mats)
24. Invertebrate Endosymbionts
25. Plant-microbe Interactions
26. Biotechnology