Learning objectives
Once completed the course and acquired the corresponding CFUs, the student will be able:
- to understand causes and mechanisms of the pathologic processes underlying common human diseases at the cell, tissue and organism levels
- to apply this knowledge to understand biotechnological approaches aimed at diagnosis or therapy of human pathologies
- to analyze and describe a pathological process enlisted in the detailed program, exhibiting a critical approach, exploiting the bibliographic sources provided and paying adequate attenton to biotechnological applications and perspectives
Prerequisites
Adequate bases of Molecular Biology, Biochemistry, and Cell Biology are required.
The acquisition of the CFUs on these subjects is strongly recommended for a fruitful attendance to the Course.
The teacher will perform short diagnostic evaluations before every main session of lectures so as to provide, if needed, recommendation for proper review.
Course unit content
Lectures will concern three main subjects:
- Cell pathology: injury, adaptation, death
- Molecular and genetic pathology
- Neoplasia
Full programme
1) Cell pathology
- Types and mechanisms of cell injury
- Main types of cell stresses and cell response to stress: oxidative, ER stress, ischemic-hypoxic
- Intracellular and extracellular accumulations
- Cell death: accidental, regulated, programmed
- Modalities of cell death;: necrosis, apoptosis, other modalities
- Tissue adaptations: atrophy, hypertrophy, hyperplasia, metaplasia, dysplasia
- Aging: from cells to organisms
2) Molecular and genetic disease
- Mutations and their phenotypic effects
- Repair of DNA damage
- Mendelian disorders with pertinent examples: autosomic dominant (familial hypercholesterolemia, Marfan syndrome, neurofibromatosis); autosomic recessive (aminoacidopathies and hyperphenylalaninemias; cystic fibrosis); X-linked (hemophilia, muscle dystrophies)
- Non-mendelian disorders (mitochondrial diseases, genomic imprinting, triplet expansion, multifactorial diseases)
- Chromosomal aberrations
3) Neoplasia:
- Nomenclature and classification
- Benign and malignant tumors
- Molecular oncology: the molecular control of the cell cycle and death, protooncogenes and oncosuppressors, the genetic control of DNA repair and apoptosis
- Causes of tumours: chemical, physical, biological
- The neoplastic phenotype: invasion, metastasis, progression, angiogenesis, metabolic alterations
Bibliography
- Kumar, Abbas, Fausto, Aster- Robbins e Cotran – Le basi patologiche
delle malattie, 8 ed. Elsevier-Masson
- Parola Patologia Generale - Edises
- Albi, Ambiesi-Inpombiato,Curcio, Moncharmont, Palese – Le basi cellulari e molecolari delle malattie – Ildeson Gnocchi
Specific bibliographic references will be provided during the lessons
Teaching methods
Oral interactive lessons, supported by slides that will be made available to the students on Elly platform at the beginning of the course (with possible up-dates at the end of the lectures).
Lessons will present the main conceptual frame of each subject, summoning questions or doubts from the audience and indicating bibliographic references for the study of the subject.
Slides are to be considered an essential, yet NOT exhaustive, didactic resource.
Students who cannot attend the lectures are warmly invited to check regularly the Elly Platform for didactic material and communications.
Assessment methods and criteria
No interim summative evaluation is scheduled.
However, interim diagnostic or formative evaluations will be possible.
The final evaluation will consist in an oral examination.
Q u e s t i o n s / s t u d e n t : 2 (from two d i f f e r e n t e x a m i n e r s , o n e
q u e s t i o n / e x a m i n e r; one question will be on a subject chosen by the student).
Questions will consist in the headings listed in the detailed program.
Minimal requirements:
Complete failure to answer one question, or the verified uncapability to define
correctly the subject of the question, will prevent the successful completion of the exam.
After each question, the examiner will give an evalaution expressed in marks (30/30):
A. Very good knowledge and understanding. Very good capability of
applying knowledge to bio-medical problems. Corresponding to 30/30.
B. Good knowledge and understanding. Good capability to apply
knowledge to biomedical problems. Corresponding to 27-29/30.
C. Average knowledge and understanding. Average capability of
applying knowledge to bio-medical problems. Corresponding to 24-26/30.
D. Sufficient knowledge and understanding. Sufficient capability of
applying information to bio-medical problems. Corresponding to 21-
2 3 / 3 0 .
E. Barely sufficient knowledge and understanding (with evident pitfalls).
Scarce capability of applying knowledge to bio-medical problems.
Corresponding to 18-20/30.
Full marks with laude will be reserved to students exhibiting, together an
overal evaluation of 30/30, capability of making judgments and good
communication ability and autonomous learning skills.
The final vote will be decided jointly by the examiners, who will have the
possibility to decide a vote not higher or lower than three grades from
the mean of the two individual
votes.
Other information
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