Teaching code

4S01837

Credits

8

Coordinator

Elisabetta Trabetti

Language

Italian

Also offered in courses:

• Chemical-Physical Sciences - FISICA APPLICATA of the course Bachelor's degree in Environmental and Workplace Accident Prevention Techniques (interuniversity)

Moodle Seminars 0

The teaching is organized as follows:

Learning outcomes

The whole Course aims to provide basic knowledge of biochemistry, cell biology and human genetics, physics and medical statistics, preparatory for further advanced topics. Teaching is intended to provide:
- basic knowledge of general and organic chemistry preparatory for biochemistry
- structure-function relationship of the most important biological macromolecules and of the metabolic regulation at the molecular level
- cross-talk between the different biochemical pathways and the energy level changes associated
- structural, functional and molecular characteristics of living organisms, in an evolutionary view
- knowledge of the fundamental concepts of genetics and transmission of hereditary characters in humans
- the foundations of the experimental method, which is the basis of modern science and technology disciplines
- basic knowledge (physical quantities and physical laws) of mechanical phenomena, with examples and bioscience applications (biomechanics)
- knowledge on how to collect and synthesize data from clinical or epidemiological research
- interpretation of the main statistical results and a graphical representation of the synthesis of the results in the biomedical field
At the end of the Course, students should demonstrate to have acquired the knowledge necessary for a critical analysis of the biochemical processes of life in order to be autonomous in the evaluation of the mentioned processes. Students should also demonstrate to have acquired the knowledge of basic mechanisms which regulate intra/intercellular activities, cellular interactions and reproduction, and cause mutations. They should also demonstrate to be familiar with Mendelian genetics and particularly with pathologic traits in humans. Students should also demonstrate to have acquired basic knowledge of the experimental method, mechanical phenomena applied to biosciences, clinical and epidemiological data collection and synthesis, and their capability to interpret main statistical results in the biomedical field.
Moreover, students should demonstrate their capability to expose reasoning in a critical and precise manner using appropriate scientific terms.

Program

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MM: BIOCHIMICA
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PREPARATORY CHEMISTRY (several notions are included in the basic knowledge required). 1. Atomic structure and periodic properties of the elements: matter composition, atom, atomic particles; atomic theory; quantum numbers, and orbitals; electronic configuration, periodic table and chemical reactivity of the elements; electronic affinity, electronegativity. 2. The chemical bond: molecules and ions; ionic and covalent bond; intermolecular forces; hydrogen bond. 3. Solutions and acid-base reactions: concentration of the solutions, acid-base theories of Arrhenius and Brőnsted-Lowry; hydracids, hydroxides, oxyacids; acid-base reactions; pH and buffer solutions. 4. Organic chemistry notions: carbon atom properties; hybrid orbitals; organic compounds classification: functional groups; hydrocarbons; alcohols, ethers, thiols, amines, aldehydes and ketones; carboxylic acids, esters, anhydrides. BIOCHEMISTRY 1. Constitutive elements of the living matter: polymeric structure of the biological macromolecules. 2. Protein structure and function: aminoacid classification, buffering power, peptide bond, levels of protein structure; fibrous and globular proteins; hemoglobin and myoglobin: structure, function, factors influencing the oxygen bond; hemoglobin variants; enzymes: classification, role in the chemical reactions, regulation of the enzymatic activity. 3. Vitamins: hydro- and lypo-soluble vitamins; co-enzymes. 4. Bio-energetics: metabolism; chemical transformations in the cell; spontaneous and non-spontaneous reactions of the metabolic reactions; ATP as “energy exchange coin”; biologically relevant redox reactions. 5. Carbohydrates structure and metabolism: mono- and disaccharides; polysaccharides; glycoconjugates; glycolysis and its regulation; gluconeogenesis; hints of the penthose phosphate pathway; synthesis of the glycogen. 6. Citric acid cycle and oxidative phosphorylation: mitochondria; acetyl-CoA synthesis; citric acid cycle control; respiratory chain and electron transport; ATP synthesis. 7. Lipids structure and metabolism: structural lipids and biological membranes; cholesterol; stock-reserve lipids; lipids digestion and fatty acid β-oxydation; keton bodies formation; hints of fatty acids biosynthesis. 8. Aminoacid metabolism: hints of gluco- and keto-forming aminoacids; transamination and oxidative deamination; the urea cycle. Frontal teaching is the exclusive method adopted in this Course.
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MM: FISICA APPLICATA
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Physical quantities and their measurement. Definition of a physical quantity. Unit consistency and conversions. Standards and units. Uncertainty and significant figures. The foundation of classical mechanics. Forces and motion. Newton’s laws of motion and their application. Motion description: displacement, velocity and acceleration. Work and kinetic energy. Potential energy and energy conservation. Momentum. Torque and angular momentum. Biomechanics. Lever systems in the human body. Equilibrium in the human body. Elements of mechanics of movement.
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MM: STATISTICA MEDICA
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• Use of statistics in health data • Collection and presentation of data • Measurement procedure and Variable types • Precision and accuracy of a measurement procedure • Tables 1 and 2 entries • Absolute and relative frequencies • Cumulative frequencies • Graphical representation of the data • Position and dispersion measures • Mode • Quantiles and median • Simple and weighted mean • Range and standard deviation • Coefficient of variation • Introduction to probability • Definition of probability • Rule of addition and multiplication • Independent and conditional probability • Introduction to statistical inference • The concept of statistical inference • Inference techniques • Binomial and Gauss distribution • confidence intervals • Hypothesis testing • Diagnostic and screening test • Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value of screening
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MM: BIOLOGIA APPLICATA
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• Characteristics of the living beings
• Chemistry of living organisms and biological molecules
• prokaryotic and eukaryotic cell: organization of the cell; internal membranes and compartmentalization; organelles, characteristics and functions: nucleus, ribosomes, RER, REL, Golgi, lysosomes, peroxisomes, cytoskeleton, cell wall, extracellular matrix. Animal and plant cells. Mitochondria and plastids (chloroplasts, amyloplasts, chromoplasts) and endosymbiont theory.
• Biological membranes: structure and proposed models; passage of materials across cell membranes: passive transport (facilitated diffusion and simple), osmosis, directly and indirectly active transport, co-transport. Exocytosis and endocytosis. Anchoring, tight and gap cell junctions in animal and plant cells.
• Cell communication: types of cellular communication: endocrine, paracrine, autocrine and iuxtacrine. Sending and receiving the signal.
• Organization of DNA in chromosomes, mitosis and meiosis. DNA and proteins, nucleosomes, heterochromatin, euchromatin, chromosome condensation. The cell cycle and its regulation. Mitosis, meiosis and sexual reproduction
• DNA and its role in heredity. DNA structure and replication.
• Gene expression: transcription, genetic code and translation. Gene definition.
• DNA mutations and mutagenesis
• Hereditary character transmission and Mendel’s laws; definition of phenotype, genotype, locus, gene, dominant and recessive allele, homozygosity and heterozygosity. Segregation and independent assortment. Independence and association. Crossing-over and recombination. Genetic determination of sex. Gene interactions. Incomplete dominance, condominance, multiple alleles, epistasis and polygeny.
• The human genome: karyotype analysis and pedigrees; autosomal recessive, autosomal dominant, X-linked diseases.

DIDACTIC METHOD
Attendance to lessons is mandatory.
Teaching methods consist of frontal lessons. In addition to the suggested texts, additional didactic supports are offered on the e-learning platform of the course.
Students can make an appointment directly with the teacher every time they need it throughout the academic year, by email.
Students are invited to choose a book among those indicated.

Bibliography

Examination Methods

Goal of the exam for the course of Propaedeutic physical and biological sciences: to verify students' advanced comprehension of the whole program topics and their capability to expose their reasoning in a critical and precise manner using an appropriate scientific terms.
6 examination sessions are foreseen in the whole Academic Year: 2 in the Winter Session after the Course ending, 2 in the Summer Session, and 2 in the Autumn session.
Students will undertake all modules if they have attended at least 75% of the frontal teaching activity of the entire Course; further information about exam organization is available in each module form.
The final mark (/out of 30) will derive from the evaluation of the 4 modules. Students will pass the examination if the overall rating of all modules, based on the weighted average of credits, is greater than or equal to 18/30. Students can retire or refuse the proposed mark.

Students who do not pass all the 4 exam modules in the same session will only have to cover the missing/insufficient part in one of the subsequent sessions, if only within the same Academic Year (that is within the Autumn session). From the next winter session students will need to take 4 modules.