INTEGRATED COURSE IN ANIMAL BIOLOGY AND PHYSIOLOGY
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- Versione italiana
- Academic year
- 2020/2021
- Teacher
- FRANCO CERVELLATI
- Credits
- 12
- Curriculum
- BIOTECNOLOGIE PER L'AMBIENTE
- Didactic period
- Primo Semestre
Training objectives
- The course is composed of two modules: Animal Biology and Animal Physiology.
The main objective of the course is to provide students with information basic to the understanding of complex biological systems; their interconnections in the maintenance of vital functions and the interaction between the internal and external environment of the organism.
The main knowledge gained are reported below.
ANIMAL BIOLOGY:
- Introduction to evolutionary biology. Origin of species and adaptation.
- the body plans;
- Sexual and asexual reproduction
- Description of the main vital functions;
- Introduction to the sensory systems;
- Systematics and phylogenetic analysis
- Description of the main animal phyla.
ANIMAL PHYSIOLOGY:
- basic functional elements of the systems of maintaining cellular homeostasis;
- knowledge about the potential of membranes and communication mechanisms between excitable cells;
- functional elements of receptor systems of the somatosensory and special;
- key features of the central nervous system and autonomous;
- basic knowledge for the study of the cardiovascular and renal systems in the maintenance of hydro saline and blood pressure;
- basic knowledge of muscle movement;
- study of the processes involved in thermoregulation;
- fundamentals of laboratory instruments;
- knowledge of the potential applications of the evidence collected in the laboratory of biotechnology.
The main skills (the ability to apply knowledge acquired) will be:
- ability to integrate the functions of the organ acquired knowledge in other disciplines;
- application in laboratory of biotechnologies;
- to identify the main taxonomic characters of each phyla. Prerequisites
- Basic knowledges in general biology such as:
-fundamental concepts of biology (i.e. mitosis and meiosis);
- cytology, histology and anatomy;
- the main biochemical mechanisms. Course programme
- ANIMAL BIOLOGY
- Theories of evolutionary biology, Animal evolution, Origins of species (5 h).
- Animal structure, symmetry and development, body cavity, protostomes and deuterostomes (4 h)
- Sexual and asexual reproduction, hermaphroditism, parthenogenesis (10 h)
- Locomotion, thermoregulation, respiration (6 h).
- Sensory systems (lateral line, mechanoreceptors, elettroreceptors, magetoreceptors, encephalic photoreceptors). Animal Behaviour (6 h)
- Taxonomy, systematic biology and phylogenetic tree and (3 h)
- Introduction to the Metazoa phyla(6 h)
ANIMAL PHYSIOLOGY
- Homeostasis and Cell Physiology (4 hours).
Homeostatic mechanisms. Cell physiology (cellular organization and biological membranes, intercellular contacts, cell organelles. Energy and metabolism, membranes and membrane transport).
- Membrane potentials (4 hours).
Excitable cells and membrane potentials. Nerve cells, muscle and heart.
- Physiology of movement (4 hours).
Muscles and movement.
- Central and peripheral nervous system (6 hours).
Physiology of the central nervous system and autonomous. Special sense organs and peripheral. The pain and the ways dolorifiche. Neuromuscular reflexes.
Blood and Circulatory system (2 hours).
Blood and cardiovascular function. Exchange of respiratory gases
- Renal Physiology (4 hours).
Renal function. Regulation of blood pressure.
- Endocrine system (6 hours).
The endocrine and nervous systems of control.
- Cutaneous system (2 hours).
Physiology of the skin. Body temperature regulation.
Laboratory activity.
- Cell cultures (6 hours).
- Techniques of fluorescence microscopy and electron microscopy (6 hours).
- Identification of studied taxa (macroscopical and microscopical specimens) Didactic methods
- The course consists of 96 hours (12 credits) of teaching. Lessons are held weekly in the classroom and the exposure is done through the use of slides and videos. The last two hours of the course are devoted to the revision of the main topics of the program.
Learning assessment procedures
- The aim of the examination is to test the level of knowledge of the topics of the course. The evaluation is expressed in thirtieths (minimum grade 18, maximum grade 30 cum laude).
Examination is written and consists of multiple choices questionnaire (31 questions)
To get through the examination, the student need to answer correctly at least 18 questions. To obtain the maximum score (30/30) the student need to answer correctly at least 30 questions (31 correctly questions to obtain 30 cum laude/30).
Students will have a maximum of 60 minutes to answer to all questions. Reference texts
- Specific topics can be explored in the following texts.
Carbone E., Aicardi. G., Maggi R. Fisiologia dalle molecole ai sistemi integrati. EdiSES 2018
- Cleveland P. Hickman, Jr., S. Roberts, S. L. Keen, D. J. Eisenhour, A. Larson, H. Lanson
- D.U. Silverthorn: Human Physiology. Pearson 2017.
- P.E. Solomon, L.R.Berg, W.D. Martin, Biology - Ed. EdiSES, - Napoli.
Notes, figures, and slides provided by the teacher.
