Pathology I
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- Versione italiana
- Academic year
- 2020/2021
- Teacher
- DONATO GEMMATI
- Credits
- 6
- Curriculum
- MORFO-FUNZIONALE
- Didactic period
- Secondo Semestre
- SSD
- MED/04
Training objectives
- The Pathology I course provides students with the necessary notions required to understand the mechanisms of cell and tissue damage, the etiology and pathogenesis of diseases to be able to identify the morphological and functional elements that characterize diseases and alterations of organs and tissues. The basic mechanisms involved in the immune response will also be illustrated, including principles on the genetic basis underlying these processes. At the end of the course the student will be able to understand the common basis of cellular and tissue damage and the relationship between damaged tissue and immune system; he/she will know the molecular processes that underlie cell death and the inflammatory response; he/she will understand the main processes by means the body defends itself from a damage and repairs/heals itself; he/she will know the genetic and molecular processes underlying antibody specificity.
Prerequisites
- Biology, Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Microbiology, human Histology, Anatomy and Physiology.
Course programme
- Etiology and pathogenesis of diseases. Damage mechanisms induced by chemical, physical and nutritional agents. Cellular pathology. Cell death processes: necrosis, apoptosis and autophagy. Mechanism of action of bacterial toxins. Acute inflammation, chronic inflammation and wound repair.
Molecular pathology: muscular dystrophy, cystic fibrosis.
Innate immunity and adaptive immunity. The main components of innate immunity: chemical-physical barriers, receptors and molecules that mediate the responses of natural immunity. Opsonine. Toll like receptors. Signal paths activated by the TLRs. Main proinflammatory cytokines: IL1 and TNFalpha, their receptors and control systems, outline of the pathogenesis of septic shock and the use of molecules that interfere with IL1 and TNF signals in therapy. Adaptive immunity. Humoral and cell-mediated immunity. B lymphocytes and antibodies. Structure and function of antibodies of the different classes, mechanisms of gene rearrangement, somatic recombination, class change.
The complement and its function in the immune response. T lymphocytes TCR structure and function TCR-MHC interaction. Clonal selection of T lymphocytes in the thymus and B lymphocytes in the bone marrow. Biological basis of tolerance. T helper lymphocytes differentiation and function of the various subclasses. Cytotoxic T lymphocytes in the immune response.
Antigen-presenting cells (APC) Role of dendritic cells in the activation of T lymphocytes. Maturation of the affinity of antibodies. Immunological memory. Hypersensitivity. Allergic responses, antibody-mediated hypersensitivity, outline of transfusional and autoimmune hemolytic anemias, myasthenia gravis and Graves' disease. Immune complex hypersensitivity (serum sickness, hints of systemic lupus erythematosus), cell-mediated hypersensitivity (reaction to heavy metals, nettle venom, hints of rheumatoid arthritis). Antitumor immune response, role of immunosuppressive cells in tumor pathogenesis. Use of antibodies as drugs, monoclonal antibodies and humanized antibodies.
NK cells and KIR receptors. Class I and II MHC systems. Didactic methods
- The Pathology I course is provided by theoretic lessons aimed at describing and explaining the key contents of the program.
Learning assessment procedures
- Verification of learning degree will be carried out through a written examination lasting 60 minutes without the use of own notes or books or multimedia supports, in the presence of teachers (or telematic-online). Questions will be formulated as multiple choice answers (four options for each question) related to the programme objectives as above defined. Only one answer will be the correct one, there will be no penalty for incorrect or not given answers. The exam will be considered as passed with a minimum score of 18 out of 30.
Reference texts
- - Rubin. Patologia Generale. Patologia d’organo e molecolare, Piccin Ed.
- Pontieri, Russo, Patologia Generale, Piccin Ed.
- Abbas A.K., Lichtman A.H., Pillai S., Immunologia Cellulare e Molecolare-9° edizione. Edra Ed.
- Vinay Kumar, Abul K. Abbas,J. C. Aster. Robbins. Fondamenti di patologia e di fisiopatologia. Edra Ed.
