To instill in students a firm understanding of the basic principles in molecular, cellular and physiology that will serve as a foundation for your subsequent education and development as physician-scientists.
Quiz for week four is available HERE
This is the final week of Scientific Foundations. We will wrap up Life and Death of a Cell by exploring the molecular mechanisms that regulate cell growth and division and analyzing histological images that illustrate the responses of cells to stressors and damage.
The Information and Communication theme will conclude with a discussion of a case that illustrate how defects in ion channels lead to muscle weakness and hyperthermia.
The Gene Expression theme will conclude with an analysis of how mutations cause disease through disruptions of protein folding.
The qualifier will open Friday, September 19 and close at 11:45 PM on Tuesday, September 23.
Please complete the assignments below before the indicated date.
Tuesday, September 16
Wednesday, September 17
Thursday, September 18
Important: Remember to upload your responses to the self-assessment by Sunday, September 7 at 11:45 PM.
Week Three Quiz is available HERE.
This week the Information and Communication theme will begin with an exploration of the major signaling pathways cells use to detect and respond to external molecules. The theme will then explore the dynamics of receptor-ligand interactions and how drugs that affect those interactions are absorbed and metabolized by the body.
The Energy and Metabolism theme will wind up with presentations on how the body metabolizes fatty acids, amino acids and nucleotides. The theme will also discuss the ways the body controls its overall energy balance.
The Life and Death of Cell theme will start with a presentation on how cells replicated and repair their DNA.
The week also has two special sessions.
Please complete the assignments before the indicated date
Monday, September 8
Tuesday, September 9
Thursday, September 11
Friday, September 12
Week Two Quiz is available HERE.
This week we’ll continue the Building a Body theme by exploring the structure and function of nervous tissue and muscle. The theme will also introduce the different types of blood vessels.
The Fluid and Gradients theme will describe how ion channels determine membrane potential and how the same channels generate an action potential which triggers contraction of skeletal and cardiac muscle cells and communication in neurons.
This Energy and Metabolism theme will also continue with an exploration of how glucose is stored in glycogen and then released when energy demands rise.
The self-assessment will open on Friday. You’ll need to upload your responses to the questions by Sunday at 11:45 PM. More information on the self-assessment will be sent later this week.
Please complete the assignments below before the indicated date.
Tuesday, September 2
Thursday, September 4
Friday, September 5
The Week One Quiz is available HERE.
This week we’ll continue the Building a Body theme by exploring how cells and extracellular matrix assemble to form tissues. Then, we’ll examine two of the four tissue types: epithelia and connective tissue, which includes bone.
The Gene Expression theme also continues with discussion on the structure of genomes and how genetic information is manipulated in animal models to study human disease. You will use what you have learned in the theme to discuss how the spread of virus infections is tracked.
The Fluid and Gradients theme will present a case on hypernatremia, which is characterized by elevated sodium concentrations in the blood. You will discuss the physiological causes of the condition and how the condition is treated.
This week will see the start of the Energy and Metabolism theme. The theme will start with presentations on the essential properties of enzymes and the principles of how metabolic pathways are organized. The theme will then transition into presentations on several key pathways.
Please complete the assignments below before the indicated date.
Monday, August 25
Tuesday, August 26
Wednesday, August 27
Thursday, August 28
Friday, August 29
Before we start the course, check out the Primer which covers some basic principles from chemistry that you may find helpful to review.
Also, take a look at the syllabus.
All materials and links to videos can be found on BlueDogs. PDFs of slides and notes should sync with your iPad if you have set that up. If a session does not have slides and/or notes, please let me know.
The week will start with an introduction to the course. Three themes in the course will also start this week.
Fluids and Gradients will describe the different fluid compartments in the body, how solutes are transported across cell membranes, and how proper water balance is maintained in the body. You will also have the opportunity to solve problems in these areas that underlie several clinical conditions.
Building a Body will introduce basic building blocks of cells, proteins, nucleic acids and lipids, and then explain how those macromolecules come together to form cellular and extracellular structures. Finally, you’ll have an opportunity to discuss clinical problems that involve the secretory pathway and extracellular matrix.
Gene Expression will describe how information that is stored in DNA is converted into proteins that form the structures and catalyze the reactions which sustain cell viability and function.
Friday, August 22