Medicine and Surgery

BIOSIGNALING Molecular mechanisms of signal transduction. Hormonal control of metabolism. Nonpeptide and peptide hormones and their receptors. Structure and mechanism of action. Second messengers and signal transduction. Signal transduction in the sense organs. METABOLISM OF NUCLEIC ACIDS Biosynthesis and degradation of purine and pyrimidine nucleotides. Compounds that interfere with the metabolism of nucleotides and their use as chemotherapeutic agents. IRON AND HEME METABOLISM Iron cycle in body: absorption, loss and recycling. Proteins involved in iron transport and storage: transferrin and ferritin. Regulation of cellular and systemic iron metabolism. Heme biosynthesis: mechanism of ALA synthase, PBG synthase and heme synthesis pathway. Porphyrias. Heme catabolism: heme oxygenase, biliverdin reductase.

In order to sit the exam, the student must have passed Chemistry and Introduction to Biochemistry (mandatory) as well as the Biochemistry I progress test. In case of failure in the Progress test the student will be admitted to sit the Biochemistry exam and examined on the whole programme (I and II) as oral exam

David L Nelson, Michael M Cox - I principi di biochimica di Lehninger- Sesta edizione- Zanichelli Textbook of Biochemistry with Clinical Correlations, Thomas Devlin EdiSES

Formal lessons

mandatory

To Pass the test student must obtain a note of 18/30 for each subject of the integrated teach. Student must possess a sufficient knowledge of the program. To obtain a note of 30/30 with distinction student must possess an excellent knowledge of the whole program using a correct terminology to expose the topics. The oral exam for the entire course of Biochemistry II will assess the following: 1) student's knowledge of metabolic pathways dealt with in detail during the course, their points of control and the associated pathologies; 2) role of specific hormones in the global control of anabolism and catabolism at the level of the whole organism or specific tissues; 3) mechanisms of signal transduction and the inter-connections between the different metabolisms; 4) ability to write chemical structures of intermediates in the metabolism for which students have received a detailed list.

Formal lessons