Medicine and Surgery

HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY I (II year – I semester, 8 credits) The cell as a fundamental unit: electrical parameters of the cell membrane and equivalent circuits; resting membrane potential; action potential. Voltage-dependent ion channels. Membrane receptors. Families of ionotropic receptors: structural analogies and functional peculiarities. Families of metabotropic receptors: structural analogies and functional peculiarities. Second messengers systems and signal transduction pathways. Electrical synapses: structure and function. Chemical synapses. Spontaneous and evoked neuro-transmitter release. Postsynaptic potential: spatial and temporal summation. The neuromuscular junction. The muscle: structure and function of the three muscle types. The contraction of skeletal, smooth and cardiac muscle. Metabolic supplies of muscle contraction. The autonomic nervous system: neurotransmitters; receptors; effects on target organs. The nervous control of skeletal muscle. Motor units. Muscle spindles; muscle tone; simple and polysynaptic spinal reflexes. Reflex movements. General blood functions. Blood constituents: plasma, erythrocytes, leucocytes, platelets. Haemostasis. The heart: physiological aspects of the myocardium; the cardiac cycle; regulation of the heart pump action. Myocardium excitation and conduction pathways; control mechanisms. Principles of Electrocardiography; the normal ECG. The circulation and the physical laws of haemodynamics. The functions of the arterial and venous systems. Cardiac output and venous return. Microcirculation and lymphatic system: blood-tissue exchanges. Control of blood flow and arterial pressure. Cardiovascular diseases. HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY II (II year – II semester) Functional organization of the central nervous system – Functions of the cortical areas Functional organization of the motor system. The fundamental motor functions: posture; locomotion; reaching and handling; ocular movements. Role of motor cortex, cerebellum, basal ganglia. Integrative brain functions: the hypothalamus and the circadian rhythms; sleep. Thermal regulation: body temperature; mechanisms of heath production and loss – Hypothalamic regulation of body temperature- Fever. Biological transducers: excitation of sensory receptors; encoding of sensory information; the transmission of sensory information to higher-order brain centers and its processing (sensation and perception). The somatosensory system. Pain and Temperature. Descending nociceptive pathways. Biophysics and Physiology of vision. The eye and dioptric media; phototransduction; optic pathways; photo-accomodation and visive defects. Principles of cortical processing of visual information. Biophysics and Physiology of the ear. Audition: transmission of acoustic stimuli to the cochlea; biophysics of the Organ of Corti; auditory pathways. Vestibular apparatus: signal transduction; use of vestibular signals. Respiration: structure of the lungs. Pulmonary pressure and ventilation; Pulmonary volumes. Mechanical properties of the lungs. Pulmonary circulation. Gas exchange. Respiratory gas transport. Control of breathing. The kidney and the body fluids. Body fluid compartments; water and salt equilibrium. Urine formation: glomerular filtration, tubular transport of the electrolytes, tubular water reabsorption and the regulation of fluid osmolarity. Renal mechanisms for the control of blood and extracellular fluid volume. Regulation of the concentration of the principal electrolytes (sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphate). Acid-base balance: Body buffer systems for extracellular pH: plasma proteins, bicarbonate, phosphate. Renal regulation of the acid-base balance. Respiratory regulation of the acid-base balance. Disturbances of the acid-base balance. Gastrointestinal physiology: motility, nervous control and blood circulation in the gastrointestinal tract. Food progression and mixing in the digestive tract. Gastrointestinal secretion: salivary, gastric, pancreatic, biliary, intestinal secretions. Food digestion. Absorption of water, nutrients and electrolytes in the small intestine. Absorption in the large intestine. Endocrinology: hormone structure and action. Measurement of hormone levels. Pituitary hormones and hypothalamic control mechanisms. Thyroid hormones. Adrenocortical steroid hormones. Endocrine pancreas: insulin and glucagon. Parathyroid hormone and calcitonin: calcium and phosphate metabolism. Male and female sex steroid hormones. Female period.

For a good understanding of the topics considered in this course, students should have adequately studied the subjects of the following exams: Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Histology, Anatomy

Boron & Boulpaep: Medical Physiology, Elsevier.

Lessons in presence with the students

mandatory attendance

A unique exam for Physiology I and II will take place in the form of an interview. To pass the exam the student must obtain not less than 18/30. The student must demonstrate that he/she has acquired sufficient knowledge of the topics covered during the course. To achieve a score of 30/30 cum laude the student must instead demonstrate that he/she has acquired excellent knowledge of all the topics covered during the course, showing ability with the use of technical terms and correct linguistic expressions.

Kandel, Schwartz, Jessel: Principles of neural science

Lessons in presence with the students