Catalogo dei Corsi di studio

At the end of the course the student should be able to:
1) Understand the fundamental mechanisms of the organization and functioning of the cell, with particular emphasis on the eukaryotic cell.
2) Understand the mechanisms of cell integration and communication within complex multicellular organisms.
3) Understand the fundamental principles of the organization and transmission of genetic information at the level of the cell and of the individual.
4) Know how to apply the knowledge learned to the understanding of the genesis of some pathologies, in particular tumoral transformation and some genetic diseases.
5) Know how to carry out exercises and simple experiments on some topics covered in formal teaching, with particular attention to those of more strictly biomedical interest.

Programme

1) The cell
Structure of the prokaryotic and eukaryotic cell
Structure and function of the different cellular organelles

2) Structure and function of the main biological macromolecules
The carbs: simple sugars, oligosaccharides, polysaccharides. Structure and biological meaning
Lipids: triglycerides, phospholipids, sphingolipids, steroids, isoprenoids. Structure and biological meaning
Nucleic acids: DNA and RNA. Structure and biological meaning
Proteins: composition and levels of structure (primary, secondary, tertiary, quaternary).
Conjugated proteins.

2) Metabolism and energy: fundamental principles
Free energy and biological reactions
The ATP as the "energy currency" of the cell
Oxidative metabolism and ATP synthesis in heterotrophic cells
Autotrophic metabolism: photosynthesis

Adopted texts

Becker, Kleinsmith, Hardin “The world of the cell” Addison Wesley Longman
Karp “Cell and molecular biology: concepts and experiments” John Wiley & sons, Inc.
Alberts et al. “Molecola biology of the cell” Garland

Bibliography

none

Prerequisites

The prerequisites for attending the course are the students' knowledge of the basic concepts of biology and genetics learned according to the programs used in high schools.

Exam modes

The assessment at the end of the first semester consists of a written proficiency test with questions with multiple choice answers. The student will receive a vote which may be valid as exemption from the topics of the first semester for the final exam.

Exam reservation date start	Exam reservation date end	Exam date
25/01/2019	06/02/2019	07/02/2019
25/01/2019	02/06/2019	04/06/2019
08/06/2019	16/06/2019	18/06/2019
05/07/2019	13/07/2019	15/07/2019
01/09/2019	08/09/2019	10/09/2019
13/09/2019	22/09/2019	24/09/2019
04/01/2020	12/01/2020	14/01/2020

Programme

407/5000
1. DNA and genetic information
- Function of genetic material
- DNA and RNA structure
- Structure of the chromosome in prokaryotes and viruses
- Structure of chromosomes in eukaryotes

2. Cell cycle
-Mitosis
-Meiosis

3. Mendelism
- The principles behind inheritance
- Extension of Mendelism
- The chromosomal bases of Mendelism
- The chromosomal theory of inheritance
- Monogenic diseases

Adopted texts

- Titolo: Principi di Genetica
Autori: Snustad, Simmons
Casa editrice: Edises

- Titolo: Genetica
Autori: Benjamin A Pierce
Casa editrice: Zanichelli

Exam modes

Written test by quiz.
To pass the exam you must obtain a grade of not less than 18/30 in each module. The student must demonstrate that he 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 has acquired excellent knowledge of all the topics covered during the course, arguing a linear reasoning with the use of technical terms and using correct linguistic expressions.