2020/2021

2020/2021

DM270

BIO/09 (PHYSIOLOGY)

DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGY AND BIOTECHNOLOGY "LAZZARO SPALLANZANI"

NEUROBIOLOGY

PERCORSO COMUNE

1°

2nd semester (01/03/2021 - 14/06/2021)

9

72 lesson hours

Italian

ORAL TEST

TOSELLI MAURO GIUSEPPE (titolare) - 3 ECTS
BIELLA GERARDO ROSARIO - 3 ECTS
MASETTO SERGIO - 3 ECTS

First-level knowledge in: electricity and diffusion; physiology of biological membranes and membrane transports; cell physiology; physiology of the nervous system and sensory organs.

This course is intended to analyzes the phenomenological and biophysical aspects and molecular mechanisms of the physiological processes which, by taking place in the cell membrane or in the cytoplasm, underlie, at the cellular level, the communication and information processing functions typical of neurons and other cell types of neurophysiological interest.

The course comprises three modules, the contents of which are described below.
Part 1. The physiology of neurons (3 CFU). 1) Neuronal encoding. Diversity of neuronal firing patterns. Ion conductances involved in determination of firing pattern. Modulation of neuronal firing properties. Spontaneous firing. Subthreshold activities.
Part 2. The physiology of synaptic transmission. Electrical synapses: gap junctions. Chemical synapses. Postsynaptic mechanisms: synaptic potentials and currents; synaptic receptors. Presynaptic mechanisms: quantal neurotransmitter release. Molecular basis of synaptic vesicle release. Fast and slow synaptic transmission. Synaptic integration. Synaptic plasticity: LTP and LTD. Molecular basis of plastic synaptic processes. Roles of calcium in controlling neuronal functions.
Part 3. The physiology of sensory receptors (3 CFU). Cell physiology of sensory functions. Sensory receptors. Photoreceptors. Hair cells. The olfactory epithelium.

The course is organized in lectures using Power Point presentations and the blackboard.

Slides will be provided to the students attending the course. FONDAMENTI DI FISIOLOGIA -EDIERMES 2018

The final examination consists, for each module, in an oral examination about arguments of the module.

Further information concerning some parts of the course and Power Point presentations are available at Prof. Toselli web page: http://www-1.unipv.it/tslmra22/.