Enrollment year
2021/2022
Academic discipline
MED/04 (GENERAL PATHOLOGY)
Department
DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGY AND BIOTECHNOLOGY "LAZZARO SPALLANZANI"
Course
EXPERIMENTAL AND APPLIED BIOLOGY
Curriculum
Scienze biomediche molecolari
Period
2nd semester (01/03/2022 - 14/06/2022)
Lesson hours
48 lesson hours
Activity type
WRITTEN AND ORAL TEST
Learning outcomes
The first part of the course is the description of molecular alterations involved in cancer and their application in the prevention, diagnosis and prognosis of cancer. In the second part the focus is on the role of HLA and KIR systems and their interaction in adaptive and innate immune response. The immunogenetic aspect of polymorphism will be related to population studies, pregnancy and response to pathogens. Finally, the molecular bases of HLA-associated diseases, the problems related to transplants and the different immunotherapy strategies in cancer will be presented.
Course contents
The aim of the course is to introduce students to the molecular alterations that are used in diagnosis and prognosis of cancer. Considering the biology of cancer, biomarkers of transformation, invasion and metastases will be evaluated. Moreover viral, bacterial and tumor microenvironment biomarkers will be also examined. Biomarkers used in molecular epidemiology will be also evaluated. In the second part the knowledge on HLA and KIR genetic systems (genes proteins and functions) will be deepened. In particular we will focus on the HLA and KIR polygenic systems; multiallelic genes; codominance; ancestral haplotypes; linkage disequilibrium. The donor-recipient histocompatibility and transplant will be analyzed: role of major (HLA) and minor antigens, role of KIR genes and the susceptibility/protection genes in immune and autoimmune diseases (study of families and population). Finally the different strategies in cancer immunotherapy will be considered: monoclonal antibodies, vaccines, CAR-T, immunological check-point blockage.
Teaching methods
=Lectures
Reccomended or required readings
1) Pontieri. Patologia Generale e Fisiopatologia Generale. Tomo I. PICCIN.
2) Robbins e Cotran. Le basi patologiche delle malattie. 8°edizione Elsevier
3) Peter Parham, Il sistema immunitario, EDISES
4) Janeway CA, Immunobiologia, Piccin
Papers related to each subject will also be suggested.
Assessment methods
Written exam
Further information
Written exam
Sustainable development goals - Agenda 2030
Università di Pavia - Offerta formativa