72834 - Immunology and Pathology

Academic Year 2017/2018

  • Docente: Fulvia Farabegoli
  • Credits: 6
  • SSD: MED/04
  • Language: Italian
  • Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures
  • Campus: Bologna
  • Corso: First cycle degree programme (L) in Biological Sciences (cod. 8012)

Learning outcomes

Students will have an understanding of pathology and general causes of diseases: genetic diseases, cell and tissue injury (chemical, physical and biological causes, mechanisms and consequences), the body reaction to injury (acute and chronic inflammation, regeneration and healing), physiology of the Immune system (innate and acquired immunity, antibodies, B and T lymphocytes, hypersensitivity reactions), oncology (genetic and cell mechanisms underlying spontaneous and experimental neoplasm development), cardiovascular pathology.


Course contents

Introduction to pathology and general causes of diseases. Genetic disorders. The cellular basis of diseases: adaptations (hyperplasia, hypertrophy, atrophy, metaplasia). Reversible and irreversible cell injury (necrosis and apoptosis). Mechanisms of cell injury. Intracellular accumulation. Acute inflammation: general features, vascular changes, cellular events and molecules involved. Chemical mediators of inflammations. Systemic effects of inflammation. Tissue repair (regeneration, healing and fibrosis). Aspecific and specific chronic inflammation. Granulomas. Edema and shock. Infectious diseases (virus and bacteria and toxins). Esotoxins and endotoxins. Enviromental pathology: physical and chemical causes of injury (ionizing and ultraviolet radiations), (drugs, industrial and nutritional agents). Neoplasia: classification, benign and malignant neoplasms, epidemiology, molecular basis of cancer, multistep carcinogenesis, biology of cancer cell, metastasis. Fundaments of cardiovascular pathology (hypertension, thrombosis, embolism and atherosclerosis).

Immunology: the Immune System. Structure and Components. Innate Immunity (defence mechanisms, fagocitosis, Natural Killer, complement and cytochins). The Adaptative Immune System: general chracteristics. Antigen capture and presentation: the Major Histocompatibility Complex I and II. T lymphocytes and the T Cell Receptor. B Lymphocytes and the antigen receptor. The Immunoglobulines and the antibodies diversity. The humoral immune response. The cell mediate immunity. Antigene-antibody reactions: use in biology and medicine. The elimination of microbes and toxins by humoral immunity. Seroprophylaxis and vaccination. The monoclonal antibodies. Hypersensitivity reactions (I, II, III and IV type). Tolerance, autoimmunity, immunodeficiency.






Readings/Bibliography

Patologia: Robbins and Cotran, Le basi patologiche delle malattie (Patologia generale 1° volume) Ed. Elsevier OR M. Parola, Patologia generale, EdiSES.
Immunologia: Abbas e Lichtman, Le basi dell'Immunologia. Fisiopatologia del sistema Immunitario, Ed. Elsevier

Teaching methods

5CFU  as taught class. 1 CFU will deal with histopathology analisis of  virtual slides: hydropic and fatty change, coagulative and colliquative necrosis, acute inflammation, tissue repair and scar formation, chronic inflammation (TBC and foreign body granuloma), hypertension, atherosclerosis, neoplasms (benign and malignant neoplasm).


Assessment methods

Oral test

Teaching tools

Slides: avalaible on line, by username and password, on AMS Campus - Alma DL University of Bologna

Office hours

See the website of Fulvia Farabegoli