This module encompasses a combined series of lectures, seminars and lab work which will provide an advanced view of selected and central topics of functional neuroanatomy, ranging from the cellular to the system level. Examples will be mostly drawn from murine and human model systems. The following issues shall be dealt with:
- Cell biology of neural cells: structure and function of synapses; axonal transport; morphological basis of functional compartmentation of signal transduction and processing; structure and function of astroglial cells; myelin forming cells; neuron-glia interactions;
- Systems-oriented neuroanatomy: evolutionary basis of functional anatomy of the mammalian nervous system; basic aspects of nervous system development; discussion on selected functional systems based on their involvement in paradigmatic human neuropsychiatric diseases (e.g. Parkinson’s disease; cerebrellar ataxias)
There is a strong focus on hands-on practical methods including tissue preparation,
immunostaining, transgenic tagging, microscopy and morphometry. The seminar is
aimed at providing a forum for the acquisition of advanced conceptual and
methodological skills based on the discussion of current scientific literature pertinent
to the basic theme of the module.
Students will learn the basic structures of nerve cells and how these may be arranged into functional units. Students need to learn the developmental relationship of germ layers and the nervous system in mammals. By the end of the module they should be able to describe, examine, identify, label and list cellular elements and subsystems of the CNS. They should familiarize themselves with basic molecular-morphological techniques such as immunostaining, transgenic tagging, (quantitative) microscopy and morphometry. Students will study how to associate basic descriptive knowledge to
clarify morphological classifications of the nervous system and how to use this knowledge to decode and distinguish the morphological underpinning of specific functions; they should learn to generalize morphological data and its interpretation to examine the structure and development of nerve cells and nervous systems (i.e. the murine cerebellum, the zebrafish spinal cord, and murine nerve cells in primary culture. They will learn to present (i.e. poster session) interpret, demonstrate and debate their findings.
None