Module BISS3161: NEUROSCIENCE (MOLECULAR MEDICINE)

Department: BIOLOGICAL AND BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES (BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES) [Queen's Campus, Stockton]

BISS3161: NEUROSCIENCE (MOLECULAR MEDICINE)

Prerequisites

• None

Corequisites

• None

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None

Aims

• To develop an understanding of how the central nervous system functions in health and disease and the cell and molecular control of these functions.

Content

• Review of the structural and functional organisation of the CNS and of the molecular nature of the major receptor families.
• Epilepsy: clinical features, classification and possible biological basis; antiepileptic drugs; models of human epilepsies.
• Human affective disorders (depression, mania and anxiety); clinical features, classification and possible biological basis;
• Treatments of these psychiatric disorders. Long term potentiation (LTP): neurobiological basis, relationship to learning and memory in the mammalian brain. Cerebral ischaemia (stroke): physiological and pharmological events thought to underlie neuronal cell death;
• Treatment and prevention of stroke. Review of the molecular targets of drug abuse. Review of the biochemical, molecular biological, pharmacological and computational techniques utilised in the study of the human brain;
• The use and significance of animal models of human neurological disorders;
• The role of neural omplants aimed gene therapy.

Learning Outcomes

• At the end of this module, students should should be able to: demonstrate a detailed knowledge of the structure and functional integration of the CNS
• express an understanding of the neurobiological mechanisms that underlie complex behaviors
• describe the molecular mechanisms of action of several important classes of CNS-acting drugs
• demonstrate an appreciation of the range, sophistication and importance of techniques used in studying the brain

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Lectures provide a framework for knowledge and understanding of topics in neuroscience.
• Laboratory Sessions reinforce the subject-specific knowledge covered in lectures and provide practical example of the strength and limitations of techniques in neuroscience.
• CAL supports the lecture series, but also demonstrate techniques that cannot be used in the laboratory sessions.
• MCQ address the subject specific knowledge of the student in a specific topic area.
• Unseen examination assess the students broader subject broader subject specific knowledge

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Practical report and essay help inform the summative assessment of this module.

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University