• Physiology of neuron and synapse. Generalities on the sensory and motor systems in the brain.

• Face to face delivery with Power Point presentations
• A link to download the presentations is available at the elearning site of the course
• For information and appointments, contact the teachers 

MODULE OF NEUROBIOLOGY:

Sensory systems

• The somatosensory system: Touch; Pain.
• The visual system: The retina; Diabetic retinopathy; Visual thalamus; Visual cortex.

Neuro-endocrine interactions

• Regulation of food intake: Energetic balance; Hypothalamic centers; Orexigenic signals; Anorexigenic signals; Eating disorders.

Sensory Perception & Information Processing

• Neuronal Activity & Behavior
• Cognition & Motivation
• Optogenetics: Theory & Applications
• The Visual System
• Treatments of Degenerative Blindness
• Colors & Movement
• The Olfactory System
• The Gustatory System
• The Auditory System
• The Vestibular System
• Visual System Plasticity in Early Life
• Visual System Plasticity in Adult Life
• Neuronal Basis of Sleep
• Sleep & Neuronal Plasticity
• Magnetogenetics: Theory & Applications
• Learning & Memory: Finding the Engram
• Smart Materials in Neuronal Stimulation

MODULE OF HUMAN NEUROANATOMY:

• Development: neural plate, notochordal plate, neural groove, neural crest. Alar plate and basal plate. Primary vesicles and secondary vesicles of the neural tube. Main structures derived from each secondary vesicle. Schematization of development of cranial nerves. Brief mentioning of spinal cord development and of neural tube defects.
• Gross anatomy of the encephalon: terminology of the components of the CNS. Meninges. Brain ventricles. CSF: circulation, reabsorption, and CSF-brain barriers. Brain hemispheres: main sulci; definition of the different lobes. Overview of the brainstem; external features (naming only elements shown in the slides provided): ventral view, dorsal view. Identifying and naming main nuclei and bundles from sections of mesncephalon, pons and medulla oblungata (only those mentioned in slides).
• Gross anatomy of the human spinal cord: External features. Denticulate ligaments; cervical and lumbar enlargement; relation of spinal cord myelomeres and spinal nerves with segments of the vertebral column. Spinal cord meninges. Main features of spinal nerves.
• Structure of the spinal cord: laminar and nuclear organization of gray matter including detailed description of the types of neurons, afferents and efferents. Ventral and dorsal radicular cells, funicular cells; ascending bundles of spinal cord white matter. Site of termination of afferent fibers of different sizes into the spinal cord grey matter.
• Sensitive pathways: brief overview of skin, joint and tendon receptors (muscle spindles only mentioned). Dorsal column-medial lemniscus pathways; dorsal column nuclei sensu strictu, and extended definition of dorsal column nuclei. Spino-cerebellar tracts. Spino-thalamic system: site of origin in the spinal cord; concepts of paleo- and neo-spinothalamic system. Trigeminal system: mesencephalic, pontine and spinal trigeminal nucleus.
• Thalamus: general features. Reticular thalamic nucleus: specific features and connections. Gross anatomy: details on the different nuclei, basic cytological and functional organization: classical view (relay, association and intralaminar/midline nuclei) and more recent one (first-order and higher-order nuclei). Detailed description of VPL; connections with the Iry and IIry sensory cortex.
• Cortex: brief overview of the gross anatomy of the human cortex, and of Brodmann areas. Main cortical gyri. Details on neocortex cells, layers  and basic circuitries. Definition of homotypic and heterotypic cortex and main features of isocortex, mesocortex and allocortex.
• Motor systems. Description of motor areas on the lateral and medial surface of the cerebral cortex. Contributions of the different cortical areas to the corticospinal pathways. The homunculus motorius and sensitivus: overlapping and discrepancies. Concepts of pyramidal and extrapyramidal pathways: discrepancies between anatomical and functional criteria. Extrapyramidal paths and premotor centers in the brainstem. Concepts related to "medial" and "lateral" motor systems; their anatomical definition, origin, and course. Concepts related tothe interactions between motor systems and motor unit.
• The reticular formation of the brainstem. Cytoarchitecture of the brainstem reticular formation; isodendritic, idiodendritic and allodendritic neurons. The topographic and neurochemical subdivision of the brainstem reticular formation (nuclei of the medial, median, and lateral band).
• Cerebellum. Gross anatomy of its external and internal features. Integrating the medio-lateral with antero-posterior gradient to define the cerebellum; spino-cerebellum, pontocerebellum and vestibulo-oculomotor cerebellum. The cerebellar cortex: cells and circuitry. Deep cerebellar nuclei, mossy fibers and climbing fibers. Main anatomo-functional correlations.
• The basal ganglia: Different classifications of the components of basal ganglia. Intrinsic and extrinsic anatomical connections. Details on the direct and indirect pathways. Concepts of striosomes and matrix Parallel loops (channels) of the basal ganglia (cognitive, motor, oculomotor and limbic).
• Limbic system: Hippocampus. Olfactory cortex. Limbic lobe. Intrinsic and extrinsic connections of the limbic system.

• Eric R. Kandel et al – Principles of Neural Sciences (any edition)
• Power points
• Cited literature
• http://webvision.med.utah.edu/
• selected chapters from neuroanatomy books, e.g.,Per Brodal. The Central Nervous System: Structure and Function. Fourth Edition. Oxford University press, or Nolte's, The Human brain: an introduction to its functional anatomy. Elsevier.

• There are no particular indications for non-frequenting students. For information or elucidations (on the course organization or on lecture contents), please contact the professors at the following email addresses: maya.vetencourt@unipi.it; filippo.giorgi@unipi.it; giovanni.casini@unipi.it.

• Oral exam. This exam consists of a conversation between the student and the examiner of approximately 30 – 45 minutes. This exam is not passed if:

1. the student does not speak clearly and using appropriate terminology.
2. the student cannot pick at least the fundamental aspects of the issues discussed during the course.

Examination committee:

President: José Fernando Maya Vetencourt
Members: Filippo Sean Giorgi, Giovanni Casini

Substitute President: Filippo Sean Giorgi
Substitute Members: Massimo dal Monte, Dominga Lapi