Basi molecolari e funzionali dei disturbi cardiovascolari e metabolici

The aim of the course is to deepen the students' knowledge on the cellular and molecular
physiological mechanisms especially in relation to cellular excitability and cardiovascular function.
Examples of how specific molecular components of excitable and/or endothelial cells are implicated
in cell function and in specific cardiovascular diseases will be given, with a focus on the role of blood
vessels and vascular dysfunction, and ion channels and their interaction with macro protein
complexes and cell metabolism. The focus of the course will include physiological mechanisms
involved in cardiac arrhythmias/channelopathies, caveolinopathies, dystrophies, solid tumours,
atherosclerosis and ischaemic diseases, diabetic retinopathy and other neovascular diseases of the
eye.
The teaching strategy is based on a "problem solving" approach.
Students will learn physiological mechanisms that are essential for cellular functions that are made
up of different interactions (e.g.: membrane potential, calcium release, activation of intracellular
pathways), how alteration of specific components of these processes can cause a pathophysiological
state and what countermeasures could be adopted to restore physiological cellular and organ
homeostasis.

At the end of the course, the student is expected to have acquired the critical ability to analyse,
through the literature, the behaviour of a physiological process that changes into a pathological one.
The second objective is to integrate the basic knowledge of different disciplines to cope with a
complex physiological problem by including quantitative approaches. Moreover, students should
have developed the ability to understand, interpret and critically evaluate the scientific literature
relative to physiopathological mechanisms and to disseminate the conclusions emerging from such
publications.