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2020/2021

Endocrinology

Code: 100809 ECTS Credits: 6
Degree Type Year Semester
2500250 Biology OT 4 0
The proposed teaching and assessment methodology that appear in the guide may be subject to changes as a result of the restrictions to face-to-face class attendance imposed by the health authorities.

Contact

Name:
Juan Hidalgo Pareja
Email:
Juan.Hidalgo@uab.cat

Use of Languages

Principal working language:
spanish (spa)
Some groups entirely in English:
No
Some groups entirely in Catalan:
No
Some groups entirely in Spanish:
No

Other comments on languages

Most of the slides used in the classroom are in English

Teachers

Francisco Javier Carrasco Trancoso

Prerequisites

To have passed the subject of Animal Physiology, as well as of Cell Biology and Biochemistry

 

Objectives and Contextualisation

The subject "Endocrinology" is an option of the last course in Biology and Biochemistry, so that the student already has a high level of basic knowledge of biology, which will allow to deepen in this matter.

 

The subject does not structure to the classic mode of "Hormone A, functions B and C", but will analyze several relevant biological aspects in which endocrine / neuroendocrine factors participate. The idea is to give an integrated vision of critical factors in the survival of the individual and of the species: rhythms, stress, growth and longevity, weight control, sexual and maternal behavior. As far as possible we will proceed to the analysis of animal models that help us to understand the human species.

 

In the classes, articlesand scientific reviews of reference journals will be used as much as possible (Nature, Science, Cell, etc.) rather than textbooks. Documentation will be prepared that will be provided beforehand to the student with the fundamental information, indicating the original reference of the publication in case the student needs clarification and wishes to consult it (it will not be indispensable but it will also benefit the student from the point of view of the domain of the English). The idea is that the student has to complement that basic information with the work in class, acquiring an important method of work.

Competences

  • Act with ethical responsibility and respect for fundamental rights and duties, diversity and democratic values.
  • Analyse and interpret the development, growth and biological cycles of living beings.
  • Apply statistical and computer resources to the interpretation of data.
  • Be able to analyse and synthesise
  • Be able to organise and plan.
  • Carry out functional tests and determine, assess and interpret vital parameters.
  • Design and carry out biodiagnoses and identify and use bioindicators.
  • Make changes to methods and processes in the area of knowledge in order to provide innovative responses to society's needs and demands.
  • Students must be capable of applying their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and they should have building arguments and problem resolution skills within their area of study.
  • Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
  • Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  • Students must develop the necessary learning skills to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
  • Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
  • Take account of social, economic and environmental impacts when operating within one's own area of knowledge.
  • Take sex- or gender-based inequalities into consideration when operating within one's own area of knowledge.
  • Understand the processes that determine the functioning of living beings in each of their levels of organisation.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Analyse a situation and identify its points for improvement.
  2. Analyse and interpret physiological parameters indicating growth and development in animals.
  3. Analyse the sex- or gender-based inequalities and the gender biases present in one's own area of knowledge.
  4. Apply statistical and computer resources to the interpretation of data.
  5. Be able to analyse and synthesise.
  6. Be able to organise and plan.
  7. Carry out functional tests and determine, assess and interpret vital parameters in animals.
  8. Critically analyse the principles, values and procedures that govern the exercise of the profession.
  9. Identify, enumerate, describe, interpret, explain and summarise the structure and functioning of the endocrine system.
  10. Identify, enumerate, select, describe, interpret, explain and summarise the practical skills needed to apply diagnosis techniques and decide on the use of bioindicators.
  11. Identify, enumerate, select, describe, interpret, explain and summarise the practical skills needed to apply the most common functional study techniques.
  12. Propose new methods or well-founded alternative solutions.
  13. Propose projects and actions that incorporate the gender perspective.
  14. Students must be capable of applying their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and they should have building arguments and problem resolution skills within their area of study.
  15. Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
  16. Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  17. Students must develop the necessary learning skills to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
  18. Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
  19. Take account of social, economic and environmental impacts when operating within one's own area of knowledge.

Content

After the basic concepts of the previous basic subject (Animal Physiology), Endocrinology will proceed to deepen the various endocrine axes, particularly at the neuroendocrine level, its relationship with behavior, and trying to maintain a vision integrated into the major themes*:

1. Introduction. General organization of the nervous and endocrine system. Hypothalamic-pituitary relationship and biological bases of its development. Hypothalamic survival circuits: hunger, thirst, sex ... Programs of action (motivations, emotions) & feelings: ancestral mechanisms; vasopressin and oxytocin as examples.

 

2- Circadian rhythm and suprachiasmatic nucleus. Clock genes. Use of light as a synchronizing mechanism & other possible synchronizers. Living against our circadian rhythm has a cost. Seasonal rhythms & melatonin. Other rhythms

 

3- Stress and some of its consequences. Anticipatory and reactive pathways control the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis. MR and GR receptors. Stress & fear & anxiety & depression: an example of the importance of epigenetics. "Battle of the sexes" & genomic imprinting. Epigenetic transgenerational inheritance.

 

4- Obesity, the new epidemic?. Body weight control: much more than an aesthetic issue. Main factors and pathways involved. Homeostatic & hedonic systems. Body mass index, fat deposits & genome-wide association studies (GWAs) & its limitations. Diets and surgical procedures (and their failures & potential hazards). Obesity & inflammation. Obesity & microbiome.

 

5- Growth: Heritability and susceptibility. GWAs. Psychosocial dwarfism. Acceleration & deceleration. Growth & development. Main families of growth factors. Saltatory growth. Catch-up. Hypothalamo-pituitary-somatic axis: endocrine and paracrine / autocrine actions of IGF-I.

 

6- Growth vs. longevity: it was not so simple. Size of the species &longevity: strict or flexible law?. Caloric contribution: apparent relationship with morbidity & longevity. Oxidative stress, mitochondrial DNA, p53, telomeres, senescence & longevity. mTOR, rapamycin & other "anti-aging pills". What (probably) announces the experiments of parabiosis between old and young animals.

 

7- Genetic, gonadal and phenotypic sex. Dmrt1, SRY and other critical factors in sexual determination and differentiation. Somatic sexual identity in mammals?. Gonadal sex is not irreversible. Compensation of the gene dose of the sex chromosomes. XIC: X inactivation center. Internal and external genitalia: main hormones involved. Intersexual states: congenital adrenal hyperplasia & Prader classification; other endocrine problems.

 

8- Hypothalamus-pituitary-gonadal axis: integral control of vertebrate reproduction. Importance of the control of GnRH neurons: pulse generator versus preovulatory peak. Sex steroids, kisspeptin & other factors involved. Puberty: everything changes. Menarche & context & kisspeptin & limitations of the GWAs. Puberty & risk behaviors.

 

9- Sexual differentiation of behavior: Battle of the sexes?. Sexual dimorphism: what does it reveal? Sexual selection: the omission of Darwin. The Coolidge effect. Biological bases of sexual behavior in animal models. Organization and activation of the CNS by sex steroids. Default sex & masculinization & defeminization: beware of analgesics! Sex steroids & epigenetics.

 

10- Proceptivity & receptivity. Attractive (body & facial): what is it and what does it reveal? Main characteristics and factors involved. Some considerations about pheromones & MHC in mammals.

 

11- Violence: an extraordinary problem. Lethal aggression intra-species: we are not the only ones. Infanticide and paternity dilution. Is there a link between sex and violence?. Sex steroids & neurosteroids & VMH. Monogamy vs polygamy in mammals. Social vs sexual monogamy. Oxytocin & vasopressin & dopamine: pair bonding and other social behaviors.

 

12- Gender behavior, cognitive sexual differences & evolutionary roles. Gender identity and transsexuality. Gender orientation & homosexuality.

*Unless the requirements enforced by the health authorities demand a prioritization or reduction of these contents.

Methodology

The formative activities are composed of:

(a) theoretical classes, with the usual format of master class supported by images usually obtained from scientific articles. Much of this material will be available to the student on the virtual campus 
(b) practices, in which the levels of cortisol in skin and saliva are analyzed
(c) seminars, where, as far as possible, functional tests will be carried out with the students 

These activities must necessarily be complemented by other supervised and autonomous ones.

*The proposed teaching methodology may experience some modifications depending on the restrictions to face-to-face activities enforced by health authorities.

Activities

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Practices 12 0.48 2, 4, 7, 9, 11, 10, 5, 6
Seminars 4 0.16 4, 5, 6
Theoretical classes 35 1.4 2, 7, 9, 11, 5, 6
Type: Supervised      
Preparation of seminars 6 0.24 4, 5, 6
Type: Autonomous      
Elaboration of works related to the classroom 14 0.56 4, 9, 5, 6
Time dedicated to studying 65 2.6 2, 7, 9, 11, 5

Assessment

The continuous evaluation process includes four evaluation activities, of three different types, distributed throughout the course, none of which represents more than 50% of the final grade*.
										
											
										
											Partial theory 1: 40% (depending on the course schedule could be higher or lower but never more than 50%)
										
											Partial theory 2: 40% (depending on the course schedule could be higher or lower but never more than 50%)
										
											
										
											Practices: 10%
										
											
										
											Seminars: 10%
										
											
										
											 
										
											The theory exam will be test type, with 4 possible answers being just one correct, and using the soft penalty in the correction. 
The practices will be valued by presenting and discussing results in a memory. 
The seminars will be assessed through oral presentation and discussion of results (80%) and test type test (20%).
										
											
										
											Participation in the four evaluation activities is mandatory. 
Attendance at practical sessions is mandatory; students will obtain the "Non-evaluable" qualification when the absence exceeds 20% of the programmed sessions. 

A system for recovering the evaluation of the subject is contemplated, except for practices and seminars, since due to their eminently practical nature, does not allow it. 
To qualify for the recovery exam, the minimum mark in the average of the subject (Endocrinology) will be 3.5. To participate in the recovery exam, the students must have previously been evaluated in a set of activities 
whose weight equals to a minimum of two thirds of the total grade of the subject. Therefore, students will obtain the "Non-Valuable" qualification when the assessment activities carried out 
have a weighting of less than 67% in the final grade.
										
											
										
											The theoretical knowledge will be evaluated by two partial exams. The student must obtain at least 4,5 if he/she wants to compensate partial exams. 
If the recovery test is to be carried out, it may befor the first, second or both partials, depending on the notes obtained above. If both partials exceed 4,5 but do not reach the average 5, the student will be able 
to choose the partial exam to recover, if so he/she wishes. Overall 5 must be obtained to pass the subject. The possibility of 'improving the grade' is not contemplated.

*Student’s assessment may experience some modifications depending on the restrictions to face-to-face activities enforced by health authorities.

Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Practices 10% 4 0.16 19, 8, 3, 1, 4, 9, 11, 10, 12, 13, 18, 17, 16, 14, 15, 5, 6
Seminars 10% 4 0.16 8, 3, 1, 4, 7, 11, 10, 18, 17, 16, 14, 15, 5, 6
Theoretical exam 80% 6 0.24 19, 8, 2, 3, 1, 4, 7, 9, 11, 10, 12, 13, 18, 17, 16, 14, 15, 5, 6

Bibliography

Reviews and articles selected with electronic access.