PATOLOGIA GENERALE, BIOCHIMICA CLINICA E MICROBIOLOGIA

Learning Objectives

• Clinical Biochemistry

  The course is designed to provide students with a good foundation of knowledge in all aspects of Clinical Biochemistry. Introducing the fundamentals of instrumentation and methodology in the clinical chemistry and biochemistry laboratory medicine, lectures will cover urinalysis testing procedures and associated disease entities, as well as analysis of other body fluids. Clinical testing using automated and manual methods, measurement of pancreatic function and intestinal absorption, renal and liver function, enzymes, electrolytes, blood gases, lipids, toxicology, urinalysis, endocrinology, neurological, dysmetabolic, inflammatory and cardiovascular diseases.

• General and clinical microbiology

  The student must learn the biological and pathogenic characteristics of microorganisms that play a role in human pathology, with reference to bacteria, viruses and fungi. He must acquire appropriate knowledge on the relationships between microorganisms and host in normal and pathological conditions, identify the transmission pathways, know the characteristics, the activity, the mechanism of action and resistance of the main antimicrobial drugs and vaccines. The student must also know the main methods for the cultivation and identification of microorganisms.

  The course also aims to illustrate the various methods of prevention of microbial infections and the main causes of infection related to specific professional activity.

Detailed Course Content

• Clinical Biochemistry

  1) The use of laboratory data in clinical practice
  2) Analysis of Urine
  3) Biochemistry of nutrition
  4) Liver function and Hepatitis tests

  5) Blood cell count

  6) Diabetes mellitus
  7) Hypoglycemia
  8) Free radicals in the physiology and in the pathology
  9) Metabolism of ethanol and the pathology of alcoholism

  10) Tumor markers
  11) Notes on antiaging medicine.

• General and clinical microbiology
  1. Essential characteristics and differences of bacteria, viruses, fungi, protozoa and other parasites known to infect humans.
  2. The pathogenic mechanisms of microorganisms, microorganism-host relationships, basic concepts in the immune response.
  3. The various possibilities of infection and spread of infection. Alimentary infections induced by microorganisms
  4. The organization of the bacterial cell: structure and function of the cellular components and bacterial metabolism
  5. Mechanisms of bacterial pathogenesis: role of bacteria in disease
  6. Characteristics of fungi
  7. Mechanisms of fungal pathogenesis
  8. Characteristics of virus and their replication
  9. Mechanisms of viral pathogenesis. Types of viral infection: acute and persistent infection
  10. The antimicrobial chemotherapy: the main characteristic of principal groups of antimicrobial compounds and their mechanisms of resistance
  11. Vaccines
  12. General principles of laboratory diagnosis of infectious diseases
  13. General principles of sterilization, disinfection, and antisepsis
  14. Bacterial infections associated with gastroenteritis: Helicobacter pylori, Enterobacteriaceae, Vibrio. Food-borne diseases and zoonosis
  15. Viral etiology of alimentary infections: Noroviruses, Rotaviruses, Adenoviruses
  16. Alimentary infections induced by protozoa and helminths
  17. Causative agents of alimentary toxicoses
  18. Mycotoxin and mycotoxicosis
  19. Human hepatitis viruses (HAV, HBV, HCV, HDV, HEV)

Textbook Information

• Clinical Biochemistry

  Medicina di Laboratorio, G. Federici (Autore), – Mc GrawHill Medicina di laboratorio.

  Medicina di Laboratorio. La diagnosi di malattia nel laboratorio clinico, M. Laposata (Autore) - Piccin

  Medicina di Laboratorio. Logica e patologia clinica, I. Antonozzi, E. Gulletta (Autori) - Piccin

  Medicina dell'Aging e dell'Antiaging. V. Calabrese et al. (Autori) - Edra

  Nutrigenomica e Epigenetica. V. Calabrese et al. (Autori) - Edra

• General and clinical microbiology

  1. Harvey R. H., Champe P.C., Fisher B. D., Le basi della Microbiologia, con approfondimenti clinici - Ed. Zanichelli
  2. Cevenini R.. Sambri V., Microbiologia e microbiologia clinica, Per i Corsi di Laurea in professioni sanitarie – Ed. Piccin

  All students can use didactic material downloadable from the Studium page at the following link: http://studium.unict.it/dokeos/2018/courses/10463/