| Unit name | Neurological and Psychiatric disorders |
|---|---|
| Unit code | PHPH30013 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
| Unit director | Professor. Molnar |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
PHPH20005: Principles of Pharmacology 2A, PHPH20003: The Central Nervous System, PHPH20009: Neurophysiology, PHPH20010: Developmental Physiology of The Specialized cell |
| Co-requisites |
None |
| School/department | School of Physiology, Pharmacology & Neuroscience |
| Faculty | Faculty of Life Sciences |
Students will study critical current topics relevant to key neurological and psychiatric disorders. The unit aims to explore and compare different forms of neurological a psychiatric disorders from the molecular to the system level and to identify aspects of the pathophysiology that could form the basis for new clinical treatments.
Upon completion of this unit students will be able to: (i) gain understanding of key neurological and psychiatric disorders and where research is headed in the search for answers; (ii) appreciate how various neurotransmitters and their receptors are involved in pathological changes; (iii) discuss the applications and limitations of animal models of disease used for drug discovery and for the better understanding of various human pathological conditions; (iv) understand the process which can lead to the identification and validation of a potential new drug target; (v) appreciate methodologies and procedures employed to discover novel drug molecules for clinical use; (vi) develop an ability to keep up-to-date with recent developments in the field, gather information from the primary scientific literature and to critically evaluate the material and appraise competing theories; (vii) develop an understanding of the experimental approaches used to study neurological and psychiatric disorders in human patients and in animal models.
Seminars
The unit will be assessed through one 3-hour summative examination in May/June, which consists of two sections. In section A (50%), students will be expected to answer one essay question from a choice of 3, which will assess their knowledge and critical understanding of the field, and their ability to gather information from the primary scientific literature. In section B (50%), students will be expected to answer one multi-part compulsory question requiring data handling/data interpretation and experimental design.
Reviews and key references from the current scientific literature
