Curricular Unit:Code:
Molecular Genetics and Biology908GBMO
Year:Level:Course:Credits:
1MasterClinical Microbiology5 ects
Learning Period:Language of Instruction:Total Hours:
Portuguese65
Learning Outcomes of the Curricular Unit:
Discuss replication, transcription, translation, generation and control of genetic variation, Genetic and epigenetic regulation, genetic differences between prokaryotes and eukaryotes and its use in therapeutic approaches. Understand the genetics of the Immune systems. Understand advanced Molecular Biology techniques for NA purification, characterization, amplification and sequencing and its use in study of microorganisms either in purified form or from complex ecosystem samples. Understand advanced techniques for protein and bioinformatics study and its use in microbiological studies.
Syllabus:
Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic cellular structure. Genes: structure, replication and expression. Genetic regulation. Mechanisms of genetic variation. Epigenetics. Immuno-genetics. Laboratory techniques for molecular Biology study applied to the clinical pathology setting (The specificities of the Clinical Molecular Biology Lab; Nucleic Acid extraction; Gel, capillary, pulsed field and microchip based electrophoresis; Spectrophotometry; Nucleic Acid amplification by PCR, RT-PCR, Nested-PCR, multiplex-PCR, qPCR, NASBA, SDA, LCR; Restriction endonuclease reactions, cloning vectors and genetic engineering; Characterization of unknown mutations by DGGE, SSCP, HA, DHPLC; Characterization o known mutations by PCR-RFLP and hybridization techniques; First, second, third and fourth generation Nucleic Acid sequencing techniques; bioinformatics and comparative genomics; metagenomics). Proteomics (SDS-PAGE, isoelectric focusing and HPLC; MALDI-TOF for the identification of microorganisms
Demonstration of the Syllabus Coherence with the Curricular Unit's Objectives:
The vertiginous scientific and technological evolution of genetics in the last decades has resulted in the development of advanced molecular diagnostic techniques with therapeutic and research implications in an ever broader area of medicine (including both hereditary and acquired diseases). This broad applicability of genetics, together with the high level of ever improving technological sophistication, imposes high demands on health professionals, particularly in terms of solid technological and scientific backgrounds. It is this solid molecular Biology knowledge that the current ambitious syllabus allows the student to acquire, thus contributing decisively to the acquisition of the skills referred to in the objectives section.
Teaching Methodologies (Including Evaluation):
Lecture type classes, with intensive use of multimedia and video as teaching aids. Evaluation with dailly written small tests and one final group-work.
Demonstration of the Coherence between the Teaching Methodologies and the Learning Outcomes:
A condensed teaching structure with 45 weekly teaching hours including 2 curricula in each single week occupies all the available student's physical capacity in teacher/student contact sessions. Thus, we opted for an appealing but complete and demanding presentation methodology with extensive multimedia support, and daily evaluation as a mean of allowing the students to immediately notice any eventual knowledge deficiencies and solve them. The final workgroup evaluation aims at inducing a continued study of the subjects, leading to its implications in other subjects of study such as immunology, bacteriology virology and drug resistance.
Reading:
• Moreno, ACM., Cabeda, JM. 2014. Sequenciação de Ácidos Nucleicos em Biomedicina. ed. 1, 1 vol., ISBN: 978-989-643-125-9. Porto Edições Universidade Fernando Pessoa.
• Cardoso et al. 2013. Manual de Trabalhos Práticos de Genética (2ª Edição). ed. 2, 1 vol., ISBN: 978-989-643-114-3. Porto: Edições Universidade Fernando Pessoa.
• Krebs JE et al (2013) Genes XI. Jones & Bartlet Publishers., Inc (USA)