FROM ION CHANNELS TO INFORMATION PROCESSING: A FUNCTIONAL APPROACH CourseCode: 4158Degree: Master's in Neuroscience: from Research to the ClinicFaculty of MedicineYear: Year 1 of Master's in Neuroscience: from Research to the ClinicSemester: SpringType: ElectiveLanguage: EnglishECTS credits: 4.5Lecture: 4.5Laboratory: 0Hours: 112.5Directed: 66.5Shared: 28Autonomous: 18Subject matter: Advanced Studies in NeuroscienceDepartment: Course instructors are responsible for the course content descriptions in English.DescriptionMolecular and cellular basis of synaptic transmission.- Biophysics and pharmacology of ion channels and receptors.- Molecular mechanisms of neurotransmitter release.- Synaptic transmission in the cerebral cortex.Molecular and cellular basis of sensory transduction.Experimental models for studying sensory transduction:- The cornea as a model for studying pain.- Electrophysiological recordings of TRP channels. Interpreting experimental recordings.- Laboratory sessions (cultures and image/electrophysiology recordings in sensory neurons).Processing visual information. Functional architecture of retinal, thalamic, and cortical receptive fields.Finding a way: emergence of orientation selectivity in the primary visual cortex as a model of cortical functioning.Information processing in series and in parallel in the cerebral cortex.Visual objects in their context: What the visual arts tell us about perception.Receptive fields of mouse vibrissae: Functional architecture, development, and plasticity.Somatosensory information processing, from synapse to behavior.Anatomical, functional, and effective connectivity in the brain.Synoptic plasticity and network reorganization.Deep brain stimulation (DBS), transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS).FacultyNameCoordinatorLectureLaboratoryGOMIS GARCIA, ANA MARIA■■■REIG GARCIA, RAMON■■QUINTERO REGUEIRO, EVA MARIA■■MARTINI , FRANCISCO JOSE■■MARTINEZ OTERO, LUIS MIGUEL■■CANALS GAMONEDA, SANTIAGO■■GOMEZ MARIN, ALEJANDRO■■MARQUEZ VEGA, CRISTINA■■DE LA PEÑA GARCÍA, ELVIRA MARIA■■ALMARAZ GOMEZ, LAURA■■ACOSTA BOJ, MARÍA DEL CARMEN■■GUTIERREZ PEREZ, LUIS MIGUEL■■SALA PLA, SALVADOR■■GEIJO BARRIENTOS, EMILIO CARLOS■■Professional interestCompetencies and learning outcomesGeneral competenciesRecognize and understand the normal structure of the nervous system at the molecular, cellular, tissue, and system levels.Understand the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying the normal functions of the nervous system.Learn the basics about normal human behavior, its alterations, and changes occurring during ageing.Understand the basics and efficacy of therapeutic interventions based on scientific evidence.Know how to use sources of up-to-date bibliographic information critically and present the most significant research results from published papers.Specific competenciesIdentify the morphology and structure of different parts of the nervous system, searching for the correlation in basic subdivisions between human and murine brains, generally used as experimental models.Understand the basics of visual processing at the molecular, cellular, and system levels.Understand the basics of mechanical, chemical, and thermal sensory processing at molecular, cellular, and system levels.Understand the basics about nociceptive sensory processing at molecular, cellular, and system levels and the mechanisms involved in analgesia.Describe the different ways of processing in the cerebral cortex.Identify the properties of sensory processing in cortical receptive fields.Evaluate how anatomical and functional connectivity of the nervous system is analyzed and how it is reorganized under normal and pathological conditions.ContentsLecture topicsTeaching unitsBiophysics and pharmacology of ion channels and receptorsMolecular mechanisms of transmitter release.Synaptic transmission in cerebral cortexVisual information processing: Functional architecture of retinal, thalamic and cortical receptive fieldsProcessing of sensory informationProcessing of visual informationLong-range functional networks in the brainSensory transduction I. The cornea as a nociceptive model.Sensory transduction II. Calcium and Electrophysiological recordings of cultured sensory neuronsSensory transduction III. Electrophysiological recordings of in cellular lines transfected with sensory-related ion channels/receptors.Theoretical and computational neuro-ethologyNeurobiology of Complex BehaviorsCourse contentsBasic bibliographyComplementary bibliographyLinksSoftwareMethodology and gradingGradingContinuous evaluation in classes and practices. Theoretical test of the contents of the subject and presentation of reports of the practical sesions.