Human Histology (20412)
Qualification/course: Bachelor's Degree in Medicine
Year: 2
Term: 2
Number of ECTS credits: 5 credits
Number of Study Hours: 125 hours
Course Language(s): Catalan and Spanish
Teaching staff: The subject coordinator is Josep Lloreta. The person in charge of practical activities is Sílvia Hernández. Montserrat Arumí, Bea Bellosillo and Sílvia de Muga take part in teaching. The seminars are given by Josep Maria Corominas, Lara Pijuan, Mar Iglesias, Núria Juanpere ad Belén Lloveras.
1. Presentation of the course
The subject of Human Histology is an obligatory course which is given in the second year. It counts for 5 ECTS credits.
Essential requirements for passing the course:
1. Attendance and taking part in a minimum of 90% of the practical sessions. In the case of justified absence, it is essential to hand in the corresponding practical exercise workbooks.
2. Skill at correctly handling and focusing the optical microscope; skill in observing and correctly interpreting a preparation using the optical microscope.
3. Capacity to recognise the principal organs and tissues using the optical microscope. Failure to reach the required level in the practical side of the course will mean not passing the course. Practical and theory exams must be passed separately.
2. Competences to be achieved
GOALS
1. To provide solid basic knowledge on the microscopic structure of different organs and tissues and their functional use.
2. To develop visual recognition skills of specialised human cells, tissues and organs, with optical and electron microscopy.
3. To develop solid skills and knowledge concerning the handling of optical microscopes.
3. Content
LECTURES
Topic 1. Histogenetic and embryological summary of specialised tissues. Microscopic components and structure of epithelial tissue and connective tissue
Review of the subcellular components of the different types of epithelial cells. Epithelial covering tissues and glandular epithelial tissues: histological characteristics with functional correlation. Review of the components of connective tissue. Histological characteristics of the different types of connective tissue and their functional correlation.
Topic 2. Microscopic components and structure of nervous tissue. Meninges, ependyma and choroid plexus. Microscopic organisation of the central and peripheral nervous system
Complete review of the components of nervous tissue: neurones, astroglia, oligodendroglia, microglia and ependymal cells. Microscopic structure of the meninges. The meningeal cell. Irrigation of the nervous tissue: the hematoencephalic barrier. Cephalo-spinal fluid: specialised tissues in its production and reabsorption.
Microscopic organisation of the cerebral cortex. Microscopic structure of the main cerebral, cerebellar and brain stem nuclei. Microscopic organisation of the cerebellum and spinal cord.
Organisation of the peripheral nervous system: spinal and vegetative ganglia (sympathetic and para-sympathetic systems).
Topic 3. Sensory organs. Sensory specialisations. Smell, hearing and sight
Cutaneous terminal specialisations. Microscopic organisation of the olfactory mucous membrane.
Hearing: balance and hearing.
Sight: palpebral and bulbar conjuntiva. Cornea. Lens. Choroid. Iris and retina.
Topic 4. Cardiovascular apparatus. Heart. Arteries and capillaries. Veins. Lymphatic system
Microscopic structure and organisation of the heart. Microscopic structure and characteristics of the cardiovascular system. The pericardium. General structure of blood vessels. Innervation and irrigation of blood vessels. Arteries: classification, structure and morphofunctional characteristics. Structures involved in the detection and regulation of arterial pressure. Capillaries: classification, structure and specialised morphofunctional characteristics of different types of capillaries. Specialised structures in the regulation of blood flow in the capillary network.
Veins: classification, structure and morphofunctional characteristics. Different microscopic structure and characteristics in the vascular lymphatic system: capillaries, vessels and ducts.
Topic 5. Respiratory apparatus
Nasal cavity. Nasopharynx. Paranasal sinuses. Oropharynx, hypopharynx and larynx.
Trachea, bronqui, main bronchial tree. Distal respiratory pathways (from the bronqui to the pulmonary alveoli). The pulmonary alveolus as a functional unit. Subcellular mechanisms for maintaining elasticity and expansion in the alveoli. The pleura. Microanatomy of the thoracic cavity. General organisation of the lung and its irrigation.
Topic 6. Digestive apparatus
Microscopic structure of the lips, oral cavity, tongue and teeth. Major salivary glands: parotid, submandibular and sublingual. Minor salivary glands.
General microscopic organisation of the digestive tract. Microscopic structure of the oesophagus. The cardia. Microscopic structure and histophysiology of the stomach. Pylorus. Microscopic structure of the duodenum, jejunum, ileum, colon, rectum and anus. Histophysiology of the small and large intestines. Peritoneum.
General structure of the liver. Distribution of blood vessels and intrahepatic biliary network. The hepatic lobes: classical lobule, portal lobule and acinus. Extrahepatic biliary pathways. Biliary vesicle. Exocrine pancreas. Structure of Vater's papilla.
Topic 7. Endocrine system. Hypophysis, hypothalamus and pineal gland. Thyroid and parathyroid. Adrenal gland, paraganglia and diffuse neuroendocrine system
Hypophysis: microscopic organisation and cellular components. Essential microscopic characteristics of the hypothalamus. Microscopic characteristics of the pineal gland.
Thyroid: structure, cellular components and functional organisation. Parathyroid: structure, cellular components and morphological characteristics of the different functional states.
Adrenal cortex: Microscopic structure and cellular components. Adrenal medulla and paraganglia: microscopic characteristics and relationship with the peripheral nervous system. Diffuse neuroendocrine system.
Topic 8. Urinary apparatus
General microscopic organisation of the kidney: components of the cortex and renal medulla. Components of the nephron. Microscopic characteristics and histophysiology of the renal glomerulus. Different characteristics of the different types of renal tubule and their functional impact. Juxtaglomerular apparatus. Microscopic characteristics of the arterial, venous and lymphatic vessels of the kidney. Characteristics of the renal interstitial space. Microscopic structure of the urinary pathways (renal pelvis and ureters) and the urinary bladder.
Topic 9. Male genital apparatus
Microscopic structure and cellular components of the testicle. Spermatogenesis. Intratesticular ducts, epididymis, seminal vesicles and deferent ducts. Accessory genital glands. Microscopic characteristics of the penis. Structure, microscopic characteristics and basic elements of pathobiology of the prostate.
Topic 10. Female genital apparatus
Microscopic structure, cellular components and morphofunctional states of the ovary. Oogenesis. Structure of the fallopian tube. Microscopic structure of the uterine corpus. Microscopic characteristics of the functional states of the endometrium. Microscopic structure of the cervix, vagina and vulva. Structure and functional states of the placenta. Microscopic structure, functional states and basic elements of pathobiology of the mammary gland.
Topic 11. The skin and its annexes. Organisation, functional correlation and fundamentals of its pathobiology
Structure and cellular composition of the epidermis. Structure and cellular composition of the dermis. Specific characteristics of the cutaneous connective tissue. Histophysiology of the skin. Skin glands: eccrine and apocrine sweat glands; sebaceous glands. Hair follicles; structure and histophysiology of hair. Nail structure. Cutaneous regeneration. Response of the skin to burns.
Topic 12. Blood and hematopoiesis
Peripheral blood cells. Components of plasma. Lymph. Basic hematopoietic cellular elements of bone marrow. Embryonic hematopoiesis and definitive hematopoiesis. Stem cells. Monocytopoiesis. Granulopoiesis. Erythropoiesis. Megakaryopoiesis and thrombopoiesis. Bone marrow lymphopoiesis precursors.
Topic 13. Structure and histophysiological characteristics of the organs and tissues related to the immune system
Structure of lymphatic ganglia, in correlation with lymphopoiesis and with production of specific cell populations for immune responses.
Structure and histophysiological characteristics of the thymus. Structure and histophysiological characteristics of Peyer's patches. Structure and histophysiological characteristics of the spleen. Lymphoid tissue associated with mucous membranes. Tonsillar tissue. Lymphatic ganglia.
Topic 14. Organisation, functional correlation and pathobiological fundamentals of the locomotor apparatus. Osteoarticular system. Muscular tissue
Complete dynamic morphological view of bone structure, bone remodelling and the multi-organ cellular process involved in the metabolic balance of phosphorus and calcium. Joint structure and functional correlation. Synovial cells.
Dynamic characteristics of muscular tissue: histoenzymatic, histomorphometric and ultrastructural characteristics of muscle in normal conditions, during training and in pathological situations.
SEMINARS
The space dedicated to seminars consists of a series of conferences related to very relevant diseases, both from the point of view of research and in terms of healthcare and social impact, related to some topical blocks. The conferences will be addressed to the whole group and will be given by invited lecturers who are experts in different fields.
1. Cardiovascular apparatus.
2. Respiratory apparatus.
3. Digestive apparatus.
4. Male genital apparatus.
5. Female genital apparatus.
6. Miscellaneous topics.
PRACTICAL SYLLABUS
The practical part forms an essential element of the course and the field in which the course goals will be carried out. It is essentially given as microscope observation sessions of two hours, where the knowledge acquired during the theory classes will be put into context. The students must attend a minimum of 90% of the practical sessions. In case of absence, a written explanation must be provided and in addition the workbook for the corresponding practical must be handed in. Failure to reach the required level in the practical side of the course will mean not passing the course (See Assessment section).
Practical 1. Nervous system and sensory organs.
Practical 2. Cardiovascular apparatus.
Practical 3. Respiratory apparatus.
Practical 4. Digestive apparatus I.
Practical 5. Digestive apparatus II.
Practical 6. Endocrine system.
Practical 7. Urinary apparatus.
Practical 8. Male genital apparatus.
Practical 9. Female genital apparatus.
Practical 10. Skin.
Practical 11. Blood and bone marrow.
Practical 12. Lymphatic tissue.
Practical 13. Locomotor apparatus.
VIRTUAL ACTIVITIES
Besides studying the topics, the virtual activities will include reading and reviewing materials posted on the Global Campus, which must be done before the corresponding face-to-face theory and practical sessions. Furthermore, a variety of different materials will be put on the Campus Global, generally in the form of microscope images, which must be interpreted and studied.
4. Assessment
The assessment of academic performance is done in the following manner:
Summative assessment
Theory content (end of term exam): 40% of the final mark
- Multiple choice test: 60%
- Short questions: 40%
Notes: in the official assessments, some of the short questions require prior identification of the tissue to be evaluated from microscopic images, thus combining the theory and practical aspects of the subject.
Practical content (end of term exam): 30% of the final mark
The practical content is the essential part of the course, and it is the practical sessions where the main educative goals must be attained. The practical content exam will be based on the identification of organs and tissues with the light microscope, which may be complemented by another session with slides of microscope images. During the theory exams, questions on exercises done in the practical sessions will also be included, in order to evaluate success of participation in these sessions.
In order to do the practical exam, attendance must be registered at a minimum of 90% of the practical sessions and the workbooks for those practicals missed must be handed in. To this end, attendance will be monitored and where absence is justified, the corresponding exercise workbook must be completed and handed in.
Important note: A minimum of 4 points will be required in both the theory and practical exams to pass the course. (Thus, for instance, a theory score of 4 and a practical score of 6 would imply passing both the theory and practical parts, while a theory score of 3.5 and practical score of 7 would imply failing the theoretical part). In case of failing one of the parts (theory or practical), the score of the other part will be kept for the September assessment.
Continuous assessment: 30%
The continuous assessment of theory knowledge and practical skills will be achieved in several sessions:
1. A face-to-face session in which organs, tissues and cells must be identified in microscopy slides. This session will take place along with the Formative Assessment session scheduled for the other courses of the term.
2. Four assessment sessions through Moodle (Campus Global), consisting of theory quizzes combined with microscope images.
Extra marks
There will be one optional and voluntary assessment, which will carry extra points to be added to the final grade:
Multiple choice questions together with Human Anatomy and Special Physiology: maximum 0.2 and minimum 0,1 extra points. The extra points awarded will be proportional to the result obtained and will apply only to those students who gain a minimum of 50%.
5. Bibliography and teaching resources
5.1. Basic bibliography
The fundamental book for the subject is:
GARTNER, L. P.; HIATT, J. L. Histología. Texto y Atlas. Mèxic: McGraw-Hill Interamericana, 2002.
Of the available books on imaging, the following is also recommended:
EROSCHENKO, V. P. Di Fiore's atlas of histology with functional correlations. Filadèlfia: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, 2005.
5.2. Complementary bibliographyBesides the specific bibliography that may be provided to give extra depth for some specific topics, the following are recommended as reference texts:
KIERSZENBAUM AL. Histology and Cell Biology. An Introduction to Pathology. Filadèlfia: Mosby Elsevier, 2007.
FAWCETT, D. W. A textbook of histology. Londres: Chapman and Hall, 1994.
FAWCETT, D. W.; JENSH R. P. Bloom and Fawcett: Concise Histology. Nova York: Chapman and Hall, 1997.
JUNQUEIRA, L. C.; CARNEIRO, J. Histología básica. Barcelona: Masson S.A. 1996.
PANIAGUA, R. Citología e histología vegetal y animal: biología de las células y tejido animales y vegetales. Madrid: McGraw-Hill/Interamericana, 1997.
STERNBERG, S. S. Histology for pathologists. Filadèlfia: Lippincott-Raven, 1997.
STEVENS, A.; LOWE, J. Histología humana. Madrid: Harcourt-Brace, 1998.
YOUNG, B.; HEATH, J. W. Wheater's Histologia Funcional. Madrid: Harcout, 2000.
5.3. Didactic resources
Te Course webpage in Campus Global contains the PowerPoint versions of all topics and seminars, as well as Word files of some selected chapters. The purpose is to enable the student to review images and texts before the face-to-face theory and practical sessions, in oder to get acquainted with the contents of the lectures.