72723 - General Pathology 2 and Pathological Anatomy of Laboratory Animals

Learning outcomes

This course will focus on the application of new technologies to the study of genetic disorders and cancer. The Students will acquire the appropriate knowledge of some animal models for cancer analysis.

The course will focus also on necroscopy techniques, cadaveric phenomenology, sampling techniques for cytological and histological microscopic examinations. The student acquires knowledge on the main diseases of mice, rats, rabbits. At the end of the course the student is able to perform a necroscopy, to detect cadaveric phenomena and to recognize and describe a lesion macroscopically.

Course contents

Module 1- General Pathology 2

• Laboratory mice and rats: Nomenclature f mice and strains most commonly used as animal models of disease ( C57BL/6, BALB/c, CD-1, SCID, and A/J). basics of strain phenotyping. Spontaneous pathology of common mice strains. Generation of transgenic mice, Knock-out mice, inducible and conditional.

• Murine models of human diseases. 

• Laboratory methods used in biomedical research: peranalytics, classic and molecular cytogenetics and in situ techniques. 

Module 2-Necropsy techniques of laboratory animals.

Necroscopy techniques applied to laboratory animals. Sampling techniques for microscopic cytological and histological examinations. Terminology in pathological anatomy. Mouse pathology: mouse hepatitis virus (MHV), murine encephalomyelitis, lymphocytis coryomeningitis, mousepox (ectromelia) virus, lactate-dehydrogenase-raising virus, epizootic diarrhea of infant Mice (EDIM), Helicobacter infection, colon murine hyperplasia by Citrobacter rodentium; "Scaly skin" by Corynebacterium bovis, Pneumocystis infection, amiliodosis, acidophilic macrophage pneumonia, ringtail, barbering, neoplasms. Rat pathology: sialodacrydenitis, parvovirus infection, Sendai virus, mycoplasmosis, cilia associated respiratory bacillus, Tyzzer's disease, corynebacteriosis, chronic progressive nephropathy, polyarteritis nodosa, malocclusion, auricular chondritis, neoplasms. Rabbit pathology: mixomatosis, Shope fibroma, viral haemorrhagic disease, clostridiosis, pasteurellosis, encephalitozoonosis, hepatic coccidiosis, mucoid enteropathy, mange, foot skin ulcers, malocclusion.

Readings/Bibliography

Module 1- General Pathology 1

Teaching material is available in the relative webpage https://iol.unibo.it/course/view.php?id=41411#section-1

Module 2- Anatomic pathology of laboratory animals

• Barthold SW, Griffey SM, Percy DH: Pathology of laboratory rodents and rabbits. Fourth edition, Blackwell, 2016
• McGavin DM, Zachary JF. Patologia Sistematica Veterinaria. Quarta ed., Elsevier Srl, 2010, Milano.

 

Teaching methods

Module 1- General pathology 2

The main teaching method consists of frontal lectures which will cover the basics of the topic. To consolidate the acquired knowledge on murine models of disease, there will be group discussions wich pratical examples of use of mice in biomedical research. 

 

Module 2- Anatomic pathology of laboratory animals

Theory: frontal lectures required to cover the basics on necropsy techniques and morphological changes in the main diseases of the species discussed. 

Practical: 

Assessment methods

The final examaims at verifying the achievement of the following teaching purposes:

- to be familiar with the main murine strains used in biomedical research

 - To be familiar with the applications of the up-to-date technologies to cytogenetics amolecular diagnostics

 - To be acquainted with the most important effects of pathologies on cell and tissue morphology and organ functionality.

The assessment methods for module 1 (general pathology 2) consists of:

- group work on animal models. Each group will be assigned a a specific animal model and will presents the topic to the rest of the class. The group will be evaluated on the basis of the quality of the data and quality of presentation. Group work component will contribute to 10% of the final grade. 

- Written exam consisting of 90 15 MCQ and 2 Short-answer questions. Duration of the exam will be 90 minutes. This component will account for 90% of the final grade. 

The assessment for module 2 will consist of a practical and an oral exam. The practical exam will focus on the necropsy techniques and the oral exam will assess the knowledge on the diseases. 

Teaching tools

Digital slides. Lectures will be supplied on informatics support.

Office hours

See the website of Barbara Bacci

See the website of Giancarlo Avallone