“Neurobiologyof Disease”

Spring 2015

Tu/Th 2 PM - 3:20PM

Room: Gerstenzang 124

Overview:

This course will explore the cell biological events underlying neuronal function and how they are altered in neurological disease. This will be an advanced course, designed for upper-division undergraduates and graduate students. Students must have taken BIOL22a and 22b (or BIOL14 and BIOL15)AND either already had a course at the level of NBIO 140, BIOL 100, BIOL 103 or similar. In very special circumstances, the latter list of prerequisites may be taken concurrently (but ONLY with mypermission).

Course format:

This will be a student-participation and lecture based course focused on cellular mechanisms of neurological disease. Each topic will begin with a student-led medical “case study” of a neurological disease. This will be followedby a one to two lecture overview ofour current understanding of the cellular defects underlying the disease, featuring 2-3 open or controversial questions that remain unanswered. Students will learn which tools are being used to experimentally answer these questions. To finish up the topic, students will present an assigned primary literature paper that proposes an answer to one of these open questions.

Grading:

  • Assignments (10% of final grade) - There will be two mandatory assignments, to be turned on LATTE.
  • Paper summaries(30% of final grade). – A summary (1-2 pages) outlining the major findings of your choice of 10 of the assigned paperswill be due onlinefrom each student. Your own presentation written report will not count towards these 10. Reports are due by9AM the morning that the paper is discussed. This summary should include your thoughts or questions about the paper. These summaries are meant to serve as learning tools. Paper summary guidelines can be found on LATTE and at the end of this syllabus.
  • Case studies – (20% of the final grade; 6% assigned to the entire team/group, 4% from peer evaluation, 10% from individual written report). Case study guidelines can be found on LATTE and at the end of this syllabus.
  • Paper presentations – (20% of the final grade; 6% assigned to the entire team/group, 4% from peer evaluation, 10% from individual written report).Paper presentation guidelines can be found on LATTE and at the end of this syllabus.
  • Final poster session or paper – (20% of final grade). All students will design (and present, time permitting) a poster or paper describing a novel hypothesis for a neurological disease mechanism. Details will be provided mid-semester.
  • Written assignments are due on LATTE by 9AM on the date noted. There will be NO LATE SUBMISSIONS or DEADLINE EXTENSIONS. Therefore, all written assignments should be completed well ahead of time.
  • If you are ill on the day of your case study or paper presentation (with a doctor’s note), you will be reassigned ONCE to another group to make it up.Each group should be prepared to execute the presentation even if a member is missing, since you will have prepared it all together.

Reading:

The required reading will be primary research papers assigned by the instructors, announced in class, and available on LATTE. In addition, if you need additional background material I can recommend a textbook; however, this is not mandatory reading. Kandel (5th edition; available in bookstore)

Attendance and expectations in class

The textbook and other readings will not be a substitute for attendance, as reading only covers a small portion of the material discussed in class. Lecture notes will be posted on LATTE before class but will only consist of bullet points, figures and sketches. Attendance is therefore required to fully understand the material.

CELL PHONES AND OTHER HANDHELD E-DEVICES are prohibited in class. Laptops and tablets are allowed but must be used ONLY for note taking – NO emailing, facebooking, texting, or shopping. NO INTERNET USE OF ANY KIND. And please turn OFF your cell phone, skype, and email alerts and notifications; no Beeps, BUZZes, or annoying vibrations. NO working on assignments for other classes; if you have to do this, please just don’t come to class. This policy will be strictly enforced by the TA who will sit at the back of the class.

Learning/ other disabilities:

If you are a student with a documented disability at Brandeis University and if you wish to request a reasonable accommodation for this class, please see me immediately. Please keep in mind that reasonable accommodations are not provided retroactively.

Academic integrity:

Conduct inconsistent with the policies on academic honesty in "Rights and Responsibilities" will not be allowed, and if it occurs, will be referred to the Office of Campus Life without exception.

SCHEDULE

Topic / Lecturer / Assignment
1 / T / 1/13 / Introduction/ history of neurological disease / AR
2 / R / 1/15 / Motor Neuron Disease 1 / AR
3 / T / 1/20 / Motor Neuron Disease 2 / AR / Assignment 1 (due 9AM 1/20)
4 / R / 1/22 / In-class exercise / DA/MD
5 / T / 1/27 / In-class exercise (Assignment 2) / DA/MD
6 / R / 1/29 / Motor Neuron Disease 3 / AR
7 / T / 2/3 / Motor Neuron Disease 4 / AR / Case Study 1/Paper 1
Assignment 2 due
8 / R / 2/5 / Alzheimer’s Disease 1 / AR / Paper 2/Case Study 2
9 / T / 2/10 / Alzheimer’s Disease 2 / AR / Case Study 3/Paper 3
10 / R / 2/12 / Alzheimer’s Disease 3 / AR / Case Study 4/Paper 4
T / 2/17 / WINTER BREAK – NO CLASS
R / 2/19 / WINTER BREAK – NO CLASS
11 / T / 2/24 / Parkinson’s Disease 1 / AR / Case Study 5/Paper 5
12 / R / 2/26 / Parkinson’ Disease 2 / AR / Case Study 6/Paper 6
13 / T / 3/3 / Anxiety + Depression / MD / Case Study 7
14 / R / 3/5 / Anxiety + Depression / MD / Case Study 8/Paper 8
15 / T / 3/10 / Down’s Syndrome / AR / Case Study 9/Paper 9
16 / R / 3/12 / Angelman Syndrome / AR / Case Study 10/Paper 10
17 / T / 3/17 / Prader/Willi Syndrome / AR / Case Study 11/Paper 11
18 / R / 3/19 / Genetic models of autism 1 (Fragile X) / AR / Case Study 12/Paper 12
19 / T / 3/24 / Genetic models of autism 2 (Rett) / AR / Case Study 13/Paper 13
20 / R / 3/26 / Spinal cord injury and neuro-regeneration 1 / AR / Case Study 14/Paper 14
21 / T / 3/31 / Spinal cord injury and neuro-regeneration 2 / AR / Case Study 15/Paper 15
22 / R / 4/2 / Multiple Sclerosis / AR / Case Study 16/Paper 16
T / 4/7 / SPRING BREAK – NO CLASS
R / 4/9 / SPRING BREAK – NO CLASS
23 / T / 4/14 / Infectious Disease / AR / Paper 17
24 / R / 4/16 / Infectious Disease / AR / Case Study 18/Paper 18
25 / T / 4/21 / Channelopathy, Pain and Epilepsy 1 / LP / Case Study 19/Paper 19
26 / R / 4/23 / Channelopathy, Pain and Epilepsy 2 / LP / Case Study 20/Paper 20
27 / T / 4/28 / Wrap-up / AR

**Schedule is subject to change**

CASE STUDY AND PAPER ASSIGNMENTS

Case Study / Group-date / Paper / Group/date
1 / ALS / A – 2/3 / Wen et al. 2014 / D – 2/3
2 / Spinal Muscular Atrophy / B – 2/5 / Perlson et al. 2009 / K – 2/5
3 / FTDP-17 / C – 2/10 / De Calignon et al. 2012 / L – 2/10
4 / Alzheimer’s Disease / G – 2/12 / Udayar et al. 2014 / M – 2/12
5 / Huntington’s Disease / E – 2/24 / Delekate et al. 2014 / N – 2/24
6 / Parkinson’s Disease / F – 2/26 / Cooper et. al. 2012 / O – 2/26
7 / Bipolar Disorder / D – 3/3
8 / Schizophrenia / H – 3/5 / Tsankova et al. 2006 / C – 3/5
9 / Down Syndrome / I – 3/10 / Jiang et al. 2012 / B– 3/10
10 / Angelman Syndrome / J – 3/12 / Wallace et al. 2012 / T – 3/12
11 / Prader-Willi Syndrome / K – 3/17 / Hsiao et al. 2014 / P – 3/17
12 / Fragile X Syndrome / L – 3/19 / Auerbach et al. 2012 / G – 3/19
13 / Rett Syndrome / M – 3/24 / Derecki et al. 2012 / R – 3/24
14 / Spinal Cord Injury / N – 3/26 / Braz et al. 2014 / S – 3/26
15 / Stroke / O – 3/31 / Osterloh et al. 2012 / I – 3/31
16 / Multiple Sclerosis / P – 4/2 / Ajami et al. 2011 / H – 4/2
17 / Matsumura et al. 2014 / J – 4/14
18 / Rabies / R – 4/16 / Altmeppen et al. 2015 / F – 4/16
19 / Benign familial neonatal seizures / S – 4/21 / Bohlen et al. 2011 / E – 4/21
20 / Timothy Syndrome / T – 4/23 / Weiss et al. 2011 / A – 4/23

GROUP ASSIGNMENTS

Name / Email / Group / Case study / Paper
Fagan III,William Joseph / / A / 1 / 20
Khlestova,Elizaveta / / A
Sinai,Claire Elizabeth / / A
Greppi,Chloe Charlotte / / B / 2 / 9
Lemos,Brenda / / B
Walsh,Rylie Brianne / / B
Kuo,James Kangjun / / C / 3 / 8
Peck,Jessica Lynn / / C
Scontras,Jennifer Mary / / C
Groves Kuhnle,Chelsea Elizabeth / / D / 7 / 1
Herzog,Linnea / / D
Symanski,Claire Anne / / D
Lueck,Lizabeth Carolyn / / E / 5 / 19
Ryan,Mary Allison / / E
Weatherill,Peter N. / / E
Lai,Austin / / F / 6 / 18
Luu,Cindy Ka-Man / / F
Zheng,Eddy / / F
Hobin,Michael Patrick / / G / 4 / 12
Shin,Justin Drake / / G
Torrado Pacheco,Alejandro / / G
Crawford,Jennifer Lee / / H / 8 / 16
Lin,Heather Kelsey / / H
Daigle,Emily Rachel / / H
Katz,Ariel Jennifer / / I / 9 / 15
Sarill,Kiera Gillian / / I
Varughese,Jenny Mariamma / / I
Alpert,David Andrew / / J / 10 / 17
Gupta,Pooja / / J
Naduthota,Prayuth Praveena / / J
Acevedo,Angela Maria / / K / 11 / 2
Keller,Arielle Stephanie / / K
Teshome,Bezaye T / / K
Alelov,Meir Mikhel / / L / 12 / 3
Cote,Rita Marie / / L
Nohelty,Eric James / / L
Coleman,Alana Michelle / / M / 13 / 4
Haley,Jessica Allison / / M
Moore,Isabelle Lorraine / / M
Agress,Joshua Daniel / / N / 14 / 5
Copel,Sarah Elizabeth / / N
Lehmann,Micah Louis / / N
Nussbaum,Mara Judith / / N
Chan,Urann / / O / 15 / 6
Mukhina,Anna Levouna / / O
Kimbrell,Katherine E / / O
Tereshko,Lauren Rose / / O
Krishnan,Nikhila / / P / 16 / 11
Li,Xinyue / / P
Agha,Moneeza Akbar / / P
Bomsol Lee / / R / 18 / 13
Zayhowski,Kimberly Mai / / R
Dressler,Danielle Beth / / R
Landesman,David Joseph / / R
Lee,Jesse / / S / 19 / 14
Tran,Tony / / S
Saechew,Andrew Yang / / S
Blackett,Nataliya Nikitah / / T / 20 / 10
Groth,Matthew James / / T
Wagenpfeil,Karina Anna / / T

Guidelines for case studies

NBIO 146A

Spring 2015

Presentations should be 10-15 minutes long, using 5-7 slides. Please make sure they will export to Powerpoint in case you want to use the professor’s computer and as a backup in case your computer doesn’t work with the projector. Part of the assignment will be to turn in your presentation as a Powerpoint file (USB preferred) at the end of class. Each group member should present some of the slides. I highly recommend watching the following video for advice on how to prepare a scientific presentation:

The objective of the case studies is to describe:

  1. Symptoms
  2. Diagnosis
  3. Prognosis
  4. Treatment options

Your audience may not know much anatomy or human physiology – please make sure to explain any relevant background information. Please include minimal detail on disease mechanism, only the bare minimum you need to describe diagnosis and treatment. Take some time to look at patient message boards and web sites (see below for example) to see if patient and caregiver experience matches what the medical establishment is telling you.

Individual Written Reports:

Each student will write a ~4 page double-spaced report describing their case study, using the above categories. You are welcome to include figures. Please include references, though these need not be the exhaustive list of primary literature (online resources or review articles are ok). This written report should be your own work, not a group effort. Reports are due by email to by 9AM the day of class.

4 points of your case study grade comes from the peer review form (on LATTE).

6 points of your grade is assigned to the group as a whole for the presentation.

10 points of your grade comes from individual written reports.

Resources

Guidelines for paper presentations

NBIO 146A

Spring 2015

Paper presentations should be 10-15 minutes long, using 6-8 slides. Please make sure they will export to Powerpoint. Part of the assignment will be to turn in your presentation as a Powerpoint file (USB preferred) at the end of class.

There should be 1-2 slides describing the background that led up to the paper, 3-4 slides of data, and 2 slides of conclusions and new questions opened by the paper. Each group member should present some of the slides. I highly recommend watching the following video for advice on how to prepare a scientific presentation:

Give yourselves at least a week to prepare this presentation. Every group member should start by carefully reading the paper, and answering the basic questions (see guidelines for paper summaries). The group should then meet to sort through the following more detailed questions:

  1. What is the relevant background information? Was it adequately presented in the introduction or is additional background information relevant?
  2. What are the important figures? You don’t need to present every single piece of data and supplementary data in the paper.
  3. For each figure you are going to show, how was the experiment done? Use the internet and your group members to help if you are unfamiliar with the details of a technique. What was the conclusion? Write the conclusion in your own words at the bottom of your slide.
  4. What are the take-home messages of the paper that the authors are trying to convey? Do you agree with their conclusions?
  5. What new questions does the paper open up in the field?

Individual Written Reports:

Each student will write a ~5-10 page double-spaced report describing their paper, using the above categories. You are welcome to include screenshots of the figures. This written report should be your own work, not a group effort. Reports are due by email to by 9AM the day of class.

4 points of your case study grade comes from the peer review form (on LATTE).

6 points of your grade is assigned to the group as a whole for the presentation.

10 points of your grade comes from individual written reports.

Resources

Guidelines for paper reports

NBIO 146A

Spring 2015

Paper reports are due from each student by 9 AM the day the paper will be presented in class. The report should be uploaded on LATTE or may also be emailed (less preferred), or handed in on paper (least preferred). Paper reports can be as brief as a few paragraphs or as long as a page or two per paper. The purpose of the paper summary is (A) as a learning tool to solidify your understanding of and thoughts on the paper (B) to show us that you read the paper carefully. If you are unfamiliar with an experimental technique, Google, Wikipedia, or one of the suggested textbooks should be able to help you out.

Here are some questions you might want to answer in your report. It is acceptable to have headings with the following titles, followed by bullet point or paragraph answers:

  1. What was the open question the paper set out to address?
  2. What are the important experiments and findings? You don’t need to regurgitate every single piece of data and supplementary data in the paper, so focus on the interesting and important ones.
  3. What are the take-home messages of the paper that the authors are trying to convey? Do you agree with their conclusions?
  4. What new questions does the paper open up for you or for the field?

Reports will be graded as follows:

0 points if you don’t turn it in or clearly didn’t read the paper

1 point for a cursory description

2 points for addressing all the points above

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