Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology

Chairman Mark B. Moss

Director of Graduate Studies Deborah W. Vaughan

The Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology has consistently been ranked among the top-funded departments of anatomy nationally. The relatively small size of the department ensures close contact between graduate students and their advisors. The department specializes in the neurosciences, aging, development, and cell and molecular biology. Specific areas of research include: examination of connections and immunocytochemistry of specific parts of the nervous system such as the cerebral cortex, temporal lobe, basal forebrain, auditory system, and facial motor system; development of the visual cortex; neurobiological basis of memory; pulmonary cell biology including neuroendocrine regulation of lung development and innervation of the lungs; the developmental biology of macrophages; development of the retina; and the neurobiological basis of normal aging and age-related disorders including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and cerebrovascular dementia. Courses are offered in human gross anatomy, microscopic anatomy, neurosciences, cell biology, techniques in neuroscience, neural development and plasticity, neurobiology of aging, neurobiologic basis of neurologic disease, neurobiology of memory, and special topics in anatomy and neurobiology.

Admission Procedures

The procedures for admission to the graduate programs in anatomy and neurobiology are described in the in the "Academic Policies and Procedures" section. Interviews are recommended for Graduates to the MA and PhD programs and are required for applicants to the MD/PhD program. Admissions and other matters relating to graduate study are reviewed by the Graduate Advisory Committee of the department.

Core Course Requirements

Most students entering the program are expected to take three of the following courses: gross anatomy, microscopic anatomy, neuroscience, and cell biology during the first two years of study. Students may be excused from taking one or more of these courses if it is deemed that an equivalent course has been successfully completed in the preceding five years.

Additional Course Requirements

In addition to the core courses, doctoral students must enroll in at least three other graduate courses offered by members of the faculty of the department. Also, student attendance at all departmental and student seminars (research colloquia) is required. Students usually choose a research advisor at the end of the first year and begin their research experience during the first summer.

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Courses

GMS AN 500S Microscopic Anatomy
Prereq: CLA BI 203 and consent of instructor. Morphological and functional histology of tissues and organs. Lectures and coordinated laboratory study. Microscopes required. Loan collection of slides provided. Vaughan, staff. 4 cr, Summer sem.

GMS AN 701 Gross Anatomy
Prereq: consent of instructor. Human anatomy in three units: locomotion, which includes arms, legs, and back; head and neck; thorax, abdomen, and pelvis. Blatt, staff. 6 cr, 1st sem.

GMS AN 702 Neurobiology of Learning and Memory
Prereq: consent of instructor. This course covers the neurobiological bases of learning and memory from the cellular to the systems level. Initial sessions cover the behavioral aspects of learning and memory--how it is operationally defined and what are the different theoretical concepts from cognitive psychology that are current. Subsequent sessions investigate the neurophysiological, neuroanatomical, and neurochemical mechanisms of memory at the cellular level and then move on to the study of systems that function at the level of the whole organism. Concentration is on studies in mammals, particularly primates. Moss, Rosene. 2 cr, 2nd sem.

GMS AN 705, 706 Microscopic Anatomy of Tissues and Organs
Prereq: consent of instructor. Lecture and laboratory study of tissue and organ functional histology, with emphasis on both light and electron microscopy. Loan collection of slides provided. Vaughan. 6 cr, 1st sem.

GMS AN 707 Neurobiology of Aging
Prereq: consent of instructor. With growing awareness of an accelerating increase in the size of the elderly population, there has been increasing interest in the neuropsychology of normal aging. Similarly, since aging is a major risk-factor for many dementia states, interest has also focused on the neuropsychology of age-related disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and the Dementias of the frontal lobe type. This course attempts to summarize what is known about cognitive and related changes associated with normal aging and age-related disease. The course is divided into four major sections. The first considers the cognitive changes associated with normal aging; the second deals with the most common causes of cognitive decline seen in the elderly; the third reviews the current data concerning neuro-imaging in aging and dementia, and the fourth part covers future directions in the study of normal aging. Moss. 2 cr, 2nd sem.

GMS AN 709 Neural Development and Plasticity
Prereq: GMS MS 703 and consent of instructor. Lectures, discussion, and readings on current issues relating to neural changes during development and how the nervous system is modified by interactions of the organism with the environment, and how the nervous system responds to injury. Emphasis on cellular and systems levels of organization. Payne, staff. 2 cr, 2nd sem.

GMS AN 801, 802 Seminar: Research Colloquium
Oral presentation and discussion by students and staff members of topics of interest in anatomy and allied fields. Sandell. 2 cr each, 1st & 2nd sem.

GMS AN 803, 804 Special Topics in Anatomy
Presentation of problems of current interest in anatomical science offered to small groups of students at the instigation of either interested faculty or students. Examples of topics that might be discussed are: differentiation; aging in specific areas of the brain; electron microscopy; fine structure of neurons; biology of the lung; and retinal biology. Peters. 1st & 2nd sem.

GMS AN 807 Neurobiology of the Visual System
Prereq: GMS MS 703 or consent of instructor. This is a seminar for graduate students in all departments who have had a basic neuroscience course and are interested in the anatomical and physiological substrates of vision. Study of the visual system progresses from the retina through the thalamus and brainstem to cortical visual areas and associated structures such as the hippocampus, amygdala, and basal ganglia. Students present primary journal articles and occasional reviews with guidance from faculty who are presently engaged in research involving the structures under discussion. Payne, Sandell. 2 cr, 2nd sem.

GMS AN 808 Neuroanatomical Basis of Neurologic Disorders
Prereq: Medical Neuroscience course or equivalent, and consent of instructor. Localization of specific anatomical changes in the brain in such disorders as autism, dyslexia, schizophrenia, olivopontocerebellar atrophy and selected neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and ALS. Developmental mechanisms leading to neuroanatomi-cal alterations are discussed when appropriate. Lectures, discussion of classical and current literature, and guest speakers. Blatt, Kemper. 2 cr, 2nd sem.

GMS AN 901, 902 Anatomy Research
Variable cr

GMS AN 904 Research Practicum
Prereq: consent of instructor. Designed primarily for departmental graduate students to offer them first hand familiarity with a variety of modern experimental techniques. Involves both participation in and observation of the techniques together with discussion and readings. Staff. 2 cr, 2nd sem.

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Faculty

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