The following 6 mandatory courses will be proposed:
- Functional Neuroanatomy
- Neuron, Glia, and Neuron-Glia Interaction
- Molecular Neuroscience
- Structural Neuroimaging
- Nanotechnologies for Neurobiology / NeuroMedicine
- PhD Program Seminar
Course I. Functional Neuroanatomy
In the frame of theoretical course of “Functional Neuroanatomy” the students will obtain knoweldge about the function of each major brain division / system as related to the structural organization, chemistry and synaptic connections of their principal nuclei. Each division, principal nuclei or systems should be discussed in relation with various neurological disorders or brain lessions. The students will learn the neuroanatomy of different brain regions, and how this anatomy is related to function; how the brain areas are interconnected; which techniques should be used for the investigation of the brain and for which purpose. Special accent will be made on neurocytology of concrete regions of the brain and connections between neurocytological features and region’s function.
Course II. Neuron, Glia, and Neuron-Glia Interaction
In the frame of courses the student will gain theoretical knowledge about glial cells, their structure, function, communications with neurons, participation in numerous physiological processes and the development of pathologies. Glial cells have been traditionally believed to have solely support functions, such as clearing neurotransmitters and ions from the synaptic cleft. Recently, however, glial cells have also been shown to have an active role in regulating synaptic development, regeneration, and physiological function. Furthermore, astrocytes were implicated in regulating the critical periods of synaptic plasticity in the visual and other systems of the brain. Astroglial cells are in fact the stem elements from which neurons are born. They also create the compartmentalization of the CNS and integrate neurons, synapses and brain capillaries into inter-dependent functional units. Advances in microscopy allow one to probe the structure of neurons and their interactions with astrocytes in brain and reveal some newest aspects in glia – neuron communications. In the frame of this course students will be introduced to all properties of glial cells.
Course III. Molecular Neuroscience
The advanced course on Molecular Neuroscience aims to give the students the knowledge of current topics of molecular biology applied to the nervous system research. The course will be also the introduction of a variety of corresponding research techniques and their applications. The course will cover such topics as molecular neuroanatomy, mechanisms of molecular signaling in the nervous system, the effects of genetics and epigenetics on neuronal development, the molecular basis for neuroplasticity and neurodegenerative diseases.
Course IV. Structural Neuromaging
The Course will be divided into three parts: The fist part will be a short theoretical introduction into Neuroscience and Neuroanatomy. This part will cover the most significant properties of brain sturcture: functional division, physiology / cellular physology / neurocytology, and the organization of the most relevant fuctional networks of the brain. This part will be mostly aimed to repeat the main issues of these fields, rather then to introduce them as a new knowledge.
In the second part the course will introduce several the most relevant experimental techniques used in structural neuroimaging. The main focus will be made on (i) atomic force microscopy (AFM)-based techniques – such as measurements of viscoelasticity, mechanical forces; imaging of proteins, bacteria, and mammalian cells; protein-protein interaction force measurements; mechanical properties measurements; finite element stimulations for AFM data validations; stiffness tomography; determination of bacterial sensitivity to antibiotics and others; testing of drug effect on neuron nanoarchitecture and others; (ii) TEM -based techniques – for to elucidation the ultrastructure of duifferent types of neurons, synapses, glial cells, and other structural elements in norm and pathologies; the utrastructural orgnization of different sub-cellular substructures in norm and under different pathological and physiological conditions; (iii) Array Tomography – the high-throughput proteometric imaging method of tissue molecular architecture.
Course V. Nanotechnologies for Medicine
This course will be introductory and will cover the basic principles, applications and needs of Nanomedicine. In particular, during this course students will get theoretical knowledge about following issues: – The Nanotechonology revolution in Medicine; Nanocarriers / Nanoparticles; – Chemistry of Nanocarriers / Nanoparticles; – Theranostics; – Multifunctionalities for Nanodiagnostics and Nanotherapy; – Nanocarriers and Biological Barriers; – Nanotargeting; – Nanosensing, Nanosensors; – Multimodal NanoBiomedical Imaging; – NanoPharmacotherapy; – Gene Therapy; – Stem Cell Nanotechnology; – Tissue NanoEngineering; – Nanotoxicity; – The most relevant projects of Nanomedicine.
Course VI. Ph.D. Program Seminar
It will be mandatory for eah PhD student to give at least three scientific presentions. Working language will be Georgian or English. The topics shoud be relevant with the field of research but directly unrelated. The two main goals will be achieved with this seminar: (i) students will be offered an overview of the different fields of Cellular Neuroscience / NanoNeuroScience, (ii) students will have the possibility to strengthen their competencies concerning research and preparation of talks.