Sylabus

Course: Endocrinology, Biology 303

Instructor: Dr. Ed Devlin

Website: http://people.hsc.edu/faculty-staff/edwardd/edsweb01/index.htm

Office: Gilmer 107, 6173, edevlin@hsc.edu

Course Objectives

The central theme of the study of endocrinology involves the role to the chemical messengers, the agents of action in the endocrine system. Historically the endocrine and other organ systems like the nervous system have been considered as separate entities. Today, we must consider and organism to be an integrated playing field for chemical bioregulators produced by a variety of tissues and organs. One example of this integration is seen in the interrelatedness of the nervous and endocrine systems or the study of neuroendocrinology.

With this integration of systems, the concept of which players are involved in the endocrine system has expanded from the “classical” concept of a few dedicated endocrine organs, to a “non-classical” view which encompasses a variety of organs and tissues as signal-generators and signal receptors. In this course we will examine the function of normal vertebrate endocrine systems as well as clinical disorders that result from endocrine system imbalance.

Texts

There are a number of encyclopedic texts on Endocrinology available that are primarily geared to the medical student. Our course, on the other hand, is an undergraduate, biology majors course and as such is a more general course on vertebrate endocrinology. I looked for a text that was geared to the undergraduate student and was broad-based in its approach. Endocrinology by Hadley and Levine (2007) is now in its sixth edition and is probably the most widely used undergraduate Endocrinology text, and it looks good to me. You will be supplied with a copy of the lab manual that is required for the course.

Laboratory

The laboratory is an integral part of the course. You will find it difficult to do well in the course without mastering the lab material and techniques. The laboratory consists is all experimentally based using a number of cell and animal-based model systems. There are no lab manuals for an undergraduate course in endocrinology, so I have been developing them. Several will be new this semester and such will be truly experimental in nature. The outcome of most of the labs depends to a large degree on our ability to manipulate live organisms. Laboratory attendance is mandatory, you cannot receive a passing grade with any unexcused absences in the lab.

Grading

Four Lecture Exams 52%

Laboratory 28%

Lab Notebook (13%)

Research Paper and Presentation (15%)

Cumulative Final 20%

100%

LECTURE TOPICS AND SCHEDULE

Class Meeting Daily Topics Chapters/Assignments

1. Introduction 1

2. Introduction Continued 1, Assignment #1

3. Control of Hormone Production 2

4. Classes of Hormones 2

5. How Hormones Work 3, Assignment #2

6. Cell Signaling 3

7. More Cell Signaling 3

8. The Master Gland 5, Assignment #3

9. Introduction to the Pituitary 5

10. Exam I --

11. Pituitary Hormones 5

12. Introduction to the Hypothalamus 6, Assignment #4

13. Hypothalamic Systems 6

14. Hormones of the Hypothalamus 7

15. Hypothalmic Function 7

16. Melanocortins 8

17. Introduction to Ca⁺⁺ Homeostasis 9, Assignment #5

18. More Ca⁺⁺ Homeostasis 9

19. Intercellular Ca⁺⁺ 9

20. Exam II --

21. Hormones of the Gut 10, Assignment #6

22. Regulation of Gut Hormones 10

23. Introduction to the Pancreas 11

24. Pancreatic Hormones 11, Assignment #7

25. Introduction to Growth Hormones 12

26. Classes of Growth Hormones 12

27. Introduction to the Thyroid 13, Assignment #8

28. More Thyroid Hormones 13

29. Adrenal Medulla 14

30. Exam III --

31. Hormones of the Adrenal Medulla 14, Assignment #9

32. Adrenal Cortex 15

33. Adrenal Steroid Hormones 15

34. More on Steroid Hormone Function 15, Assignment #10

35. Introduction to Male Hormones 17

36. Androgen Metabolism 17

37. Introduction to Female Hormones 18, Assignment #11

38. Female Reproductive System 18

39. Control of Female Repro System 18

40. Introduction to the Pineal Gland 20, Assignment #12

41. Exam IV --

42. Review

LABORATORY SCHEDULE

Lab Number Date Topic

1. Aug 27 Thyroxin and Xenopus Development

2. Sept 3 Insulin and Calcium Signaling in Cells

3. Sept 17 Endocrine Anatomy

4. Sept 24 Endocrine Histology

5. Oct 1 Glucose Tolerance

6. Oct 8 Pancreatic Function in Mammals

7. Oct 15 Pancreatic Function Continued

8. Oct 29 Thyroid Function in Small Mammals

9. Nov 5 Cortisol and Stress in Mice, Blood Cells

10. Nov 12 Cortisol and Stress in Humans, Saliva

11. Nov 19 Hormones of the Male Reproductive System

12. Nov 26 Buffer Lab

13. Dec 3 Presentations

14. Dec 10 Presentations

Please note that I am continuing to develop these labs this semester and you will get updates as needed before a given scheduled lab. It’s a good idea to organize the labs in a lab notebook that you can get from the bookstore.

1. Introduction, this should be very short and done before the scheduled lab.

2. Methods, this should take the form of a flow chart, done before scheduled lab

3. Results, including all data collected and real-time observations made during the lab.

4. Discussion/Conclusion/Answer Questions (if lab has questions)

Presentation/Paper

Each student is required to write a research paper and make a PowerPoint presentation on their research topic during one of the last two lab periods. The topic of the paper is one you select that deals with some aspect of neuroendocrinology. Your paper should take the format of a detailed literature review of some area of interest you have or that you develop during the semester.

You may start your literature search by looking at appropriate journals in our library. This should be followed by a computer literature search using the various one-line services available online. Note that most of the literature sources will not be found in our library and must be ordered in from surrounding libraries. Therefore it is very important to start your search as soon early in the semester as possible.

Another aspect of this paper is that the literature used must be primary literature from refereed journals. While many online journals are available and may be used, many of the more common websites and references may not be used. The format for the references you cite in your paper should follow the format used in the literature cited section of any of the major journals you have used.

By mid-semester you should hand in a short general outline for your paper. Your papers are due the day of the final exam. A PowerPoint presentation of your paper will be given to the class in the last two weeks during lab. Any new ideas resulting from your presentation should be integrated into your final draft of your paper.