E0300 Metabolic and Protein Biomarkers

Faculty of Science
Spring 2022
Extent and Intensity
2/0/0. 2 credit(s) (plus extra credits for completion). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
PharmDr. Zdeněk Spáčil, Ph.D. (lecturer)
doc. RNDr. Pavel Čupr, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
doc. RNDr. Pavel Čupr, Ph.D.
RECETOX – Faculty of Science
Contact Person: PharmDr. Zdeněk Spáčil, Ph.D.
Supplier department: RECETOX – Faculty of Science
Timetable
Fri 13:00–14:50 D29/252-RCX1
Prerequisites
The concept of this highly multidisciplinary subject is based on the knowledge of "classical" disciplines of science, particularly environmental chemistry, biochemistry, molecular and cell biology, toxicology or microbiology. Therefore, the prior completion of biological, chemical and medical subjects is an indisputable advantage and a prerequisite for an easy understanding of the topics lectured within this subject.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The main objective is to explain the interaction of chemicals within the organism, happening on the inside of biological barriers at all hierarchical levels i.e. from the molecular and cellular level to the level of the whole organism.
Learning outcomes
Students completing the course will be able to:

- to utilize knowledge in environmental chemistry to further extend the concept of external exposure to chemicals from the environment with new components of internal exposure and its possible direct impacts on the organism

- to understand the main exposure pathways the surrounding chemicals use to enter the human body, including the basic mechanisms of bioavailability

- to develop knowledge about kinetics and the effect of pollutants in the organism and their distribution among individual body compartments

- to know the nature of the transport through biological membranes and to distinguish between concepts of external exposure, bioavailability and internal exposure to chemicals in the body

- to understand the practical aspects of modern approaches to internal exposure analysis

- to divide environmental pollutants into groups in terms of the exposure pathway and the nature of the effect of their internal exposure

- to apply knowledge from other disciplines and generate new links to other disciplines
Syllabus
  • 1. Introduction to internal factors altering effects of toxic substances in the organism and the division of chemicals into groups in terms of exposure pathway (1 lesson)
  • 2. Mechanisms of biological membrane transport: types of transport across lipid biomembranes and their dependence on physicochemical properties of chemicals (1 lesson)
  • 3. Factors influencing kinetics (i.e. absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination) of chemical pollutants within the individual compartments: basic kinetic parameters and their practical significance (1 lesson)
  • 4. Practical aspects and modern applications of bioanalytical methods: immunoanalytical, separation and mass spectrometry (1 lesson)
  • 5. Metabolism - explanation of basic concepts: phenotype, metabolite, metabolome, metabolic profiling, analysis targeted / non-target, differential, qualitative, quantitative (1 lesson)
  • 6. Metabolism of chemical pollutants and their effects on specific metabolic pathways (1 lesson)
  • 7. Metabolic pathways affected by gut microbiome (e.g. tryptophan, bile acid metabolism), methods of study of microbial influence on human health (1 lesson)
  • 8. Proteomics - introduction to basic concepts: top-down, bottom-up, targeted/non-targeted approaches to evaluation of protein markers of internal exposure (1 lesson)
  • 9. The explanation of the interrelationship within the so-called “omics” cascade (genomics-epigenomics-transcriptomics-metabolomics) (1 lesson)
  • 10. The concept of Exposome – i.e. complex and interdisciplinary assessment of life-course environmental exposures (i.e. pollutants, microbiota, diet, behavior, endogenous processes) (1 lesson)
  • 11. Application of concepts of system biology and personalized medicine and their practical aspects (1 lesson)
  • 12. Discussion with a world-renowned expert on the future use of newly acquired knowledge (1 lesson)
Literature
    recommended literature
  • Základní a aplikovaná farmakologie. Edited by Dagmar Lincová - Hassan Farghali. 1. vyd. Praha: Galén, 2002, xxiv, 601. ISBN 8024605384. info
  • Natural biomarkers for cellular metabolism : biology, techniques, and applications. Edited by Vladimir V. Ghukasyan - Ahmed A. Heikal. Boca Raton: CRC Press, 2015, xxvii, 380. ISBN 9781466509986. info
  • Metabonomics and gut microbiota in nutrition and disease. Edited by Sunil Kochhar - François-Pierre Martin. London: Humana Press, 2015, xvi, 375. ISBN 9781447171058. info
  • Dettmer, K.; Aronov, P. A.; Hammock, B. D. Mass Spectrom. Rev. 2007, 26 (1), 51–78.
  • Musilová, J.; Glatz, Z. Chem. List. 2011, 105, 745–751.
Teaching methods
The course is taught in form of Powerpoint presentation by lecturers(s). The emphasis is placed on basic mechanistic understanding of principles and broader context. Students are frequently asked questions to encourage thinking on the actual topic and strengthen the interaction with the lecturer.
Assessment methods
Lectures are not compulsory, but strongly recommended to understand discussed topics, which are based on multiple scientific resources due to the interdisciplinary nature of the course. The emphasis is placed on interaction with students to encourage discussion on the subject. The final assessment (at the end of the semester) is in the form of a written exam, which usually consists of 50 questions, many of which require a verbal answer explaining the problem. Questions have various difficulties with corresponding score value (i.e. 1 – 3 points). The total of 100 points can be achieved and successful completion of the course requires at least 50 points.
Language of instruction
Czech
Follow-Up Courses
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
The course is taught annually.
Teacher's information
https://is.muni.cz/auth/predmet/sci/akreditace2017podzim/E0300
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2021.
  • Enrolment Statistics (recent)
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