SYSTEMATIC AND APPLIED HUMAN BIOCHEMISTRY

To provide students with adequate knowledge of the metabolic processes and control mechanisms of metabolism to deal with successive studies on the effects of drugs, their mechanism of action and on their design.

• Introduction to metabolism: catabolic processes, biosynthetic, anfibolici.
• Coenzymes and their role in metabolism: DPT, pyridoxal phosphate, NAD, NADP, FAD, CoA, water soluble vitamins and fat soluble (structure, functions and deficiency states).
• Energy metabolism: mitochondrial respiratory chain and its regulation, inhibitors and uncoupling; Energy-rich compounds.
• Carbohydrate metabolism and its regulation: - Structure, nomenclature and functions of the main carbohydrates of biological interest; Digestion and absorption of carbohydrates; glycogen synthesis, glycogenolysis, glycolysis, Krebs cycle, pentose, gluconeogenesis. Hormonal regulation of glucose metabolism.
• Protein metabolism and its regulation: Desaminazione, transamination, the metabolic fate of ammonia, urea cycle, metabolism of the major amino acids. Phenylketonuria and celiac disease.
• Lipid metabolism and its regulation: Structure, nomenclature, functions and classification of the major lipids of biological interest; Transport of lipids in the blood (plasma lipoproteins); Beta-oxidation, alpha-omega-oxidation and oxidation of saturated fatty acids; Ketogenesis and utilization of ketone bodies; lipogenesis; Cholesterol biosynthesis and its regulation; Diseases caused by abnormal lipid metabolism (dyslipidemia and atherosclerosis.)
• Nucleotide metabolism and its regulation: ex-novo biosynthesis of purine and pyrimidine nucleotides, routes of recovery, uric acid biosynthesis.
• Free radicals and defense mechanisms: definition and physico-chemical characteristics of free radicals, endogenous production, toxicity and defense mechanisms (enzymatic and non-enzymatic)
• Heme metabolism: biosynthesis, degradation, jaundice, porphyrias.
• Metabolism correlations: role of the liver in energy homeostasis.

• “Biochimica” (D. Voet e J.G. Voet) – ed. Zanichelli;
• "BIOCHIMICA con aspetti clinici-farmaceutici" (T.M. Devlin) - EdiSES;
• “Biochimica” (C.K. Mathews e K.E. van Holde – ed. Casa Edistrice Ambrosiana);
• “Fondamenti di Biochimica” (D. Voet, J.G. Voet e C.W. Pratt – ed. Zanichelli);
• “Fondamenti di Biochimica” (P. Ritter – ed. Zanichelli).
• “Biochimica Medica” (N. Siliprandi, e G. Tettamanti) - ed. Piccin.