BIOTECHNOLOGY in Clinical Medicine

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Academic year 2021/2022
Dipartimento di Medicina Interna e Specialità Mediche
Sapienza Università di Roma
EQF level: 8
37° cicle
Field of study: health and pharmacy
Place of teaching
roma (RM), italy
Duration of the course
Nov 2021 - Oct 2024
Attendance methods
Full time
Languages in which the course is held
Italian
Deadline (Expired)
20 July 2021
Cost
Free course
Scholarships
6 

Course contents

The Ph.D. training program in 'BIOTECHNOLOGY IN CLINICAL MEDICINE' aims to train Ph.D. students to translate science into clinical medicine. Sequencing of the human genome, and the advance in the human proteomic map characterization represents a unique opportunity for medical science. However, the translation of scientific advance into clinical medicine remains a formidable challenge. A great effort of interaction of basic knowledge with clinical application is required. Strong cultural commitment is necessary in order to create a new job profile able to select the innovative technologies produced by researchers, that could quickly generate clinical application in the therapeutic and diagnostic fields. This interdepartmental doctorate is aimed at improving the knowledge and the expertise of post-graduate students in different fields of basic and clinical research, such as gastroenterology, pneumology, neurology and, particularly, immuno-mediated diseases with genetic basis. Main goals of the theoretical-practical course are to make students able to apply experimental protocols of research and to manage ethiopathogenetic, diagnostic and therapeutic problems of pediatrics. For this purpose, experts in the fields of molecular and cellular biology, genetics, immunology and, of course, clinical sciences will give lessons, also in view of the recent concept that many gastrointestinal, pneumological and neurological diseases share a common pathogenetic substrate derived from a dysregulated immune response.
Students will be familiar with the most common techniques of the basic research which are necessary to carry out studies aimed at investigating the pathogenesis and at opening new frontiers in the diagnostic and therapeutic approaches of pediatric immune-mediated diseases.
Specific objectives will be:
- the assessing of genetic and molecular mechanisms potentially responsible of a dysregulated immune response underlying the pathogenesis of many immuno-mediated diseases;
- the theoretical and practical learning of bio-molecular, histomorphological, histochemical, >immunohistochemical and ultrastructure methodologies to study tissue damage and repairing in the above mentioned pediatric areas;
- the knowledge of histological, immunohistological and molecular markers with prognostic value in the diseases of specific pediatric areas;

Every student will be tutored since the beginning of the doctorate course to carry out a personal advanced research project that will be submitted and periodically valued by the College of teachers. To realize the project student will be allowed to perform stages at national and international research centres. The PhD degree will be accomplished only after the publication of the doctoral project in a peer review journal. It is also mandatory the presentation of the results of the doctoral project in an International Meeting as oral abstract or poster.
The student must also attend scientific events such as journal club, lessons of Master courses, national and international meetings.

The main targets of the program are:

a) teach medicine to scientists;
b) teach science to physicians;
c) meet the higher demand for new teaching academic models for the 'translational medicine';
d) realize a perfect interaction between the biomolecular and clinical teaching paths;
e) create a new professional profile in the biomedical field, representing an expert in 'translational medicine'.

The proposed Ph.D. training program in 'Biotechnology applied to Clinical Medicine' finds its scientific objectives in the following research fields:

a) Metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular pathology

Understanding molecular mechanisms underlying the metabolic syndrome is essential to pursuinge the following targets:

-identification of subjects at risk to develop the metabolic syndrome and/or cardiovascular disease;
-identification of preventive strategies to be applied on subjects at risk;
-identification of the subjects with higher or lower response to pharmacological therapies already used in the treatment of metabolic syndrome, obesity and type 2-diabetes (pharmacogenetics).

The Ph.D. training program is oriented to the study of
-physiopathology of insulin resistance, glycemic homeostasis and of atherosclerosis mechanisms;
-theory, epidemiology and statistics of genetic susceptibility in multi-factorial diseases (complex traits);
-theory and methodology of molecular laboratory (sequencing, mutagenesis, cell cultures, transfection).

As for the cardiovascular field, special focus will be given to the following topics:

-physiopathology of lipid transport of the interaction between lipids and arterial walls;
-study of the mechanisms that modify the levels of cells precursor of endothelium cells;
-genetic epidemiology principles;
-theory and methodology of cell and molecular laboratory applied to atherosclerosis (lipid and lipoprotein biochemistry, methodologies for the study of receptor activities, techniques for enzymes’ activity measurement, sequencing);
-principles of pharmacogenomics applied to atherosclerosis;

b) Familial neoplasia: clinical-genetic-molecular aspects

During the Ph.D. training program special focus will be given to the following general aspects:

-theory, epidemiology and statistics of genetic susceptibility in neoplastic disease;
-a new and better approach aimed at the identification of genes candidates for specific phenotypes of major interest (identification of tumoral biomarkers, proteins, peptides, nucleic acid, etc.)
-development and validation of innovative imaging techniques associated with surgery;
-testing of biotechnological supports (radioactive markers) during surgical operations to identify metastasis;
-theory and methodology of molecular laboratory (sequencing, mutagenesis, cell cultures, transfection, functional study of the signal transmission paths activated/deactivated by oncogenes/antioncogenes identified in specific tumour pathologies), identification of neoplastic markers through proteomic analysis;
-pharmacology principles, in particular pharmacogenetics and pharmacogenomics , pharmaco prevention and other strategies of risk modulation for persons with tendency to neoplastic deseases (inhibitors of known oncogenes tyrosine kinase activity, angiogenesis inhibitors, drugs activating/deactivating hormonal receptors, etc.);
-development of medical and surgical diagnostic procedures and strategies for risk prevention;
-identification of molecular profiles predicting therapeutic response, giving special attention to the study of genomic and proteomic profiles, as predictive response markers for systemic, chemical, hormonal and other treatments;
-development of new drugs and new targeted therapeutic approaches (pharmacogenomics). Stem cells: application on diabetes, differentiation in insulin-secreting cells (beta-cells);

The objective of this Ph.D. training program is to train researchers, who will be able to organize and carry on trials aimed at obtaining insulin-productive cells that could be than transplanted in subjects affected by type-2 diabetes.
In the training program special attention will be given to the following general aspects:
-identification and characterization of progenitor cells secreting insulin;
-isolation and characterization of stem cells from umbilical cord and human pancreas (endocrine, exocrine, of the ducts). Optimization of proliferation and preservation protocols;
-characterization and definition of protocols for the transformation of stem cells into beta-cells;
-cell engineering through gene transfer;
-characterization of cell phenotype obtained with monoclonal antibodies and arrays of gene expression;
-in vivo validation of cells differentiated through transplantation in animal models;
-analysis of the effects of immunosuppressive drugs on the obtained cell lines;
-development of some mechanisms of rejection of transplanted cells.

In the training program special focus will be given to the following general aspects:
1) Scientific and clinical methodology and scientific method: historical development.
2) Applied clinical methodology and decision-making analysis in clinic. The experimental design. Organization and planning. Statistical estimation: concept and objective. Estimation methods. Formulation of statistic hypothesis. Statistic tests and decision-making rules. Decision-making mistakes. Criteria for the choice of the most favorable tests. Tests significance, proof of the hypothesis, confidence areas.
3) Clinical research methodology. Principles of simulation and mathematic modeling of physiological systems. Kinetics enzymatic analysis and gas chromatographic analysis. Radioimmunological analysis. Calorimetric analysis for the study of energy metabolism. Body composition analysis. Immunohistochemical and electro-microscopic analysis. Animal experimentation principles. Randomization methods, double-blind experimentations. Experimental data management. Interpretation and publication of results. Ethics and biomedical research.
4) Application of the previous molecular approaches to the clinical research and definition of new diagnostic-therapeutic application protocols. In this field molecular and clinical basis may be developed for the gene therapy applications.
Page of the course on the University's website

Teaching

Place of teaching
roma (RM), italy
Duration of the course
Nov 2021 - Oct 2024
Attendance methods
Full time
Compulsory attendance
Full Time
Languages in which the course is held
Italian

Admission requirements

Type of degree required
2nd Level Degree
Field of study
information and communication technologies (icts), health and pharmacy
Foreign language skills
English
Obbligatorie. Il candidato, all'atto della domanda di ammissione, dichiara di conoscere la lingua o le lingue straniere da lui specificate.

Admission

Deadline
20 July 2021
Available places
8
Admission
Admission selection
Valutazione titoli I titoli sottoposti a valutazione saranno: 1. Breve curriculum vitae che riporta in particolare il titolo della tesi di laurea o di specializzazione, la frequenza di corsi postlaurea, e le precedenti esperienze di ricerca in Italia e/o all’estero comprensivo della lista delle pubblicazioni (inclusi le presentazioni a congressi), se presenti. 2. Progetto di ricerca. Ai fini della selezione per il dottorato di ricerca, il candidato dovrà presentare un progetto che possa far valutare la propensione del candidato alla ricerca e la sua capacità di progettare e organizzare in autonomia le diverse fasi del progetto. Il progetto non dovrà superare la lunghezza massima di 8000 caratteri (spazi inclusi). Il progetto presentato ai fini concorsuali non costituisce obbligo, per i candidati ammessi, nello svolgimento dell’attività di ricerca nel corso del dottorato Prova scritta Il candidato dovrà svolgere un tema su un argomento estratto a sorte tra 3 proposti dalla Commissione. Gli argomenti saranno scelti tra le seguenti tematiche: 1. La medicina di precisione (aspetti genetici ed epigenetici) 2. Le basi genetiche ed epigenetiche della patologia oncologica 3. I meccanismi immunologici delle malattie croniche del bambino e dell’adulto 4. Aspetti clinicodiagnostici delle malattie del metabolismo 5. I marcatori genetici e biochimici del rischio cardiovascolare 6. Le metodiche di imaging in vivo e loro applicazioni alle patologie cardiovascolari e neoplastiche 7. Le metodologie di studio del genoma e della sua variabilita’ [analisi a livello genomico di SNPs e CNV; tecniche di analisi della metilazione del DNA; studio del microbioma; tecniche next generation sequencing per il sequenziamento del genoma e/o dell’esoma] 8. Approcci diagnostici e terapeutici innovativi (cellule staminali, microRNA, terapie molecolari) applicati alle patologie oncologiche, cardiovascolari, infiammatorie e endocrinologiche) 9. Le metodologie di studio delle patologie a genetica complessa 10. Metodologie di studio della fisiopatologia metabolica (utilizzo in viso di traccianti non isotopici, clamp-euglicemico iperinsulinemico, valutazione del dispendio energetico e del metabolismo basale, composizione corporea). 11. L’utilizzo di database informatizzati per la valutazione di esiti clinici nel modo reale: l’approccio ai big data Per lo svolgimento del tema il candidato avrà a disposizione al massimo 4 ore lingua ITALIANO Prova orale La prova orale si baserà su: 1. Discussione del contenuto della prova scritta 2. Valutazione delle precedenti esperienze di ricerca del candidato con eventuale discussione delle pubblicazioni se riportate 3. Discussione della proposta di progetto di ricerca 4. Test di conoscenza della lingua inglese lingua ITALIANO
Cost
Free course
Scholarships
6

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Notes
Sede del corso: Roma
Other editions of the same course
Academic year edition 2023/2024Academic year edition 2022/2023Academic year edition 2020/2021
Chiudi