Qualification objective
The central concept of this module is to teach important molecular mechanisms of the nervous system based on diseases. Participants first acquire basic knowledge of the nervous system. First, an overview of the development and anatomy of the central and peripheral nervous system is given. On this basis, basic molecular mechanisms of the nervous system are then discussed. In the second part of the lecture series, current topics in neuroscience will be discussed on the basis of various neurological diseases. This will enable participants to understand and critically discuss current specialist literature and provide them with a state-of-the-art overview of important mechanisms of neurological diseases.
In the internship with seminar, knowledge of the structure of the nervous system is deepened using macroscopic and histological preparations. Primary neurons and glial cells are cultivated in the laboratory and used to design a cellular model for a neurodegenerative disease. This model is then used with various methods (morphometry, analysis of signal transduction) and the results are critically discussed. In an accompanying journal club, we will discuss current publications directly related to the topics of the internship. The participants will present a paper together in groups of two. Furthermore, the current research projects of the Institute of Neuroanatomy will be presented and discussed.

Competencies
After successfully completing the module, students will be able to

• name molecular mechanisms of important neurological diseases and define current problems,
• model and solve problems relating to the topics of the module (in particular disease models),
• apply and critically analyze current methods of neurobiological research,
• critically evaluate experiments, data and concepts from current literature.