Collaborative Graduate Program

Pathology and Experimental Medicine

This is a collaborative program in Pathology and Experimental Medicine leading to an MSc or PhD degree in one of the primary programs (Biochemistry; Cellular and Molecular Medicine; Microbiology and Immunology or Neuroscience). The emphasis of this collaborative program is on the training of graduate students in the field of pathology and experimental medicine with the aim of providing them with the knowledge and skills to examine the basic mechanisms of disease pathology, and to develop new strategies for prevention and treatment.

Faculty members include basic and clinical scientists with interests in cancer, emerging pathogens, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases.

Members of the Collaborative Program: Christina Addison, John Bell, Hsiao-Huei Chen, Manijeh Daneshmand, Adolfo deBold, Mercedes deBold, Joseph deNanassy, Francisco Diaz-Mitoma, Jim Dimitroulakos, Doug Gray, Gerard Jansen, Marko Kryworuchko, Ashok Kumar, Thomas Lagacé, Marc-André Langlois, Qiao Li, Ian Lorimer, Yves Marcel, Celia Marginean, Heidi McBride, Michael McBurney, Bruce McKay, Jean Michaud, Ross Milne, Rudolf Mueller, Ruth Padmore, Christine Pratt, Olga Pulido, Luc Sabourin, Michael Schlossmacher, Daniel Sparks, Erik Suuronen, Baltwant Tuana, Barbara Vanderhyden, John Veinot, Zemin Yao, John Woulfe , Wandong Zhang.

Admission

Candidates should indicate in their application form that they wish to be accepted into the collaborative program.

To be admitted students must:

Be admitted to one of the primary programs participating in the collaborative program.
The thesis supervisor must be a member of the Pathology and Experimental Medicine program.

For admission questions please contact: grad.med@uottawa.ca

Financial Support

All students accepted into the collaborative program will be provided with financial support as per the regulations of the respective primary programs.

Requirements of the Collaborative Program

The curriculum requirements of the primary programs include two courses, a seminar course, and a thesis. Students in the collaborative program must meet the requirements of their primary programby completing one Pathology and Experimental Medicine specialization course as one of the two required courses, the Pathology and Experimental Medicine seminar course in lieu of the primary program seminar course, and a thesis on a research project in the area of Pathology and Experimental Medicine.

Master’s Degree Requirements

The following requirements must be met:

One course (3 cr.) in the primary program.
One Pathology and Experimental Medicine specialization course.
Successful completion of the Pathology and Experimental Medicine seminar course.
Preparation and defense of a thesis, under the supervision of a professor who is a member of the Pathology and Experimental Medicine program. The thesis must be relevant to the focus of the Pathology and Experimental Medicine program and may be written in English or in French, in accordance with the general regulations of the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies.

PhD Requirements

The following requirements must be met:

One course (3 cr.) in the primary program.
One Pathology and Experimental Medicine specialization course.
Successful completion of the Pathology and Experimental Medicine seminar course.
Successful completion of the Comprehensive Examination as required by the respective primary program. At least one of the examiners must be a member of the Pathology and Experimental Medicine program.
Preparation and defense of a thesis under the supervision of a professor who is a member of the Pathology and Experimental Medicine program. The thesis must be relevant to the focus of the Pathology and Experimental Medicine program and may be written in English or in French, in accordance with the general regulations of the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies.

Requirements for transfer

Transfer from the MSc to the PhD program without writing the MSc thesis is permitted, and will follow the regulations of the primary programs, which include:

1. Successful completion of the seminar and courses required for the MSc program.
2. Satisfactory progress in the research program, which is presented as a progress report.
3. Preparation and defense of a research proposal for the PhD program.
4. Recommendation by the Thesis Advisory Committee

Specialization Courses

CMM5001
The Pathological Basis of Disease (3 cr.)
An introductory course to general pathology for graduate students in the life sciences. This course teaches fundamental concepts of the basis of disease as viewed from a general pathology perspective. It provides 3-hour weekly lectures during the winter term dealing with manifestation of disease at the macroscopic and microscopic levels. Background lectures are given on the morphology of normal tissues and organs and in investigative approaches used. General Pathology of the following topics is discussed in the different lectures: 1. Hypertrophy, atrophy, hyperplasia, aplasia, metaplasia, dysplasia, neoplasia. 2. Storage diseases. 3. Extracellular space pathologies. 4. Cell injury, necrosis and apoptosis. 5. Inflammation and edema. 6. Repair. 7. Immunopathology. 8. Neoplasia. Benign, malignant. 9. Blood vessels. Hemostasis, thrombosis and embolism. Atherosclerosis and arteriosclerosis. Heart disease. Heart failure, pathological hypertrophy, ischemic heart disease, infarction, myocarditis, cardiomyopathies, valvular disease. 10. Neuropathology. 11. Hematopathology. 12. Toxins/environmental injury. 13. Genetic Diseases.

CMM5315
CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR BASIS OF CARDIOVASCULAR FUNCTION/DYSFUNCTION (3cr.)
Mechanism of failing heart and cardiovascular system, its associated functions and associated conditions. Therapies for restoring function. Topics include: regulation of heart development, cell signaling, cellular and molecular mechanisms of atherosclerosis and heart disease, hormonal regulation, hypertension, bioenergetics, cardiovascular genomics and genetics, cell therapy, and regenerative medicine.

CMM5105
INTRODUCTION TO CANCER BIOLOGY (3cr.)
An introduction to the biology of cancer. Major topics in cancer biology include the following: tumor suppression/oncogenes; apoptosis in cancer; cell immortalization and senesence; genomic instability; multistep tumorigenesis/inflammation in cancer; biology of angiogenesis; rational therapies.

CMM8105
ADVANCED TOPICS IN CANCER BIOLOGY (3cr.)
Advanced study of recent developments in the field of cancer biology with emphasis on cellular and molecular aspects. Specific topics to be covered include: angiogenesis, apoptosis, cancer genetics, cell signaling, genetic instability, oncogenes and tumour suppressors.

BCH8107
ADVANCED TOPICS IN STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION OF PLASMA LIPOPROTEINS (3cr.)
Recent advances in our knowledge of the plasma lipoproteins with a special emphasis on their role in the etiology of atherosclerosis. The subject will be introduced by an overview of the general structural properties of lipoproteins which will be followed by detailed discussion of the structure, metabolism and genetics of the apolipoproteins, the proteins and enzymes that modify lipoproteins and cell surface lipoprotein receptors. Other topics will include cholesterol homeostasis, plasma cholesterol transport and disorders of lipoprotein metabolism.

PEM5366S
Seminar Course (3cr.)
Presentation of one seminar and one poster required during the year as well as regular attendance at the departmental seminar series of the student’s primary program. Active participation in the annual Pathology Research Day of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. Seminar and poster presentations by the students will be organized by the Pathology and Experimental Medicine program and evaluated by Pathology and Experimental Medicine members. Compulsory for students enrolled in the MSc program.

PEM8366S
Seminar Course (3cr.)
Presentation of one seminar and one poster required during the year as well as regular attendance at the departmental seminar series of the student’s primary program. Active participation in the annual Pathology Research Day of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. Seminar and poster presentations by the students will be organized by the Pathology and Experimental Medicine program and evaluated by Pathology and Experimental Medicine members. Compulsory for students enrolled in the PhD program.

Graduate Medical Education

The Pathological Basis of Disease Course. Winter 2012.
Coordinator: Adolfo J. de Bold. Tel 613-761 4265 (adebold@ottawaheart.ca)
Course begins Jan 11 and ends March 28 – Three-hour long lectures on Wednesday (09:00 h - 12:00 h) – Lecture room: Roger Guindon Hall 2111 – Teaching support including, audiovisual and demonstration material: Louise Pelletier : 613-562 5800 Ext 8338

Lecture		Date	Room		Topic	Professor
January

1st Lecture	January 11			RGN 2111	Intro to General Path	Dr. Rudolf W. Mueller
Make up lecture	January 13			Heart Institute	Investigative Methods	Drs. M. and A. de Bold
2rd Lecture	January 18			RGN 2111	Cell and tissues	Mr. Vijay Kapal
3th lecture	January 25			RGN 2111	Organ Pathology	Dr. Rudolf W. Mueller
February
4th Lecture	February 1			RGN 2111	Molecular Pathology	Dr. Elizabeth McCready
5th Lecture	February 8			RGN 2111	Neoplasia I Neoplasia II	Dr. Marcio Gomes
6th Lecture	February 15			RGN 2111	Genetic diseases	Dr. Joseph de Nanassy
7th Lecture	February 22			RGN 2111	Gastrointestinal	Dr. E. Celia Marginean
8th Lecture	February 29			RGN 2111	Endocrine	Dr. Qiao Li
March
9th Lecture	March 7			RGN 2111	Cardiovascular	Dr. Michel Dionne
10th Lecture	March 14			RGN 2111	Neuropathology A Neuropathology B	Dr. Jean Michaud
11h Lecture	March 21			RGN 2111	Hematopathology	Dr. Ruth Padmore
12th Lecture	March 28			RGN 2111	Issues in Toxicological Pathology Histopathological Evaluation	Dr. Olga Pulido/ Dr. Colin Rousseaux
On or before April 9	Professors submit a question each to adebold@ottawaheart.ca for student’s take-home essay
April 11	Students are given questions
April 18	Students’ deadline for handing in essays to adebold@ottawaheart.ca
April 30	Professors’ deadline for sending marks to adebold@ottawaheart.ca

Students are evaluated at the end of the course through answers to a single, take-home question. The answer to the questions should be in an essay format of at least three single-sided pages in length of regularly typed text (8.5 x 11" paper, 0.75 to 1" margins, 10-12 pitch) excluding figures, tables and bibliographic references. References to the literature should be mainly of peer review type. Minimal use of textbooks and Internet material is expected.
You must not copy and paste material because this can result in plagiarism, which results in mandatory intervention by the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies. Pictures or drawings appropriately referenced are acceptable.
Ensure that you register attendance to each lecture by signing in the attendance list provided by the professor or made up during the lecture. The list should be handed in to the professor at the end of the lecture. Attendances that are below 75% would be deemed insufficient.

General bibliography

The type of course that you are taken is best grounded in classic General Pathology textbooks.

Robbins Basic Pathology by Ramzi S. Cotran, Stanley L. Robbins, Vinay Kumar , , 7th Edition»
W.B. Saunders Company | ISBN: 0721692745

Cells, Tissues, and Disease: Principles of General Pathology
by Guido Majno and Isabelle Joris, 2nd ed, 1005 pp, ISBN 0-19-514090-7, New York, NY, Oxford University Press, 2004.
Essential Pathology Emanuel Rubin Rubin Lippincott Williams & Wilkins 3rd Edition ISBN: 0-7817-2395-7

A search for histology textbooks in the internet will retrieve many excellent books, some of which come or are CDs with microscopic images of cells and tissues.

Suggested Essay Analysis

OVERALL EVALUATION/ COMPONENTS	BELOW EXPECTATION (<B)	WITHIN EXPECTATION (Bs-As)	OUTSTANDING (As)	% POINTS
OVERALL EVALUATION/ COMPONENTS	BELOW EXPECTATION (<B)	WITHIN EXPECTATION (Bs-As)	OUTSTANDING (As)	ASSIGNED	EARNED
*Structure*
Title	Absent or poor wording	Descriptive	Attention grabbing but restrained
Introduction	Difficult to follow, little depth	Gives required information and relevance	Gives required information, relevance and entices to read on
Source of citations	Poorly referenced, internet, textbook, class notes	References original articles, evidence of literature search	Rich in historic and current literature on the subject
Discussion	Within the obvious	Distills the literature and gives outlook	Sums up concepts and gives relevance to subject and related areas
Conclusion	Little or no maturation	Gives specific points arrived at through Discussion	Gives implications for subject and beyond
*Essay presentation*
Spelling, punctuation, grammar	Errors in basic language	A few errors	Practically free of errors
Physical structure, length	Does not follow instructions	Follows instructions	Follows instructions with added material if necessary
*Answer to question*
OVERALL	Partial	Complete	Beyond expectations	100