PA10238 Human Physiology Unit Handbook

Unit Convenor: Dr Sarah Bailey

Contact: S.Bailey@bath.ac.uk

Unit aims:
The aim of the unit is to provide the student with an overview of the function of the
major organs and systems of the human body. Each student is expected to attend 38
x 1h lectures and 4 x 2h practicals. These sessions introduce the student to the cells,
tissues and organs involved with the major systems of the body. Students will also
develop an understanding of how these are integrated to control major bodily
functions. This unit underpins much of the subsequent pharmacology teaching in
years 2-4 and it is therefore worth spending the time to really understand the material
taught in this unit. This PA 10238 unit runs alongside PA10236 Molecular and Cell
Biology which has some natural overlaps.

Learning outcomes:
On completion of this unit students will have gained a knowledge and understanding
of
• The cellular basis of excitability
• The nervous system
• Muscle
• Digestion
• Blood
• The respiratory system
• The cardiovascular system
• The endocrine system

Furthermore students should understand how the function of these major organs and
systems is integrated and controlled.

Recommended Reading
There are numerous physiology textbooks but the core text for this unit is

• Vander’s Human Physiology (10th Ed) by Widmaier, Raff and Strang. McGraw Hill.

You will probably find it useful to be able to refer to this textbook throughout your
course. Copies are available in the library and additional resources are accessible
online through Moodle (see below).

No single textbook is going to be perfect for such a wide-ranging unit as PA10238.

To help your understanding it is often beneficial to consult more than one physiology
textbook as they often explain concepts in different ways.
You could also consider these textbooks which are in the library

• Review of Medical Physiology by Ganong. Appleton and Lange.

• Essentials of Anatomy and Physiology by Scanlon and Sanders. FA Davis
Company.

Also, individual lecturers may direct you to specific textbooks to supplement their
lectures - copies are available in the library.

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The Moodle Virtual Learning Environment

Various resources are available on the Moodle virtual learning

environment. This should be your first port of call for any queries
regarding this unit.

These resources include:

• Announcements relating to the unit e.g. any changes to the published
schedule
• PowerPoint slides to accompany lectures – PLEASE NOTE these do not
replace lectures, you should print out handouts for yourself and you are
expected to make additional notes or notate diagrams for your own
benefit
• Copies of the unit handbook
• Copies of the practical handbook
• Information about exams, practice exam questions
• On-line teaching resource associated with Vander’s Human Physiology
textbook
• CAL programs – these are self-directed exercises that you can complete
in your own time that are designed to help consolidate material in
lectures and practicals e.g. Oxygen consumption and metabolic rate,
EEG and evoked potentials, autonomic nervous system tutor,
experiments in neuromuscular physiology

STUDENTS ARE ADVISED TO CHECK UPDATES ON MOODLE REGULARLY

Unit Assessment:
The modularisation of courses across the University has been
accompanied by a stipulation that each unit must be assessed on its
completion. Successful completion of all units is a pre-requisite for
progression to subsequent years of the course.

This is a year-long 12 credit unit and is assessed in the following ways:

1) Satisfactory attendance and participation in the practical programme.

All necessary work listed in the practical handbooks must be completed.
The unit convenor may inspect a random selection of student’s practical
handbooks at any time during the year.

2) An MCQ examination (80 questions in 2h) will be set at the end of

semester 2 (100% of unit assessment). All material taught in both lectures
and practicals may be examined. Note that in the unit description it
indicates that you are expected to spend 2h per lecture consolidating the
material as you go along. If you do this on a week to week basis then your
revision in April/May will be a lot easier than if you don’t.

Students who do not satisfy the Board of Examiners will normally be

required to resit the written examination in August/September. In these
cases completion of assessment (1) and attendance at practical classes
may be taken into account when deciding whether to allow the student to
progress to year 2.

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Practical classes:
Attendance at practical classes is compulsory unless you provide a doctor’s note to
excuse you on medical grounds. A separate handbook containing details of the
practical classes will be distributed at the first lecture in semester 1. You must keep
this handbook uptodate and be able to produce it when asked. Note that in the
PA10238 unit description it indicates that you are expected to spend some
time preparing for/ completing each of your practical classes.

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 LECTURE LIST: Semester 1

L1: Dr SJ Bailey Cell membranes and solute permeability.

L2: Dr SJ Bailey Membrane potential and action potentials (I).
L3: Dr SJ Bailey Membrane potential and action potentials (II).
L4: Dr SJ Bailey Synapses and neurotransmission.
Neuronal conduction. Neuromuscular junctions.
L5: Dr CP Bailey The nervous system: Introduction.
L6: Dr CP Bailey The nervous system: The brain.
L7: Dr CP Bailey The nervous system: The autonomic nervous system.
L8: Dr CP Bailey Related to practical 1: Reflex pathways and the senses.
L9: Dr AB MacKenzie Types of muscle: skeletal muscle.
L10: Dr AB MacKenzie Types of muscle: cardiac muscle.
L11: Dr AB MacKenzie Types of muscle: smooth muscle
L12: Dr RSG Jones Anatomy of the digestive tract.
L13: Dr RSG Jones Regulation of gut motility and secretion.
L14: Dr AB MacKenzie Composition of blood, cell types and plasma components.
L15: Dr AB MacKenzie Blood formation and clotting.
L16: Dr AB MacKenzie Understanding pH.
L17: Dr Keith Stokes Anatomy of the respiratory system.
L18: Dr Keith Stokes Regulation of respiration: chemical and neuronal mechanisms.

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 LECTURE LIST: Semester 2

L19: Dr Keith Stokes Understanding oxygen transport.

L20: Dr Keith Stokes Related to practical 2: Measurement of metabolic rate.
L21: Dr James Betts Regulation of body temperature: vascular, neuronal and
hormonal mechanisms.
L22: Dr Kathryn Yuill The circulatory system, structure of the heart and blood vessels.
L23: Dr Kathryn Yuill Regulation of fluid compartments.
L24: Dr Kathryn Yuill Related to Practical 3: Blood flow and blood pressure.
L25: Dr Kathryn Yuill Cardiac output (I).
L26: Dr Kathryn Yuill Cardiac output (II).
L27: Dr Kathryn Yuill Related to Practical 4: Blood pressure regulation.
L28: Dr Kathryn Yuill The kidney: structure and function.
L29: Dr Kathryn Yuill Renal fluid compartments.
L30: Dr Kathryn Yuill Regulation of blood pressure: hormonal and neuronal
mechanisms (I).
L31: Dr Kathryn Yuill Regulation of blood pressure: hormonal and neuronal
mechanisms (II).
L32: Dr SJ Bailey Overview of the endocrine system.
L33: Dr SJ Bailey The pancreas.
L34: Dr SJ Bailey Neuro-endocrine regulation.
L35: Dr SJ Bailey The adrenal gland.
L36: Dr SJ Bailey The thyroid gland.
L37: Dr SJ Bailey The parathyroid gland.
L38: Dr SJ Bailey Reproductive endocrinology.