The main objective of the PhD Program "Experimental and clinical hepato-gastroenterology" is to provide the basis to train researchers capable of performing, independently, experimental and clinical researches in the hepato-gastroenterological field.
This objective will be obtained by offering PhD students theoretical, experimental and clinical training courses.
The PhD course offers an interdisciplinary project-oriented postgraduate education for medical and in disciplines included in the area of biological and life sciences.
They acquire basics and methods in Medicine and Biology and their application on current research projects in the morphological/ultrastructural, molecular and clinical aspects of the digestive system in human and experimental models. The project clinical oriented on digestive illness, tumors and transplants will be developed in Experimental and clinical hepatology curriculum, while the project surgical oriented will be developed in Surgical pathophysiology and gastroenterology curriculum.
Numerous co-operations with outstanding scientists and institutes guarantee the scientific excellence of the program. Short-term stages in other Italian or international institutions within the scope of co-operations and projects are highly desired. The University Institutions involved in the fellowship program are: Liver Unit, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA; Texas A&M University, Temple, Texas, USA; Unité “T. Starzl” de Transplantation abdominale, Université Catholique de Leuven, Belgio; Liver Unit, Hospital Clinic of Barcelona, Spain; Western University of Birmingham, UK; General Hospital, Edinburgh University, UK; North Carolina University, UNC School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
Main Program Learning Objectives
- Up-to-date knowledge in the cellular and molecular basis of development and progression of hepatic, pancreatic, and gastrointestinal tract diseases.
- Identification and use of bio-molecular, histo-morphological, histo-chemical, immune-histochemical and ultrastructural tools to analyze key aspects of the gastrointestinal system
- Planning and developing study projects aimed to identifying the mechanisms regulating the gastrointestinal tract, hepato-pancreatic, biliary and endothelial cells death and proliferation
- Planning and developing study projects aimed to preparing both differentiated and undifferentiated liver cultured cells suitable in human and in experimental models transplantation.
- Planning and developing study projects aimed to elaborating the knowledge of pathophysiology illness of the digestive system.
- Planning and developing study projects aimed to the knowledge of molecular genetics, immune and neuroendocrine mechanisms of endocrine diseases in order to evaluate new therapeutic strategies and to develop innovative surgical methods (e.g. minimally invasive surgery, radio-immuno-guided surgery, etc.). |