THE BUILDING BLOCKS

Physics for Medicine:
• Physical quantities, dimensions and measure’s errors.
• Mechanics: Motion equations. Kinetic and potential energy. Conservation of energy, momentum and angular momentum.
• Fluids: Static fluids. Flow and continuity equation. Fluids and viscosity. Turbulent flow. Surface tension.
• Thermodynamics: Heat, specific heat. Ideal gases. Thermodynamic transformations. The first and second principle of thermodynamics.
• Electromagnetism: Electrostatics and Gauss’ theorem. Circuit elements and application to bioelectric activities in biological systems. Magnetic field and Lorentz force. Magnetic properties of matter. Maxwell’s equations.
• Harmonic oscillator. Wave propagation equation. Reflection, refraction and total reflection. Interference. The Doppler effect. Sound and Ultrasounds. Fourier analysis. Electromagnetic waves. Light diffraction, dispersion, polarization. The dioptre. Thin lenses: image formation by a thin lens. Optics systems. Optical fibers.
• The atom and the electrons binding energies. Excitation and ionization. The electromagnetic spectrum, ionizing and not ionizing radiation. X-rays and X-ray imaging. The nucleus and the nuclear forces. Radioactivity and radioactive decay law. Gamma cameras and SPECT. Positron emission tomography (PET). NMR.

Biochemistry for Medicine I:
• Atoms, elements and compounds. Nucleus and isotopes. Atomic orbitals, electron configuration and periodic properties of the elements.
• Chemical bonds and weak bonds. Valence bond and VSEPR theory. Hybrid orbitals. Resonance.
• Atomic mass unit and the mole. Interpretation and balancing of chemical equations.
• The gaseous state and the gas laws. The liquid state and phase diagrams. Dissolution processes and colligative properties.
• Basics of chemical kinetics. Rates and mechanisms of chemical reactions. Chemical catalysts and enzymes.
• The chemical equilibrium.
• Fundamentals of chemical thermodynamics: enthalpy, entropy and Gibbs free energy.
• Acids and bases. Acid-base equilibrium and pH. Strong and weak acids and bases. Buffer solutions.
• Oxidation-Reduction reactions. Electrochemistry. Reduction potentials and Nernst's equation.
• Alkanes, alkenes and alkynes: nomenclature, classification, isomerism and reactivity.
• Benzene and aromatic compounds. Electrophilic substitution.
• Chirality and chiral molecules. Enantiomers and diastereomers.
• Alkyl halides: nomenclature and reactivity. Nucleophilic substitutions and elimination reactions.
• Alcohols, phenols, ethers and thiols.
• Amines as bases and nucleophiles. Reactions of amines.
• Aldehydes and ketones: nucleophilic addition. Hemiacetals and hemiketals. Imines. Keto-enol tautomerism.
• Carboxylic acids: properties and reactivity.
• Acyl halides, anhydrides, esters and amides.
• Carbohydrates. Structure, isomerism and reactions of monosaccharides. Oligosaccharides and polysaccharides.
• Amino acids and proteins. Peptide bond. Structure of proteins. Protein folding, unfolding and misfolding. Hemoglobin: allosteric effect and Bohr effect. Methemoglobin and carboxyhemoglobin. Foetal and pathologic hemoglobins. Myoglobin and cytochromes. Glycoproteins.
• Nucleic acids. Composition and structure of DNA and RNA. Translation and protein synthesis.
• Lipids and liposoluble vitamins. Saturated and unsaturated fatty acids. Triglycerides, phospholipids, glycolipids, gangliosides. Sterols, cholesterol and steroids.