Welcome 2008

VM 8054: VETERINARY HISTOLOGY Fall Semester 2008 Dr Tom Caceci

WHAT’S THIS COURSE ABOUT?

LOOKING & SEEING

GOAL OF THE COURSE

OBJECTIVES

• Recognition of tissues and cell types in LM and EM • Understanding how cellular/tissue/organ structure is essential to function • Integrate basic physiology with structure

WHAT I’M GOING TO ASSUME YOU KNOW

If you don’t…TELL ME!

THE UNIFYING THEME:

ANATOMY = PHYSIOLOGY

“Form follows function.” — Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959)

AND… FUNCTION DICTATES FORM! Solar Alarm Clock —Rube Goldberg (1883-1970)

COURSE THEMES

•

Cellular & tissue architecture is general & shared across most species – See Ecclesiastes III:19

•

Most species variations are not covered in this course

WHY ARE THESE CAMELS?

• They have to be camels because they live in a camel’s world – Being a horse or a dog won’t work! – Every part is specialized for being a camel and nothing else

COURSE THEMES • There’s a reason for it to be that way…or it

wouldn’t be that way! • Applies no less to cells and tissues than to the whole animal. • All biology is

chemistry! • All chemistry is physics!

CHARLES DARWIN 1809-1882

BORING ADMINISTRATIVE STUFF, PART 1: GRADE COMPONENTS

• • •

Midterm & Final Exams = 30% EACH (2 x 30 = 60%) – Dates are fixed by AD’s Office On-line Quizzes = 30% IN THE AGGREGATE • Top 5 out of 6 used Unknowns = 10% – Last week before final – “Live,” i.e., actual slides

BORING ADMINISTRATIVE STUFF PART 2: ANONYMOUS GRADING • Randomly assigned numbers used on ALL quizzes, exams, unknowns • I don’t know who I’m grading – And I don’t need to until the end of the course!

• Lowers tension & promotes interactions at personal level

• Koofers are verboten in any way, shape, or form! • Violation will be reported to the Honor Board

END OF BORING ADMINISTRATIVE STUFF

COURSE IS LAB-ORIENTED

• Lectures are prefatory & informational • Lab is where the action is!

THE COURSE IS ON THE DVD • All lab exercises • LAST YEAR’S lectures as PDF’s • Latest version is always on-line & on Blackboard site

COURSE WEB SITE: http://education.vetmed.vt.edu/Curriculum/VM8054/VM8054HP.HTM

LAB RESOURCES • “Show & Tell” in lab sessions • Follow-along on your laptop! Capture images

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES • BLACKBOARD – Latest versions! – Recorded versions! – PDF Versions! – Links!

VIRTUAL MICROSCOPY • A microscope in your laptop!

WHAT I WANT YOU TO DO • PATTERN

RECOGNITION IS

THE NAME OF THE GAME! – YOU ALREADY DO

THIS WITHOUT THINKING ABOUT IT

• ALL YOU NEED IS AN IDEALIZED, INTERNALIZED SET OF “NORMAL” IMAGES OF CELLS & TISSUES

HISTOLOGY IS A VISUAL DISCIPLINE…

…AND THE INTERNET IS A VISUAL MEDIUM…

…AND HUMANS ARE VISUAL ANIMALS • With exceptional eyesight compared to most species

WE’RE “HARDWIRED” FOR IMAGES & IMAGE RETENTION

HOW YOU’LL DO IT • LOOK at the slide • THINK about what you see • COMPARE what you see with what’s in other sources • INTERNALIZE AN IDEALIZED IMAGE

FINDING YOUR WAY AROUND A MICROSCOPE SLIDE • Look past the artifacts! – The slide represents reality but it isn’t “reality”

• Start at LOW magnification – If you’re too close to a tree you won’t see the forest!

DR C’S HINTS & TIPS

e

iz

• Cultivate a sense of s

Magnification makes a difference!

• • • •

Think in 3 dimensions, not 2 Understand stains and what they do Correlate what you see with the “ideal” Remember: the animal is always right!

LOOK PAST THE COLOR • Color is only a guide – Somewhat variable! – Structural stains non-specific – Special stains for special components

• Shape and Location are important clues!

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION • Position of a structure is

a clue to its nature

– Vesicles always inside

plasma membrane, e.g. – Objects near PM probably have surface function, e.g., secretion – Deep cytoplasmic objects have local function

• Cells are usually

POLARIZED

THINK IN 3-D! • You are viewing THREE

DIMENSIONAL OBJECTS in TWO dimensions! • Everything has depth • Everything has a shape you can’t see • Imagination and experience are your guides

THINK IN 3-D! • You are viewing THREE

DIMENSIONAL OBJECTS in TWO dimensions! • Everything has depth • Everything has a shape you can’t see • Imagination and experience are your guides

DR C’S HINTS & TIPS

DR C’S HINTS & TIPS: DRAW!

THE ANIMAL IS ALWAYS RIGHT!

ON-LINE QUIZZES

E-QUIZZES

• Uniform Fields – Everyone sees the same thing

• Efficient Administration – At your convenience & pace

• They compel you to keep up! – No pain, no gain…

• Preparation for Midterm & Final

E-QUIZZES ARE GOOD FOR YOU!

Opportunity to see more images! New for each quiz Reinforces mental “image library”

TYPICAL QUIZ QUESTION • A. Identify the region of the digestive tract shown in this image • B. The cells indicated by the tip of the arrow produce _________.

MIDTERM & FINAL EXAMS • Live & “in person” on microscopes in lab • 2 hours to do 50 identifications – No “book” questions on exams – Dates are set in stone by AD’s Office

SCOPE OF EXAMS • MIDTERM

COVERS FIRST HALF OF COURSE • FINAL COVERS LAST HALF • MAJOR EXAMS NOT CUMULATIVE!

UNKNOWNS

• ACTUAL CASE SLIDES • A SEGUÉ INTO PATHOLOGY