General information How to apply? Whom to contact? Curriculum Research groups Workshop 2024 Seminars Examinations Links

≡

BENEFRI Examinations

All students in the program must pass two examinations about structural and functional neuroscience. Both are oral exams lasting for half an hour. The exams are scheduled in spring and in autumn (see examination dates). The commission recommends to take the first part within the first year of the curriculum and the second within the second year. The exams should be finished at the latest half a year before the presentation of the thesis. In case of failure the exams can be repeated once.

Examination topics

Topics in Structural Neuroscience (Neuromorphology)

• Neurons and glia cells
• Early brain and spinal cord development
• General organisation of the spinal and cranial nerves
• Organisation of the mammalian spinal cord
• General organization of the brainstem
• Hippocampal and cortical organization
• Topography of the sensory systems (visual, auditory, vestibular, somatosensory)
• Topography of the motor pathways
• Cerebellum
• The hypothalamus and the limbic system
• Brain lateralization und language
• Blood supply of the brain

Topics in Functional Neuroscience (Neurophysiology/Neurobiochemistry)

• Synaptic transmission
• Neurotransmitter and receptor systems
• The visual system
• The auditory system
• The somatosensory system
• Spinal control of movement
• Brain control of movement
• Synaptic mechanisms of memory (LTP and LTD)
• Wiring the brain (growth cones, synapse formation in the endplate, apoptosis, activity-dependent synaptic rearrangement in the visual system)
• Brain rhythms (EEG, binding problem, sleep)

Recommended literature

Structural neuroscience

• FitzGerald, Folan-Curran "Clinical Neuroanatomy and related Neuroscience", W.B. Saunders
• Benninghoff "Anatomie", 2. Band, Urban & Schwarzenberg

Functional neuroscience

• Bear, M.F., Connors, B.W. & Paradiso M.A. "Neuroscience: Exploring the brain", Williams and Wilkins
• Nicholls, J.G., Martin, A.R. & Wallace, B.G. "From Neuron to Brain", Sinauer
  Nicholls, J.G., Martin, A.R. & Wallace, B.G. "Vom Neuron zum Gehirn", Gustav Fischer
• Kandel, E. R., Schwartz, J. H. & Jessell, T. M. "Principles of neural science", Appleton & Lange.
  Kandel, E. R., Schwartz, J. H. & Jessell, T. M. "Neurowissenschaften. Eine Einführung", Spektrum

Next Examination date

November 15th 2023