Biological Sciences

The course covers how the nervous system develops, its structure, and how it functions. The course consists of four modules with overlapping themes. The first module is about the development of the nervous system, the different cell types, and parts that form the nervous system, and the functions these have. In module 2, how neurons communicate with each other and how the brain can be changed as a consequence of experiences are learned. Module 3 is about how the brain takes in information from the environment via different sensory systems, how this information is integrated into the brain, and how the brain creates behavior through influence on muscles. Lastly, module 4 reviews how pharmacologically active substances can influence the
brain and how the connection functions between the brain, cognition, and emotions. All modules emphasize which methods are used to produce knowledge about the nervous system. Modules also contain practical components to concretize lectures and required reading.

This course deals with the inheritance, biological mechanisms, clinical presentation, and therapy of human monogenic disorders. Following a block of introductory lectures covering the fundamentals of Mendelian and epigenetic inheritance, various disorders are described by experienced scientists and clinicians, in order to illustrate different aspects of human genetics. Finally, the course covers approaches to gene therapy - the stated goal of most studies of human genetic disease.

This is an individual study project. Students must have a well thought-through idea of the theme of the study. A faculty teacher is appointed as supervisor, and an agreement is signed between the student and the teacher describing the title, contents, and ECTS credits of the study. A supervisor normally meets with the student between two and four times to discuss the progress of the individual study, or any problems encountered. Most supervisors also choose to read and comment on parts of the study. Students applying to do an individual study must submit a detailed project description with their application. Exams for Individual Study Projects may be oral, written or a combination of the two. This version of the course is worth 12 quarter units and corresponds to a workload of 412 hours. 

This course introduces students to the basic concepts of immunology, how the immune system works to fight disease, how its dysfunction can cause disease, and how the immune system can harnessed to treat disease. 

Climate change is not a modern phenomenon, as Earth’s systems are dynamic and rarely stable over extended periods of time. Climate variability occurs across multiple spatial and temporal scales, but we generally lack long enough scientific or historical records to directly measure most long-term patterns of climate change. Palaeoceanography fills this void by providing evidence of past changes in ocean conditions including temperature, salinity, productivity, circulation, and ecology. These variables are typically reconstructed through analyses of the geochemistry, microfossil composition, and organic contents of ancient marine sediments that have either been exposed on land or collected through seafloor drilling. Palaeoceanography offers an opportunity to reconstruct past climate change across timescales, providing a broader context for studying modern climate change.

The course covers basic principles in developmental biology and molecular genetics with a special emphasis on developmental biology model systems in vertebrates and invertebrates. The most important processes in early embryo development, such as fertilization, cell division, the establishment of position information, polarity and asymmetries, and formation of body axes and gastrulation as preconditions for extremity development, regeneration and formation of the body's most important organs are included. Finally, there is a discussion about the mechanisms behind the self-renewal and differentiation of stem cells and the role of stem cells in the renewal of the body's tissues. The course also includes how developmental biology knowledge can be utilized in the establishment of animal models for studies of human disease mechanisms. 

The Individual Research Training Senior (IRT Senior) Course is an advanced course of the Individual Research Training A (IRT A) course in the Tohoku University Junior Year Program in English (JYPE) in the fall semester. Though short-term international exchange students are not degree candidates at Tohoku University, a similar experience is offered by special arrangement. Students are required to submit: an abstract concerning the results of their IRT Senior project, a paper (A4, 20-30 pages) on their research at the end of the exchange term, and an oral presentation on the results of their IRT Senior project near the end of the term.

The course covers human psychological development from childhood to old age and methods used in research in development psychology. It describes theoretical perspectives on personality and related fields of application. The course consists of four modules:  Child psychology, where the psychological and biological development during childhood and how this development is affected by genetic factors and different living conditions. Some of the topics addressed are self-regulation, emotional attachment, social understanding, and friendship. Furthermore, the module covers the research methods used to generate knowledge of child development. Youth psychology where the psychological and biological development during adolescence and its relation to the surrounding environment is reviewed. The ability of the teenager to face challenges and stress factors, such as increased demands for independence and personal views are included. Module 3 covers Personality psychology and the individual differences and different personality functions of adult individuals, which are viewed from different theoretical perspectives. The theories are presented together with a critical review of methods, testing, and fields of application. Lastly. the deployments during adulthood and the aging process based on theories of developmental, personality and social psychology are reviewed. Different aspects of aging are addressed, such as stress, mental and physical health, and ill health.

The course covers human psychological development from childhood to old age and methods used in research in development psychology. It describes theoretical perspectives on personality and related fields of application. The course consists of four modules, this is the second module: Personality Psychology. The module covers the individual differences and different personality functions of adult individuals, which are viewed from different theoretical perspectives. The theories are presented together with a critical review of methods, testing, and fields of application.

This course builds an intellectual scaffolding for understanding human anatomy and physiology. The course approaches the subject with an evolutionary and comparative lens so that proximate "how" questions are understood in concert with ultimate "why" questions. Major themes include homeostasis among physiological systems; homology among structures and processes; seeing suboptimal or pathological adaptive solutions as the product of phylogenetic constraints or physiological trade-offs; and human adaptive plasticity in diverse environments. The course pays particular attention to chronic and metabolic pathologies in contemporary urban societies.