This Course introduces principle concepts, techniques, and experimental strategies used in modern Cell Biology. Major topics include: neuron-glia interactions in health and disease; mitochondrial dynamics; stem cell biology; growth factor action in development, tissue repair and disease; cancer biology; cell metabolism.

This course aims at the understanding of general cellular processes, ranging from molecular genetics to intercellular communication to the control of cellular metabolism in cells and animal models. Students will become familiar with state-of-the-art technologies in molecular and cellular biology. The practical work will be extended by presentation and discussion of relevant scientific literature.

This course will consider genetic, cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying some of the most common human diseases. Areas of focus include developmental mechanisms of disease, the molecular biology and physiology of tissue repair and the metabolic basis of diseases. The course combines practical work with lectures, discussions, project preparations and presentations.

The course provides an introduction to the basics of cell biology and genetics, the mechanisms of evolution, the evolutionary history of biological diversity, principal plant and animal form and function, and ecology.

This introductory Laboratory course introduces the student to the entire range of classical and modern molecular biosciences. In the second year (Praktikum GL Bio II) the students will perform three praktikum days in:- Bioinformatics- Plant Physiology- Genetics and- Cell Biology II.(total of 12 experiments)Each experiment takes one full day.

Organisms have to control their growth in accordance with environmental conditions. Interestingly, the pathways regulating growth often also affect aging. This course focuses on the analysis of growth regulation in yeast, Drosophila, and mammalian cells and on its connection to aging. The participants will perform experiments to study insulin/TOR signaling as a key regulator of growth and aging.

Insights into pathophysiological aspects of selected metabolic disorders in man. One focus will be on diabetes and/or obesity.