Syllabus Spring 2014

Psychology 2480. Human Neuropsychology and Neuroanatomy

Spring 2014
Professor: Christine Hooker
Office: William James Hall 1020
Email: chooker@wjh.harvard.edu
Phone: 510-289-1102 (preferred)
Office: 617-495-3858

Time: Tuesdays 1 - 4pm

Place: Biolabs B063
Office hours: By appointment

Welcome to Human Neuropsychology and Neuroanatomy! We will be learning about structure, function, and
disorders of the brain. The focus of the class is human brain dissection. This is hands on science!
Texts:
Blumenthal (2013). Neuroanatomy Through Clinical Cases, 2nd Edition.
This is the main text for the course. Reading assignments listed below will be in Blumenthal.
Bruni & Montemurro (2009). Human Neuroanatomy: A text, brain atlas, and laboratory dissection guide, 3rd Ed.
This is mainly a reference book and will be used in class for dissections.
Course Attendance & Participation: We will spend most of our class time doing laboratory work, so gaining
full benefit from the class requires your attendance and participation. Because we have a limited number of
brains for dissection, it is impossible to make-up a missed class. Attendance is required. If you must miss class
for any reason, please contact me ahead of time.
Course Requirements and Grading: Final grades are determined based on performance in the following areas:
Class Participation & Lab Exercises: 30%
Class Presentation: 35%
Final Assignment: 35%
Class Participation & Lab Exercises: There will be two laboratory exercises in which you will identify brain
structures and functions from memory. These two exercises will be graded.
Class Presentations: Each student will be responsible for one 20-30 minute presentation to the class, ending
with about 5-10 minutes of discussion. The last few class periods will be devoted to student presentations. The
topic can be any issue relevant to clinical neuropsychology and neuroanatomy. Due to our limited number of
class meetings and time spent on dissection, it is difficult to formally cover all neuropsychological disorders and
other clinical issues related to neural structure and function. The class presentation gives you the opportunity to
delve deep into a topic that interests you and share this information with your classmates. A list of example
topics will be provided for guidance. You will sign up for the class presentation at the third or fourth class.
Assessment of this assignment will include 1) depth of knowledge about the topic; 2) ability to communicate
information to the class; 3) ability to relate information about the topic to other issues discussed in class and/or
other issues relevant to the broader field; 4) facility answering questions and leading the class discussion
afterwards.
Final Assignment: This is a take home exam which will focus on clinical issues covered in the class.
Class Schedule and Reading Assignments
** Reading assignments are listed on the day they are due**

Syllabus Spring 2014

Tuesday, January 28th: Introduction

Class: Overview, safety, orientation to dissection
Tuesday, February 4th: Meninges, Blood Supply, Cortical Landmarks
Reading: Blumenfeld, Chapters 5 & 10
Optional Reading: Chapter 2 provides an overview of neuroanatomy (worth skimming).
Lab: Dissection/inspection of blood supply and lateral cortical surface
Tuesday, February 11th: Motor and Somatosensory Systems
Reading: Blumenfeld, Chapters 6 & 7
Lab: Dissection of hemispheres; inspection of medial surface
Tuesday, February 18th: Visual System, Higher Cortical Functions
Reading: Blumenfeld, Chapters 11 & 19
Lab: Exercise I Cortical Structures
Tuesday, February 25th: Limbic System & Basal Ganglia
Reading: Blumenfeld, Chapters 16 & 18
Lab: Dissection of thalamus, basal ganglia and medial temporal lobes
Tuesday, March 4th: Comparative Neuroanatomy
Reading (hand-out): Buckner and Krienen (2013). The evolution of distributed association networks in the
human brain. Trends in Cognitive Sciences.
Guest Speaker: Professor John Dowling
Tuesday, March 11th: Neuroexam; Introduction to Neurology
Reading: Blumenfeld, Chapters 3 & 4
Guest Speaker: Dr. Mark Eldaif, Neurologist, Brigham and Womens Hospital
Tuesday, March 18th: Spring Break - No Class
Tuesday, March 25th: Cerebellum, Brain Stem, Cranial Nerves
Reading: Blumenfeld, Chapters 12 & 15;
Optional Reading: I recommend that you skim Chapter 14 as well.
Lab: Brain stem
Tuesday, April 1st: Neuropathology
See Reading list for April 15th
Text below available through library website:
Neurodegeneration: The Molecular Pathology of Dementia and Movement Disorders, 2nd Ed
Editors: Dennis Dickson and Roy O. Wellar; Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell 2011
Read:
Part 1: Introduction
Introduction to Neurodegenerative Disorders
**Class will meet at Brigham and Womens Hospital for neuropathology brain cutting session **
Tuesday, April 8th: Cerebellum and White Matter Tracks
Reading: Blumenthal, Chapter 15; Bruni and Montemurro, Chapter 6
Lab: Exercise II BG and Limbic System; Dissection and inspection of white matter tracks

Syllabus Spring 2014

Tuesday, April 15th: Neurohistology

Dickson, D.W. (2010). Neuropathology of non-Alzheimer degenerative disorders. Int J Clin Exp Pathol
2010;3(1):1-23. www.ijcep.com/IJCEP908006
Text below available through library website:
Neurodegeneration: The Molecular Pathology of Dementia and Movement Disorders, 2nd Ed
Editors: Dennis Dickson and Roy O. Wellar; Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell 2011
Read:
Part 1: Introduction
Introduction to Neurodegenerative Disorders
Part 2: Alzheimers Disease and Aging
Chapter 8: Clinical Aspects of Alzheimers Disease, by Knopman
Chapter 10: Neuropathology of Alzheimers Disease and its Variants, by Duyckaerts and Dickson
Guest Speaker: Dr. Timothy Wheelock, Mclean Hospital, Human Brain Tissue Resource Center
Tuesday, April 22nd & April 29th: Class Presentations