Neuroscience

The Master of Science in Anatomy degree is intended to prepare students for doctoral programs and continuing their careers in higher education. This unique program trains the next generation of anatomists with a research emphasis on neuroscience.

Length:

36 credit hours or two academic years

Curriculum:

• Balanced basic curriculum—strong preparation in anatomy sub-disciplines:
  • gross anatomy
  • neuroscience
  • microanatomy
  • development
  • biomechanics—unique!
• Practical experience teaching anatomy:
  • Assistantship—stipend/tuition waiver
  • One-year minimum
• Discussion of issues in college teaching

Our graduates are often sought for their knowledge of the human body and ability to teach students.

• The thesis-based curriculum develops:
  • an attitude of research/scholarship
  • a habit of critical as well as scientific thinking

The second strength of our program—a research curriculum—offers students a balance of classes and experiences that prepare them for a productive lifetime of scientific discovery. It provides:

• Fundamental anatomy research tools
• Practical experience with standard methods
• Instruction in theory—unique!

Graduate students learn to apply advanced research tools, solve problems encountered and modify or adapt methods to new applications.

In keeping with the mission of the Palmer Chiropractic University System, research in the M.S. in Anatomy emphasizes these disciplines:

• Anatomy—normal/abnormal
• Neuroscience—normal/abnormal nerve/brain structure and function
• Biomechanics—muscle-bone-joint function/interaction

Thesis research is conducted in one or a combination of these disciplines. Graduate faculty mentors establish what we call thesis modules, which are specifically designed to answer important research questions and provide a productive experience for a graduate student.

Neuroscience

Curriculum:

• Basic curriculum—fundamental to all emphases
• Advanced curriculum:
  • neuroscience
  • electives—preparing for research
  • independent study
• Research curriculum:
  • seminars
  • research ethics
  • biostatistics
  • scientific presentations
  • methods:
    • neuroscience
    • microscopy
    • independent study

Class size will always be small—less than 12—to assure interaction and mastery of the subject and facilitate instruction by discussion.

Financial Aid:

• Teaching assistantship—stipend and tuition waiver
• Independent study

Thesis Modules:

• Emphasis—interaction of nerve function and muscle-bone-joint
• Impact—related to funded investigations
• Inter-disciplinary opportunities
• Collaboration opportunities
• Opportunities to use advanced methods:
  • electrophysiology
  • microscopy (light, electron, confocal)
  • other techniques:
    • immunochemistry
    • histochemistry
• Examples of thesis topics:
  • Zygapophyseal receptor in capsule and synovial
  • Effect of lumbar fixation on immune function
  • Hyperalgesia of the paraspinal skin
  • Adjustment on segmental cutaneous hyperalgesia in low-back pain patients
  • Vertebral loading on sympathetic nerve function
  • Spindle distributed in lumbar paraspinal muscles
  • Primary vs. secondary hyperalgesia in the paraspinal skin in low-back pain patients
  • Skin receptors and reptilian trigeminal system

Facilities:

Graduate research laboratories are located in the newly expanded and renovated William and Jo Harris Building, a four-story facility dedicated to the Palmer Center for Chiropractic Research (PCCR), and renovated with funds from a National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant.

The Palmer Center for Chiropractic Research is one of only 13 NIH-funded Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) research centers in the United States.

• Shared research facilities:
  • seminar and conference rooms
  • protected data storage
  • research library
  • graphic production lab
• Extensive research laboratories:
  • shared laboratories
    • biomechanics
    • microscopy
    • animal care

The biomechanics laboratories support investigations that are both basic and clinical, based on humans (including cadavers) and animals. Not only do they contain the equipment to support biomechanics and inter-disciplinary research, but the investigators in these laboratories also assist in developing equipment used in the neuroscience laboratories.

The microscopy laboratories support all forms of imaging of specimens, including:

• Preparatory equipment:
  • sputter coater
  • oscillating tissue slicer
  • rotary microtomes
  • cryotomes
  • critical point dryer
  • ultramicrotomes
  • automated tissue processors
• Light microscopy:
  • research microscopes l inverted microscope
  • Nikon Photomicroscope with capacity for:
    • dark-field microscope
    • polarized microscopy
    • fluorescence microscopy
    • digital imaging
    • computerized, stereological analysis
• Electron microscopy (EM):
  • Hitachi, Transmission EM
  • Hitachi, Scanning EM

The animal care laboratories occupy more than 1,000-square feet of environmentally isolated space dedicated to mammalian research.

• The facility and animal use complies with:
  • Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare (NIH)
  • United States Department of Agriculture
  • Animal Welfare Act
• Animal care laboratories:
  • animal care rooms
  • animal behavior laboratory
  • veterinary surgical suites

Investigator laboratories:

Individual laboratories support the research program of specific investigators and the graduate students working under their direction.

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