Courses
PBIO-537
Sex Differences in Physiology and Pathophysiology
Course Directors: Darren M. Roesch, Ph.D. and Kathryn Sandberg, Ph.D.
(2 credits, fall only)

Course Description
What is the difference between sex and gender?  How do chromosomal and hormonal differences between boys and girls and men and women affect physiology and cognition differently?  What are the reasons behind sex differences in the incidence and age of disease onset, diagnostic markers, efficacy of diagnostic tools, disease severity and progression, and in treatment, drug efficacy, and prognosis?  And why do women live longer than men?  This course introduces students to the emerging field of sex-based biology and gender-specific medicine.  Through didactic instruction and critical review of the primary literature, students will explore sex and gender differences in the brain (including psychology, psychiatry, and sociology) and in the cardio-renal, pulmonary, gastroenterological, and musculo-skeletal systems.  In addition, sex differences in infectious disease, oncology, aging and in drug pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics is covered.  This course is intended for senior undergraduate students and graduate students from diverse backgrounds.