Biology 261/661 – High-altitude Biology & Medicine
Cross-listed w/Marine Biology & Ecology 670 – Physiology of O2 Transport
University of Miami – Spring 2024, 3.0 credits
2:00-3:15 PM T & TH – 217 Cox
This is a READING INTENSIVE introduction to the study of O2 transport and utilization. The requirement to match O2 supply and demand presents unique challenges to organisms in cases where O2 is limited, such as the hypoxic conditions encountered at high altitude, and the intermittent hypoxemia encountered during breath-hold diving. The O2 cascade proceeds stepwise from gas exchange, through circulatory O2 delivery, to tissue O2 diffusion and energy metabolism. Lectures, guest presentations, and discussions will draw from disciplines as diverse as genomics, integrated physiology, population genetics, biochemistry, gene expression, evolution, cardiovascular disease, and alpine medicine. The examples from the literature will include humans, other mammals, and birds primarily.
Dowload PDF Syllabus (v.1 – 15 Jan 2024)
Assigned readings (via Dropbox)
High Altitude Medicine and Physiology, 6th Edition (2021) by Andrew Luks, Philip Ainslie, Justin Lawley, Robert Roach, and Tatum Simonson. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL (Optional Textbook)
Download the Complete Reading List from the Year Prior (v.2022)
Contact Information:
Kevin G. McCracken
email: kevin.g.mccracken@gmail.com
duckdna.org
Coral Gables Campus
188 Cox Science Center (1st Floor, North Side)
University of Miami
Coral Gables, FL 33146
Office Hours:
Tuesday & Thursday for 1 hour before & after class