Syllabus
• The endocrine system features and evolution of the endocrine system and organs with endocrine function; the origin of major hormones and receptors; cellular and molecular mechanisms of hormone action and its regulation
• Hormonal control of endogenous processes and biological rhythms principles and mechanisms of homeostasis; metabolism, food intake and resource management; fluctuation of homeostatic processes; stressors and the evolution of stress responses, the general adaptation syndrome; temporal adaptive function of endogenous biological clocks and its synchronization with geophysical cycles; endocrine disruptors
• Hormonal control of life cycles the origin of the complexity of life-cycles; vertebrate metamorphosis; metamorphosis in holometabolous insects; sex determination and differentiation; the phylogeny of sex-determining system; sex-changing fish; evolution and ontogeny of sexual dimorphism; puberty; sexual maturity; aging
• Hormonal control of reproduction types of reproduction; organisation and activation of sex-specific traits; ovarian cycles; menopause; sex-specific reproductive behaviour and its components; the origin of viviparity; changes connected with superfetation; endocrine correlates of parental care in individual vertebrate groups; altriciality vs. precociality
• Hormonal control of social interactions affiliation, aggression and its adaptive function; stress in social environment, sensitisation and habituation; the timing of puberty and dispersal strategies; sex-specific differences in associative and non-associative learning and memory
Annotation
This course will apprise participants how different hormones can influence life processes and strategies of animals from the perspective of ecology (and also behavioural ecology and ecophysiology), evolutionary biology and physiology (including macrophysiology and conservation physiology). It is mainly focused on vertebrates, the most studied group in this field.
However, mechanisms involved in invertebrates will be also mentioned in selected chapters. For its interdisciplinary character it is rather intended for students of the MSc. program.
The previous completion of Animal biology, Animal ecology, Basics of animal physiology or Morphology of animals is recommended.