I apologize for the late notice – but I have an unexpected conflict today with our previously-scheduled Zoom meeting – so I have to cancel that meeting. However, here is the Exam 3 Review Kahoot we were going to go through – so please go through it on your own, if you choose, and let me know if you have any questions at all. I’m happy to set up individual Zoom meetings (or group ones, if there are several people that have the same availability!) to talk about any questions.
Author: dentalstudentpathology
Exam 3 moved to Thursday, 10/29!
To help give you some breathing room after your Oral Anatomy midterm on 10/26, we moved our last exam (Exam 3) from Tuesday 10/27 to Thursday 10/29. Yay! You can find this change on our Lectures page.
Exam 3 will be set up pretty much the same as our other exams. It will be open from 12:01 to 11:59 on 10/29, it will be proctored, and you’ll have 2 hours to take it once you start. I’ll post more details as we get closer; let me know if you have any questions.
Diagram of what happens to female germ cells
Here’s an interactive drawing I made that shows what happens to female germ cells over time. I think it’s kind of helpful to see the numbers (and stages) of the germ cells mapped out by age – it gives you a visual sense of what happens throughout life.
I can’t post the drawing on our website because of wordpress limitations – but I was able to post it on my Pathology Student website (so when you click on the link, you’ll wind up on that website).
Female repro slides 21 – 33
When I lectured on female reproductive histology last year, I inadvertently left out slides 21-33! So I put together a summary of the important points on those slides.
Please let me know if you have any questions. This stuff can be a little tricky until you get the hang of it – so don’t be shy, ask away. I love questions.
Slides 21-23 cover ovulation. At around day 12 of the menstrual cycle, estrogen (produced by the developing ovarian follicles) reaches its peak. This triggers release of massive amounts of LH (the “LH surge“) from the anterior pituitary. LH causes the Graafian follicle to move to the surface of the ovary and release its little oocyte into the world. This oocyte release is called ovulation, and it happens around the midpoint of the cycle (about day 14).
Slides 24-28 cover the corpus luteum. After it releases its oocyte, the Graafian follicle is called the corpus luteum. Under the influence of LH (we’re still in the LH surge), its granulosa and theca interna cells turn into granulosa lutein and theca lutein cells, respectively – and both cell types make estrogen and progesterone. The progesterone is particularly important because it stimulates growth of uterine glands, so that if the oocyte is fertilized, it has a nice cushy uterine lining to land on.
The corpus luteum hangs around for the remainder of the menstrual cycle, and if no fertilization occurs, it involutes (shrinks) and becomes a tiny white scar, called the corpus albicans. If fertilization does occur, the corpus luteum sticks around for the first trimester of the pregnancy, and then hangs it up and becomes the corpus albicans.
Slides 29-31 cover the endometrium. The uterus is composed of two layers:
- Myometrium: smooth muscle, makes up the bulk of the uterus
- Endometrium: glandular tissue, forms the lining of the uterus
The endometrial glands are divided into two zones:
- Functionalis (at the top): glands in this region change during the menstrual cycle (they become longer and more tortuous during the second half of the cycle), and if no fertilization occurs, they become necrotic and are sloughed off during menstruation.
- Basalis (at the bottom): glands in this region don’t change during the menstrual cycle; their job is to replenish the functionalis after menstruation.
Test your knowledge of the nephron
Here’s a simple little self-study thing I put together on the nephron. It just asks you to name stuff, and recall what things look like – let me know if you think it’s useful.
Respiratory tree drawings
Here’s the drawing I referred to in our lecture on the respiratory system. It shows how the wall of the respiratory passageways changes as you go from bronchi to alveoli. There are three versions, so you can use it fully labeled, partially labeled, or unlabeled, however it suits you best. Let me know if you find it useful – if so, I’ll make more 🙂
Unlabeled:
Labeled with passageways only:
Fully labeled:
Exam 2 scores are finalized!
The scores for exam 2 are final, and are now posted in Canvas. You did really well – the mean was 92% (or 44 out of 48 points). I gave everyone credit for the question that was a blend of two questions. I apologize for that error – it slipped right under my radar.
If you want to see the questions you got wrong, your exam 2 results are now available in your exam portal (here’s a post about how to view your exam results in case you’ve forgotten).
Let me know if you have any questions!
A couple quick updates
Just a few quick items to share with you about the course. First: I know there were a few typos on the exam, and I apologize for those. Normally, I check and double check (and triple check) the exam before posting it – but this time, I couldn’t do that, and it resulted in a repeated question as well as a fusion of two questions 😦 I’ll be adjusting your scores for the fused question, and if I run into any other typos that could have been confusing, I’ll adjust accordingly for those as well. I’ll post the exam scores on Canvas this evening.
I’ve been dealing with a family emergency that started over the weekend – and although I was able to do the exam review on Monday, I have otherwise been unable to get to my computer much over the last several days. So that’s the reason for the exam typos, and it’s also the reason I haven’t been able to respond to many of your emails over the past few days. Normally, I try to answer emails within the same day, but that just hasn’t been possible, and I apologize for that. I plan to start working through them tomorrow, however, and I’ll start with the oldest ones first.
Finally, I’ve moved our optional post-exam review session from tomorrow (9/24) to Tuesday, 9/29 (you can see the change on our lectures page). I will be posting tomorrow’s lecture video this evening.
Thank you for your patience with these changes and adjustments!
Exam 2 information
Exam 2 is scheduled for Tuesday, September 22, and you may take it any time between 1:00 am and 11:59 pm. The password for opening the exam is RickandMorty1. Once you open the exam you have a maximum of two hours to complete the exam. All submissions must be uploaded by 11:59 pm on Tuesday, September 22, in order to receive a grade.
All the same Examplify rules apply for this exam. If you have any problems, just drop me an email. I have had a family emergency that has kept me away from my computer for the past few days but if you’re having exam problems and you send me an email, I promise I will get back to you quickly.
Any other questions, just drop me an email!
New lecture videos uploaded! Plus, some mom stuff.
Lecture videos for Tuesday, September 8 are now posted on our lectures page! I also added an optional Office Hours session on Tuesday from 3:00 – 4:00, in case you have questions or want to vent.
I’ll be posting Thursday’s lectures as soon as possible, in case you really want to get nuts over the long weekend. I’d advise you to get out and enjoy the nice weather instead, though. There will always be too much to study, and too little time, and you need to be sure you’re taking care of yourself. I hope you’re doing as many of these things as possible:
- Sleeping enough (at least 7 hours)
- Eating good food
- Exercising a bit
- Going outside (trees and sunshine)
- Connecting in person with other humans
- Finding a few minutes every day for meditation, prayer, or whatever calms and centers you
I’ll post some convincing and highly-regarded research articles supporting the importance of the above habits later on – but for now I just want to encourage you to make time for yourself, starting now. You are important! Okay, I’m done.
