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Unit of study_
PHSI3012: Frontiers in Physiology
2027 unit information
Physiology does not end with textbooks as it is a living discipline in which fundamental questions about cancer, metabolic disease, and the brain are being answered right now. This unit brings you to the research frontier, immersing you in the primary literature and experimental evidence that is reshaping our understanding of disease mechanisms and potential therapies. Working with research-active staff, you will critically evaluate current findings, interpret experiments, and synthesise evidence across scales from molecule to whole organism. By engaging with physiology as it is actually practised, you will develop the capacity for independent scientific inquiry, rigorous argumentation, and creative problem-solving that support many career directions, including biomedical research, advanced clinical science, and beyond.
Unit details and rules
Managing faculty or University school:
Medicine and Health
| Study level | Undergraduate |
|---|---|
| Academic unit | Department of Medical Sciences |
| Credit points | 6 |
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Prerequisites:
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12 credit points from (PHSI2X05 or PHSI2X06 or PHSI2X07 or MEDS2001 or PHSI2X08) |
|---|---|
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Corequisites:
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None |
| Prohibitions:
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PHSI3912 |
| Assumed knowledge:
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None |
At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:
- LO1. describe the physiological systems that maintain normal tissue function and have implications for the physiology of the body during disease
- LO2. provide examples explaining how genetic and other abnormalities can alter the normal physiology of such systems
- LO3. explain how mutations in genes important in regulating elements of whole-body physiology result in specific symptoms of diseases
- LO4. apply your understanding of normal cellular and molecular function to explain current treatments for disease
- LO5. search for information from scientific journals, synthesise data and use the knowledge obtained to answer specific questions in cellular physiology and pathophysiology of human diseases that you are studying
- LO6. work as part of a team to plan and organise scientific experiments and confidently communicate your scientific findings
- LO7. understand the principles underlying commonly used experimental methods in whole-body physiology
- LO8. synthesise relevant findings from original research articles
- LO9. prepare a short oral presentation from a scientific article outlining relevant information to a current problem faced by the group
- LO10. work cooperatively in organising and sharing intellectual tasks with your group members to construct and present a coherent talk or presentation that explains the current findings in a given research field
- LO11. Interpret experimental findings and discuss their signficance and applications
Unit availability
This section lists the session, attendance modes and locations the unit is available in. There is a unit outline for each of the unit availabilities, which gives you information about the unit including assessment details and a schedule of weekly activities.
The outline is published 2 weeks before the first day of teaching. You can look at previous outlines for a guide to the details of a unit.
| Session | MoA ? | Location | Outline ? |
|---|---|---|---|
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Semester 2 2027
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Normal day | Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney |
Outline unavailable
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Modes of attendance (MoA)
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