Pre-ageing, pre-ELS self 1979-1984;             

(May 2019)

Awards and medals and other recognition

Peer-recognition: IAGG medal 2003; Willie B Lecture 2009 from the Irish Gerontology Society; Lord Cohen Medal from the British Society for Research on Ageing 2011; Honorary Doctorate from the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, 2011; Lifetime Career Achievement Award, Int. Dose Response Society, 2017

They say: once you reach the top, everything is downhill from there reaching, finally, the ground level, and then you can dig yourself to where ever…!!!

Research areas and expertise:

 Ageing mechanisms, intervention and prevention through hormesis, using human skin fibroblasts, keratinocytes, endothelial cells, osteoblasts, and bone marrow stem cells.

Work place affiliation

• or: the place where I have been working since 1984: first at the Chemistry Department, and from 1996 at the Molecular Biology Department (now known as Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics), after the fusion of the Biostructural Division of Chemistry Department with Molecular Biology Department.
• And if you are concerned about job titles, then I had them all, starting from Post-doctoral Fellow, to Assistant Professor, to Associate Professor, to Professor and as they say: once you reach the top…., and so now I just prefer to be titled as “Biogerontologist”.
  

• Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics; Aarhus University; Aarhus; Denmark
  

Official e-mail: rattan at mbg.au.dk     (written here this way without putting @ to avoid spam)

Private e-mail: sureshrattan at gmail.com

Academic qualifications (or: the degrees I earned: BSc, MSc, MPhil, PhD, DSc…..!!!)

• Dr. scient. (D.Sc.) 1995, Natural Science Faculty, Aarhus University, Denmark.

• Ph.D. 1982, National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR), Mill Hill, London, UK. (mentor: Robin Holliday and Ian Buchanan)
  

• M.Phil. 1979, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi, India. (mentor: Sivatosh Mookerjee)

• M.Sc. (Hons.Sch.) 1977; Guru Nanak Dev University (GNDU), Amritsar, India. (mentor: Suraj P. Sharma)

• B.Sc. (Hons. Sch.) 1976; Guru Nanak Dev University (GNDU), Amritsar, India. (mentor: Suraj P. Sharma)

Academic awards and international recognition

• President of the Biological Section of the International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics – European Region (IAGG-ER), 2011-2015; 2015-2019; 2019-2023.
• Honorary Visiting Professor, University of Brighton, UK (from May 2020)

• Honorary Professorship at University of Rzeszow, Poland (from 2018)
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• Outstanding Career Achievement Award, from the International Dose Response Society, USA – 2017

• Honorary Professor, Faculty of Science, Palacky University in Olomouc, Czech Republic (2012-2016; 2018-2022)
• Honorary Doctorate from the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences (North-Western Branch, St.Petersburg Institute of Bioregulation and Gerontology), 2011.

• Lord Cohen Medal from the British Society for Research on Ageing BSRA), UK – 2011.

• Willie Bermingham Medal from the Irish Gerontological Society – 2009.
• President of the Biological Section of the International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics – European Region (IAGG-ER), 2011-2015; 2015-2019; 2019-2023.
  
• Secretary of the Biological Section of the International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics – European Region (IAGG-ER), 2007-2011.
  

Editorships and academic society memberships

• Founder & Editor-in Chief, Biogerontology (since 2000; an international peer-reviewed journal, Springer Nature Publishers)
• Associate Editor, Frontiers in Genetics of Aging  (from 2011)
• Member Editorial Board for: GEROSCIENCE; Journal of Aging Research, and some other journals

• Editorial Board Member of the Medical Section of the Romanina journal, PALESTRICA MILENIULUI III (PM3) (from Sept 2011),
  
• Editorial Board member of the Journal of Aging Research (from 2009)

• Editorial Board member of the journal, AGE (USA; since 2007)
• Editorial Board member of the journal, BioEssays, (UK; 1986 – 1990).
• Editorial Board member, Mutation Research: DNAging, (1988-1995).
• Editorial Board member, Journal of Biosciences (Indian Natl. Sci. Acad., 1991-1995).

• Life Member, Association of Gerontology, India (since 1983).
• Life Member, Indian Immunology Society (since 1994).
• Life Member, the Cell Stress Society (USA) (since 2007).
• Member, Danish Gerontological Society (since 1984).
• Member, Danish Biochemical Society (1985-2000).
• Member, Danish Natural Science Academy (DNA) (since 2004).
• Member, International Association of Biomedical Gerontology, USA (1985-2000).
• Member, Gerontological Society of America, USA (1992-2000)
• Member, New York Academy of Sciences, USA (since 1994).
• Member, International Dose Response Society, USA (since 2006).
• Member, Global Council on Gerontology, World Economic Forum (since 2008).
• Advisory member, International Research Centre for Healthy Ageing and Longevity (IRCHAL),  Australia (since 2002).
• Advisor, LifeStar Institute, USA (since 2009).
• Honorary Director, Bansara Eye Care Centre, Shillong, India (from 2009).
• Scientific Advisor, Life Extension Foundation, Russia (since 2009)

• Included in Marquis Who’sWho in the World (from 1993); Who’sWho in Medicine & Healthcare, International Directory of Distinguished Leadership.

Publications  (for full details, please go the “publications”page)

– More than 260 research and review articles in peer-reviewed journals and series, and several invited book chapters.

– 17 scientific books edited/co-edited

– 10 general science articles in Danish magazines.

– Popular science books for children and grown ups, in Punjabi, Hindi, English, Danish, Polish, Romanian

Official group photos of Department of Molecular Biology, June 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014 

Something extra:

• In May 2012, I almost got nominated for the “Knight of the Order of the Dannebrog” recognition, but then some technicality took over….. (still it is nice to feel that someone thought about it…!!)
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• Am I supposed to reveal now or still not that between 2002 and 2006, I have been one of the Professors to be asked by the Nobel Prize committee to nominate potential Nobel laureate in Chemistry – so, not the king, but the king-maker…!!
  

(front cover of the DSc thesis; and the DSc exam committee Brian Clark, Claudio Franceschi and Dick Knook, June 1995)

(front cover of the PhD thesis – 1982; supervisor: Robin Holliday, FRS – scientist, author, sculptor)

 here is the link to the doctorate announcement at Aarhus University site

click on the picture or on this text here to see the news announcement by Aarhus University

Extra-curricular activities (please go to the page titled: Artistic acts)