Biogerontology class of 2009 - students from Denmark, England, Estonia, Italy, Lithuania, NewZealand, Portugal, Spain, and Turkey.
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Biogerontology class of 2008
Biogerontology course has been given by me since 1995, and over the years it had evolved into an internationally unique course introducing the fascinating subject of ageing to young students - many of whom then followed it up by taking their MSc and PhD research projects on ageing.
However, from 2010, due to certain reasons of restructuring not-so-clear to me, Aarhus University has decided to drop this course from their list, and may incorporate this topic in some other form in some other courses - so let us wait and see.....
Questions for the exam:
Each student had to select one of the following statements as a starting point for discussion on the biology of ageing by making a short oral presentation (max: 10 min), to be followed by discussion with the examiner and the censor.
1. Choice of the experimental model system in biogerontological research depends on the nature of the question being asked.
2. Ageing can be defined in evolutionary, demographic, physiological and molecular terms.
3. Accumulation and heterogeneity of molecular damage causes the shrinkage of the homeodynamic space.
4. E = GMC2 implies the possibility of an extended health-span, but not of eternal life.
The final result and distribution of grades (7-step Danish grade system, or A-F European system) among 25 students from the class of 2009 was as follows:
Grade 12 or A = 6 students
Grade 10 or B = 12 students
Grade 07 or C = 5 students
Grade 04 or D = 2 students
Biogerontology is both the name of the international peer-reviewed journal under my chief-editorship, and is also the name of the course which I have been giving at the Aarhus University from around 1995. This lecture course is given in English, and gives an introduction to the whole field of biology of ageing from past natural evolution to future directed evolution towards healthy ageing.
Aims of the course
To give the students an understanding of and insight into the processes of ageing and anti-ageing at biological levels, including evolutionary, physiological, cellular and molecular.
Contents
Evolutionary reasons of ageing, death, and the duration of lifespan; what happens during ageing of the heart, brain, skin, immune system, hormones, bones, cells, DNA, RNA and proteins; the role of gerontogenes and environment; the role of stress, and modern approaches for anti-ageing and life-prolonging therapies.
Lecture 1: Lifespan, ageing and age-related diseases
Lecture 2: Evolution of ageing and longevity
Lecture 3, 4: Model systems and cellular ageing in vitro
Lecture 5: Ageing of the skin and the immune system
Lecture 6: Ageing of the endocrine and the reproductive system
Lecture 7: Ageing of the bone, muscle and liver
Lecture 8: Ageing of the heart, brain and other organs
Lecture 9: Ageing of the nuclear and mitochondrial DNAs
Lecture 10: Transcriptional and translational dysregulation
Lecture 11: Post-translational modifications and protein degradation
Lecture 12: Explanations and interventions
Prerequisites
For regular course: Knowledge equivalent to at least 2 years of finished bachelor study within Biology, Biochemistry, Biotechnology, Medicine, Molecular Biology or Molecular Medicine.
For Honours course: at least a completed BSc degree in Biology, Biochemistry, Biotechnology, Medicine, Molecular Biology or Molecular Medicine.
Types of teaching
14 lectures (2 hours each) for 7 weeks
Teaching materials/Text-books
Compendium “Biogerontology” (about 60 pages) + about 300 pages of original research papers and review articles. 
Evaluation
Oral examination with internal censor. For honours students, an additional assignment of writing a 5000 word article in 7days on one of the topics in biogerontology.
Credits
5 ECTS for general students; 10 ECTS for Honours students
Learning objectives
On completion of the course, students are expected to be able to:
• Explain why one cannot live for ever
• Describe various types of lifespans
• Discuss various types of molecular damages and their consequences
• Describe how cells and organisms defend themselves against various damaging agents, such as UV light, free radicals, glucose etc.
• Choose among various types of anti-ageing interventions
• Discuss ethical problems associated with anti-ageing and eternal youth
• Plan new themes and experimental approaches for future research in biogerontology.
List of additional articles for Biogerontology pensum 2009 (pdfs of all these articles are available at the university's online course site at AULA)
01. Olshansky, SJ et al. (2001) Prospects for human longevity. Science, 291:1491-1492.
02. Carnes, BA et al. (2003) Biological evidence for limits to the duration of life. Biogerontology, 4: 31-45.
03. Kirkwood, TBL (2002) Evolution of ageing. Mechanisms of Ageing and Development, 123: 737-745.
04. Carnes, B (2007) Senescence viewed through the lens of comparative biology. Annals of New York Academy of Sciences, 1114: 14-22.
05. Ricklefs, RE (2008) The evolution of senescence from a comparative perspective. Functional Ecology, 22: 379-392.
06. Thomas, H (2002) Ageing in plants. Mechanisms of Ageing and Development, 123: 747-753.
07. Gershon, H and Gershon, D (2001) Critical assessment of paradigms in ageing research. Experimental Gerontology, 36: 1035-1047.
08. Nyström, T. (2007) A bacterial kind of aging. PLoS Genetics, 3: e24.
09. Krotlica, A et al. (2001) Senescent fibroblasts promote epithelial cell growth and tumorigenesis: a link between cancer and ageing. Proc. Natl. Aacd. Sci. USA (PNAS), 98: 12072-12077.
10. Farage, MA et al. (2008) Intrinsic and extrinsic factors in skin ageing. International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 30: 87-95.
11. Miller, JP and Cancro MP (2007) B cells and ageing: balancing the homeostatic equation. Experimental Gerontology, 42: 396-399.
12. Goronzy, JJ et al. (2007) Ageing and T cell diversity. Experimental Gerontology, 42: 400-406.
13. Russel, SJ and Kahn, CR (2007) Endocrine regulation of ageing. Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology, 8: 681-691.
14. Gussekloo, J et al. (2004) Thyroid status, disability and cogntitive function, and survival in old age. Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), 292: 2591-2599.
15. Shanley, DP and Kirkwood TBL (2001) Evolution of the human menopause. BioEssays, 23: 282-287.
16. Simonsen, J et al. (2002) Telomerase expression extends the proliferative lifespan and maintains the osteogenic potential of human bone marrow stromal cells. Nature Biotechnology, 20: 592-596.
17. Ryall, JG et al. (2008) Cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying age-related skeletal muscle wasting and weakness. Biogerontology, 9: 213-228.
18. Keller, JN (2006) Age-related neuropathology, cognitive decline, and Alzheimer’s disease. Ageing Research Reviews, 5: 1-13.
19. Christiansen, M et al. (2000) Gene-specific DNA repair of pyrimidine dimers does not decline during cellular ageing in vitro. Experimental Cell Research, 256: 308-314.
20. Figueiredo, PA et al. (2008) The role of mitochondria in aging of skeletal muscle. Biogerontology, 9: 67-84.
21. Hakem, R (2008) DNA-damage repair: the good, the bad, and the ugly. EMBO Journal, 27: 589-605.
22. Lu, T et al. (2004) Gene regulation and DNA damage in the ageing human brain. Nature, 429: 883-891.
23. Boraldi, F et al. (2003) Proteome analysis of dermal fibroblasts cultured in vitro from human healthy subjects of different ages. Proteomics, 3: 917-929.
24. Soskic, V et al. (2008) Nonenzymatic posttranslational protein modifications in ageing. Experimental Gerontology, 43: 247-257.
25. Chondrogianni, N and Gonos, ES (2004) Proteasome inhibition induces a senescence-like phenotype in primary human fibroblasts cultures. Biogerontology, 5: 55-61.
26. Rattan, SIS (2006) Theories of biological ageing: genes, proteins and free radicals. Free Radical Research, 40: 1230-1238.
27. Christensen, K. et al. (2006) The quest for genetic determinants of human longevity: challenges and insights. Nature Reviews Genetics, 7: 436-448.
28. Kuningas, M. et al. (2008) Genes encoding longevity: from model organisms to humans. Aging Cell, 7: 270-280.
29. Schriner, SE et al. (2005) Extension of murine lifespan by overexpression of catalase targeted to mitochondria. Science, 308: 1909-1911.
30. Conboy, IM et al. (2005) Rejuvenation of aged progenitor cells by exposure to a young systemic environment. Nature, 433: 760-764.
31. Meyer, TE et al. (2006) Long-term caloric restriction ameliorates the decline in diastolic functions in humans. Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 47: 398-402.
32. Calabrese, E et al. (2007) Biological stress response terminology… Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology, 222: 122-128.
33. Horrobin, S (2006) Immortality, human nature, the value of life and the value of life extension. Bioethics, 20: 279-292.
