2024 Saltin International Course in Exercise & Clinical Physiology

The biennial, integrative, research-based course covers basic and applied science topics on various physiological systems and extends to common clinical physiological applications. Thematic areas in physiology will range from subcellular signaling to organ function and systemic integration.

Download the full program.

• Day 1
• Day 2
• Day 3
• Day 4

Day 1

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Monday, August 19

8:00 – 8:45 AM	Breakfast
8:45 – 9:00 AM	Welcome Niels Ørtenblad, Ylva Hellsten and Kristian Overgaard
9:00 – 9:40 AM	Generic Lecture Chair: Robert Boushel Presenting scientific findings: The art of the talk Morten Zacho
9:40 – 10:00 AM	Coffee break
10:00 AM – 12:00 PM	Metabolic regulation in exercise and health Chairs: David Wright and Jørgen Wojtaszewski Mitochondria in health and disease Mary-Ellen Harper Mitochondria function in exercise and ageing Henriette Pilegaard IL6 as an energy allocator Helga Ellingsgaard
12:00 – 1:00 PM	Lunch
1:00 – 3:00 PM	Influence of sex hormones on performance and adaptation to training Chairs: Ylva Hellsten and Mary-Ellen Harper Influence of sex hormones on sport performance and adaptation to training in females Mette Hansen Hyperandrogenism and the role of testosterone for physical performance in elite female athletes Angelica Lindén Hirschberg Sex-based differences in fuel storage and metabolism at rest and during exercise Michaela Devries-Aboud
3:00 – 4:00 PM	Discussion Forum Coffee break included
4:00 – 6:00 PM	Poster session 1 Chairs: Joachim Nielsen and Yael Nossent; Mette Hansen and William Sheel
6:00 PM – 7:00 PM	Dinner
7:30 – 8:30 PM	Evening Talk Chair: Jørgen Wojtaszewski Digesting snakes are a feast for integrative physiology Tobias Wang

Day 2

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Tuesday, August 20

8:00 – 9:00 AM	Breakfast
9:00 – 11:00 AM	Couch conversation and discussion
11:00 – 11:20 AM	Coffee break
11:20 AM – 12:00 PM	Generic lecture Chair: Ylva Hellsten Publishing in a world of metrics Joachim Nielsen
12:00 – 1:00 PM	Lunch
1:00 – 2:20 PM	Drug and exercise interactions Chairs: Bente Klarlund Pedersen and Morten Hostrup Effects of farmaka on training adaptations and metabolism Flemming Dela Glucokortikoider, exercise and connective tissue Micheal Kjær Influence of Antipsychotic drugs on exercise induced adaptations David Wright
2:20 – 4:00 PM	Discussion Forum Coffee break included
4:00 – 6:00 PM	Poster session 2
6:00 – 7:00 PM	Dinner
7:30 – 8:30 PM	Evening talk Chair: Niels Ørtenblad “All singing all dancing” Coen Elemans

Day 3

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Wednesday, August 21

8:00 – 9:00 AM	Breakfast
9:00 AM – 12:00 PM	The cardiovascular system Chairs: Robert Boushel and Jørn W. Helge Regulation of skeletal muscle microcirculation Graham Fraser Influence of respiratory work on blood flow distributing during exercise Bill Sheel 20 min coffee break Regulation and function of skeletal muscle capillaries Ylva Hellsten Small non-coding RNA’s and their modifications; molecular communicators in exercise induced adaptations in the cardiovascular system Yael Nossent
12:00 – 1:00 PM	Lunch
1:00 – 4:00 PM	Muscle function and E-C coupling Chairs: Jørn W. Helge and Kristian Overgaard Muscle ionic shifts and fatigue during whole body exercise in humans Morten Hostrup Experimental studies in muscle function using isolated muscles Kristian Overgaard 20 min coffee break Muscle activation and E-C coupling Niels Ørtenblad Do different subcellular glycogen pools serve different purposes Joachim Nielsen
4:00 – 6:00 PM	Discussion Forum
6:00 – 7:00 PM	Dinner
7:30 – 8:30 PM	Evening talk Chair: Bente Klarlund Pedersen Integrative perspectives of exercise physiology: The Bengt Saltin approach Rob Boushel & Jerome Dempsey

Day 4

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Thursday, August 22

8:00 – 9:00 AM	Breakfast
9:00 – 9:40 AM	Generic lecture Chair: Kristian Overgaard Turning a PhD project into medicine Thomas Holm Pedersen
9:40 – 10:00 AM	Coffee break
10:00 – 12:00 PM	How do we interpret and understand complex data? How to estimate activity level? Chairs: Niels Ørtenblad and Flemming Dela Using and interpreting the omics approach Jørgen Wojtaszewski Analytical strategies using large cohort studies Mathias Ried-Larsen Dense long-term monitoring of behavioural and biological data in free-living environments Anders Grøntved
12:00 – 12:30 PM	Course evaluation and wrap up
12:30 – 1:00 PM	Lunch and departure

The course will be a combination of faculty plenary lectures, student research presentations, discussion groups, and various informal faculty-student interactions that provide diverse learning modules for students. The program will cover 38 hours and is compiled of both generic and thematic lectures with 2 to 4 presentations within a given theme. Student participants will be given research pitch training and must provide short presentations of their projects during the course. In addition, they shall prepare a poster, outlining their research. The course is structured to form a foundational component of graduate study credits at Canadian universities and for 3.5 ECTS credits at Danish Universities.

Course objectives

• To provide an innovative learning experience for graduate students through exposure to and interaction with an extensive group of internationally recognized scholars and student peers.
• To gain exposure to diverse research perspectives and experimental approaches to enrich student learning.
• To facilitate interactive discussion on cutting edge topics, explore approaches to stimulate creativity and novelty in research design and enhance research study impact.
• To gain experience in formulating and communicating research proposals.
• To foster the formation of research networks between scientists and institutions for the exploration of future academic research initiatives.
• To participate in discussions on career paths and trajectories.
• To gain experience presenting research to peers and scholars.

Course outcomes

Graduate students will have the unique opportunity to view leading presentations and discussions with scholars in the field of exercise physiology over a four-day period. Topics covered will include basic metabolic and endocrine research, through to clinical research and implementation.

Students will be exposed to state-of-the-art experimental approaches that may be implemented in their own research to enhance novelty and impact. The opportunity exists to connect with peers at national and international levels.

International Perspective

Canada and Scandinavia have strong cultural and business links, with Canada being one of the strongest growing export markets for Danish companies. The Canadian and Danish Trade Commissions have built extensive networks for knowledge exchange based on a shared value system with a continuing commitment to fruitful collaboration on many global issues including industry, culture, and the arctic. Canada shares a 3,000 km maritime border with Denmark (Greenland) as well as rich historic and cultural links between the Inuit populations on both sides of the border. Universities across Canada and Denmark are committed to the ideal of academic scholarship and to the development of an international perspective to broaden and enrich the educational quality and expand research innovation.

As part of university missions, students are encouraged to participate in international exchanges and internships, courses, and field schools. These opportunities foster appreciation of other perspectives, cultures, and exposure to new expertise as a part of excellence in university education. Equity, diversity, and responsibility to society are values upon which the mission of Canadian and Danish Universities is founded. International collaborations between Canada and Denmark have been active for close to a century and have developed an intellectual depth and high rates of research discovery. Notably, a rich tradition of scientific collaboration exists in the fields of physiology and exercise.

After receiving the Nobel Prize in 1920 for his work on the function of capillaries, August Krogh took an interest in the work of Frederick Banting and Charles Best on the glucose-lowering peptide insulin. On a trip to North America in 1922 August and his wife Marie who was diabetic, visited Banting’s lab at the University of Toronto. Upon return to Denmark Krogh was instrumental in the nomination of Banting & Macleod for the Nobel Prize in 1923. Krogh obtained a license for the protocol for insulin purification and began production upon his return to Copenhagen. Together with the Danish physician H. C. Hagedorn, Krogh then founded the Nordic Insulin Laboratory and the Nordisk Insulin Foundation which today constitute the company Novo Nordisk and the Novo Nordisk Foundation.

In 1909, Johannes Lindhard was appointed in the Faculty of Medicine to lead the study of Gymnastics as an academic discipline, and in 1917 the laboratory for the Theory of Gymnastics (the Copenhagen School) was formed in the Faculty of Science. Krogh and Lindhard pioneered research on the physiology of exercise with precise measurement of ventilation, heart rate and cardiac output and elucidated the mechanisms regulating these responses. Over 2–3 decades, they firmly established the field of exercise physiology and mentored the next generation of prolific researchers in the field of human integrative physiology, namely Erik Hohwü-Christensen, Erling Asmussen and Marius Nielsen referred to as the ‘three musketeers’. Following in their footsteps, the Swedish physiologist Bengt Saltin conducted research in exercise physiology at the August Krogh Institute, beginning with foundational work on oxygen uptake, extending to muscle bioenergetics and biochemistry, and the role of the circulation in the limits of exercise. Bengt was Director of The Copenhagen Muscle Research Centre that continued the legacy of the University of Copenhagen as a leading centre in the field internationally. Amongst many accomplishments, Saltin was awarded the August Krogh Prize, The Novo Nordisk Prize, and the International Olympic Prize. Bengt was a strong proponent of international collaboration. He was awarded 12 honorary doctorates- 3 from Canadian universities stemming from a rich history of research collaboration (>75 publications) with Canadian scientists. Bengt Saltin was an organizing member of the first International Graduate Courses held in Canada in 2010 and 2011, and owing to the positive review of these courses, he encouraged their continuation.

The Saltin International Graduate Course in Clinical and Exercise Physiologyextends the strong scientific lineage between Denmark and Canada. In the field of Exercise Physiology, both countries rank in the top tier internationally for scientific impact per capita. In the previous courses held in Canada and Denmark, faculty and students from 20 universities were represented.