PhD defence: Regulation of blood flow in contracting skeletal muscle in aging

Insight from potentiation of cGMP signaling and physical activity

Peter Bergmann Piil

PhD thesis

Oxygen delivery to skeletal muscle is regulated precisely to match the oxygen demand; however, with aging the regulation of blood flow and oxygen delivery during exercise is impaired.

The present thesis demonstrated that potentiation of the signaling molecule cGMP increased blood flow and oxygen uptake in the leg during exercise in older, but not in young, habitually active males. Interestingly, 8 weeks of exercise training abolished this effect of cGMP potentiation in the older subjects.

Collectively, this suggest that reduced cGMP signaling contribute to the impaired skeletal muscle blood flow in older men and that an enhancement in cGMP signaling is one of the mechanisms underlying the training-induced improvement in the regulation of blood flow and oxygen delivery during exercise in older men.

2018, 157 pages.

Time

2 Marts 2018,  14:00

Place

Auditorium 1, August Krogh Building, Universitetsparken 13, Copenhagen

Opponents

Professor Bente Kiens (chair), Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.

Professor Jose Gonzalez-Alonso, Brunel University London, Centre for Human Performance, Exercise and Rehabilitation (Sport, Health and Exercise Sciences), Dept. of Life Sciences, UK.

Professor, MD Johannes Van Lieshout, Internal Medicine & Clinical Cardiovascular Physiology, Academic Medical Centre, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

Supervisor

Professor Ylva Hellsten, Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.