Delineating the effects of age & physical inactivity on mitochondria
Join us in uncovering how ageing and physical activity influence mitochondrial health in skeletal muscle.
The project will be conducted at the Institute for Health and Sport (IHES) at the Footscray Park campus of Victoria University.
About this project
Mitochondria are structures within our cells that facilitate various important processes including that of energy production. Mitochondrial dysfunction is increasingly recognised as a hallmark of aging, yet this hypothesis remains a topic of debate.
Physical activity is a well-established stimulus for increasing mitochondrial function in skeletal muscle. However, the role of reduced physical activity in driving the mitochondrial alterations commonly observed in older adults has been largely overlooked.
Consequently, the independent contributions of ageing and physical inactivity to mitochondrial changes in older adults remain unclear. Tentatively named ‘A new understanding of mitochondrial markers of biological ageing to inform targeted strategies to promote healthy ageing’, this project aims to answer the previously unresolved question of the independent effects of ageing and reduced physical activity on the mitochondrial characteristics of older adults.
Participate in the study
Recruitment for this study is now underway!
All participants will complete initial fitness and health assessments and perform a single acute exercise trial. Based on physical activity levels, participants will be allocated to either the active or inactive group. Those in the inactive group will then undertake 8 weeks of high-intensity interval training (HIIT), followed by repeat fitness and health testing.
Eligibility
- Male or female
- Aged 18–28 or over 65 years
- Non-smoker
- Free from major medical conditions (e.g., heart rhythm disturbances, elevated blood pressure, diabetes, cardiovascular abnormalities, respiratory conditions, and musculoskeletal injuries)
- Active group: Above 150 min/wk of moderate-to-high intensity exercise or more than 10,000 steps per day
- Inactive group: No habitual physical activity or less than 5,000 steps per day
Further target criteria (to be determined in our exercise physiology laboratory): A body mass index (BMI) of between 20-30 kg/m2.
Benefits of participating
While we cannot guarantee any benefits from your participation in this study, we consider the following to be potential benefits:
- You will receive potentially valuable information regarding your aerobic fitness.
- Some meals will be provided on the testing days.
- If assigned to the inactive group, you will receive high-quality exercise training supervised by exercise science researchers, in a state-of-the-art research facility.
- If assigned to the inactive group, the training may improve aspects of your health and fitness.
- If assigned to the inactive group, you will receive an individualised report on your fitness improvements on completing the training period.
Gift card
You will be remunerated for your time and efforts volunteered to this study in the form of an e-gift card, which will be provided to you via email:
- $100 gift card upon completing the baseline trials
- if assigned to the inactive group, another $100 gift card upon completion of the post-training testing.
Active group requirements
For the active group, the time commitment for this study will be 5 visits over approximately 3 weeks, which includes the following phases：
Inactive group requirements
For the inactive group, the time commitment for this study will be an additional 34 visits over approximately 10 weeks, which includes the following phases：