An understanding of organism organization, cell structure, mitochondria, and cellular respiration is a prerequisite for this module!
The role of the mitochondria in providing the energy that organisms require for basic life functions is something that most students have a basic grasp of, but that they often fail to connect to the bigger picture of human health.
Using an idea that is almost universally engaging-the idea of slowing down the aging process-students will be supported in making the connection between healthy mitochondria at a cellular level and an organism’s ability to repair tissue damage and produce energy necessary for health.
The articles are presented in chronological fashion, with an early article taking a negative view on our ability to slow down the aging process, followed by a more recent article that takes a much more optimistic approach. The articles do a good job of connecting anti-aging research (which is often considered to be ‘quackery’) with legitimate scientific processes and scientific method.
In this assignment, students will synthesize information from two articles on mitochondria and the aging process with information about cellular respiration and mitochondria learned in class. They will be asked to explain the role of mitochondria in the aging process, as well as to discuss the advances in research scientists are making.
For a shorter assignment, the second text could be used by itself or the texts could easily be edited. Alternatively, the articles could also be used for argumentative writing, where the student is asked to take a position on whether or not scientists will be able to slow down the aging process.
