Different ways of dying - the complexities of cell death

Aims

This course aims to:

• introduce the basic processes of cell death in multicellular organisms
• help you understand how different types of cell death contribute to effective physiological function
• demonstrate how cell death contributes to maintenance of health and development of disease.

Course content

Death is a natural part of any biological system and this is particularly true at the cellular level. It is estimated that in an average adult human over 300 billion cells die every day. Almost all this cell death is tightly controlled and part of the natural ebb and flow of biological processes. Some cells have short lifespans and others survive throughout your lifetime. In this course you will learn about why cell death is so important, how this is achieved in a planned and organised manner, and what happens when this goes wrong. You will focus on the two main death pathways. The uncontrolled mechanism of necrosis and the tightly regulated and controlled process of cell death known as apoptosis. You will learn about the differences between these mechanisms and what this means for cellular function and their impact on the surrounding organism. However, these are not the only two methods by which cells can die and in the latter part of the course you will be introduced to some of the other mechanisms by which this can happen and the unique or specific circumstances that may trigger these. Finally, through the use of case studies, you will explore the impact of cell death in the maintenance of healthy organisms and the progression of disease. 

What to expect on this course

The course will be delivered through a series of seminars and discussions. You will be encouraged to actively participate in the teaching through small group discussion, individual activities and question and answer sessions. 

Course sessions

1. The Basic Principles of Cell Death - Where and Why?
   The course will begin with an introduction to cell death in which you consider historical context, evolutionary perspectives, and briefly introduce the main forms of cell death. 
2. Out of Control - Necrosis
   Our second session will focus on necrosis, an accidental and uncontrolled mechanism of cell death that often results from overwhelming injury. You will learn about the impact of necrosis at the level of the organism, specific tissues, and individual cells. Using a range of case studies, you will be introduced to some of the molecular and clinical impacts of necrosis.
3. Programmed Cell Death – Apoptosis
   Session three will explore apoptosis, the primary mechanism by which cells can undergo cell death in a deliberate and orderly manner. You will learn about the two main pathways that lead to apoptotic cell death and how the process differs to necrosis at the biochemical, functional and morphological levels.
4. That’s not all folks 
   In our penultimate session you will be discussing other types of cell death. You will consider the molecular pathways for some of these and draw comparisons with the primary pathways of necrosis and apoptosis. In particular you will consider why these alternative cell death mechanisms have evolved and what their purpose is in a biological context.
5. Death and Disease
   In the last session you will use case studies to learn about the role of cell death in disease. You will investigate the contribution of insufficient cell death to cancer and autoimmune conditions, as well as the impact of excessive cell death in neurodegenerative and ischemic diseases. You will finish by considering how the wrong type of cell death can be problematic.

Learning outcomes

As a result of the course, you will gain a greater understanding of the subject and you should be able to:

• describe how the two main types of cell death, necrosis and apoptosis, function at the cellular level 
• explain the basic differences between the most common types of cell death
• summarise the importance of inappropriate or dysregulated cell death in disease

Required reading

There are no compulsory readings for this course. However, you may find it helpful to review the chapters in any core cell biology text book that relate to cell death, particularly the processes of apoptosis and necrosis. Specific, readings and resources that relate to the taught sessions will be highlighted on the course VLE.