PhD Courses in Denmark

Welcome to Advanced characterization of Extracellular Vesicles

Description:

Aim: To provide theoretical knowledge on extracellular vesicles (EV), hands-on experience with advanced methods for molecular characterization, and insight into their clinical properties and potential use in diagnosis and therapy. 

Content: EVs are recognized for their importance in health and disease by facilitating cellular communication, i.e. via trafficking of biomolecules. Apart from being involved in maintaining homeostatic processes in the healthy organism, EVs are important in disease progression since both diseased cells and pathogens release EVs to facilitate their survival. This suggests that EVs can be used as diagnostic markers for disease prediction and monitoring. Furthermore, the therapeutic potential of EVs and their use as vaccines are currently being explored all underpinning the prospects of EV-research.

In this course, we will cover basic aspects of EVs and explore essential methods using antibody-based technologies for EV characterization. In this way, we will showcase how EV phenotype can be characterized by different methods, with focus on techniques used for broad biomarker screening followed by more targeted approaches to fully characterize and describe EV phenotype. The course will, moreover, include antibody and molecular binding theory to understand the basic of the applied techniques.

As it is not a trivial task to work with EVs, we will discuss critical aspects to consider during enrichment of EVs from various sample types and how to perform advanced characterization of EVs.

During the practical part, you will learn how to enrich EV using size-exclusion chromatography and characterize the EVs by performing high-sensitive flow cytometry and EV Array. Finally, the size distribution and number of EVs in the samples will be examined by fluorescent nanoparticle tracking analysis.

Prerequisites: The students participating in this course should have basic knowledge on EVs and their nomenclature and biogenesis, although no previous experience with EV characterization is needed.

Literature/Requirements: A reading list with relevant papers and books chapters will be shared before the course.

Organizer: Associate professor Maiken Mellergaard; email: maiken.pedersen@rn.dk, associate professor Malene Møller Jørgensen; email: maljoe@rn.dk, and Professor Aase Handberg, email: aaha@rn.dk.

Date: 24-28 November 2025

Time: 8:30 – 15:30

Place:  Dep. of Clinical Biochemistry (research facilities at the House of Research) and Dep. Clinical Immunology, Aalborg University Hospital (expectedly within new location at NAU)

City: Aalborg

Maximal number of participants: 12

Deadline: 3 November 2025

Important information concerning PhD courses: 

There is a no-show fee of DKK 3,000 for each course where the student does not show up. Cancellations are accepted no later than 2 weeks before the start of the course. Registered illness is of course an acceptable reason for not showing up on those days. Furthermore, all courses open for registration approximately four months before start of the course.

We cannot ensure any seats before the deadline for enrolment, all participants will be informed after the deadline, approximately 3 weeks before the start of the course.

To attend courses at the Doctoral School in Medicine, Biomedical Science and Technology you must be enrolled as a PhD student.

For inquiries regarding registration, cancellation or waiting list, please contact the PhD administration at aauphd@adm.aau.dk When contacting us please state the course title and course period. Thank you.