Practitioner Course

Mitochondrial Disorders

The Mitochondrial Disorders Masterclass panel of presenters are all passionate clinicians with considerable expertise in their mitochondrial-related topics.
Format

Online Course
8 lessons

Availability

12 Months OR Subscriber Pass

Duration

90 min/lesson
12 Hours total

Presenters

Dr Richard Lord
Dr Thomas Seyfried
Dr Geo Espinosa
Dr Sarah Myhill
Prof. Kerry Bone 
Dr. Peter Bongiorno

About this course

One of the most rapidly evolving fields in medicine is mitochondrial medicine. Mitochondria are involved in much more than just energy production. These organelles are now understood to be essential in signal transduction, apoptosis and ageing, hormone receptor function, stem cell activation and many more critical physiological functions.

Any abnormality in mitochondrial number or function will have profound effects on your patient’s health. Many of the most commonly presenting conditions that you see are becoming recognised as having insufficient or poorly functioning mitochondria as a critical component.

There are many well-known genetically inherited mitochondrial disorders, and also a rapidly growing list of mitochondrial-linked conditions. The following conditions that are linked to mitochondrial dysfunction include;

  • Type 2 diabetes and insulin resistance
  • Heart disease and congestive heart failure
  • Behavioural disorders, including ADHD and autism
  • Rheumatoid arthritis
  • Neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s
  • Many hormonally related conditions including infertility
  • Obesity and sarcopenia
  • Most toxicity-related conditions


Mitochondria have an important role in steroid hormone function. Receptors for many hormones including glucocorticoids, oestrogens and thyroid hormones have been detected on mitochondrial membranes. Mitochondria contain their own genome which contain nucleotide sequences that are very similar to known hormone-responsive elements and which appear to interact with receptors to confer hormone-dependent activation. Thyroid hormone for example, is especially dependent on mitochondrial activation.

The mitochondrial component of your patient’s conditions will become standard of care and you can expect to see a lot more in the future about mitochondria and their role in multiple body systems and processes.

What you receive:
  • Clear protocol explanations from some of the world's top practitioners
  • Clinical pearls for improved practice results
  • Access to your audio and video recordings via the App Store
  • A downloadable PDF of the presenter’s slides
  • Links to all referenced research papers and useful clinical handouts
  • Access to the community hub where you can get answers to your questions
  • A 30-day money back guarantee

From this course you will

  • Learn the many physiological roles of mitochondria
  • Discover how mitochondria are involved in multiple systems
  • See how mitochondrial dysfunction contribute to many conditions
  • Learn about which medications are contributing to mitochondrial disorders
  • Gain a clear understanding of what causes mitochondria levels to be low and/or function to be disrupted
  • Gain strategies on how to best support your patient’s mitochondrial biogenesis and function
  • Learn how to make advances in your patient’s health that may not have been possible without consideration of mitochondrial involvement

What's in this course

Your Presenters

Dr Richard Lord

Dr Richard Lord PhD received his doctorate in Biochemistry from the University of Texas at Austin in 1970 with studies of methods for protein tertiary structure measurements. From 1970 to 1973 he was an NIH postdoctoral fellow at the University of Arizona, conducting studies of the mechanism of insulin self association. From there he moved to a staff fellowship at NIH in Bethesda, MD to work in the Institute of Arthritis and Metabolic Disease. Dr. Lord served as Professor and Chairman of Biochemistry at Life College for 10 years where he concurrently taught Advanced Clinical Nutrition and worked as part of the team that put in place a new undergraduate degree program in nutrition.

HE has also has served as Clinical Laboratory Director at various facilities and has developed methods for analysis of trace elements, fatty acids, and organic acids. He is director of the Department of Science and Education at Metametrix Clinical Laboratory. He joined Metametrix Clinical Laboratory in 1989, where he has served as vice president of research and development and laboratory director.

His publications include articles in professional journals as well as books and laboratory manuals for college curricula including the text, Laboratory Evaluations for Integrative and Functional Medicine, used in this course.

Dr Thomas Seyfried

Dr Thomas Seyfried received his PhD in Genetics and Biochemistry from the University of Illinois, Urbana, in 1976. He did his undergraduate work at the University of New England, where he recently received the distinguished Alumni Achievement Award. He also holds a Master’s degree in Genetics from Illinois State University. Thomas Seyfried served with distinction in the United States Army’s First Cavalry Division during the Vietnam War and received numerous medals and commendations. He was a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Neurology at the Yale University School of Medicine and then served on the faculty as an Assistant Professor in Neurology.

Other awards and honors have come from such diverse organisations as the American Oil Chemists Society, the National Institutes of Health, The American Society for Neurochemistry, the Ketogenic Diet Special Interest Group of the American Epilepsy Society, the Academy of Comprehensive and Complementary Medicine, and the American College of Nutrition.

Dr. Seyfried previously served as Chair, Scientific Advisory Committee for the National Tay-Sachs and Allied Diseases Association and presently serves on several editorial boards including those for Nutrition & Metabolism, Neurochemical Research, the Journal of Lipid Research, and ASN Neuro, where he is a Senior Editor. Dr. Seyfried has over 150 peer-reviewed publications and is the author of the book, Cancer as a Metabolic Disease: On the Origin, Management, and Prevention of Cancer.

Dr Geo Espinosa

Geo Espinosa, N.D., L.Ac, C.N.S., RH (AHG) is a renowned naturopathic and functional medicine doctor recognized as an authority in urology and men’s health. Dr. Geo is the founder and director of the Integrative Urology Center at New York University Langone Medical Center and the Chief Science Officer at PR Labs. Before joining NYU, Dr. Espinosa was a clinician, researcher and director of clinical trials at the Center for Holistic Urology at Columbia University Medical Center.

Geo is a licensed naturopathic doctor, licensed acupuncturist, a certified nutrition specialist and a registered herbalist. He lectures internationally and has published numerous peer-reviewed scientific journals related to integrative management of prostate conditions and urological disorders. Dr. Espinosa is an author of the naturopathic entry in 1000 Cures for 200 ailments, by Harper Collins; March 2007 and “Prostate Cancer – Nutrients that may slow its progression,” Food and Nutrients in Disease Management – Maryland: Cadmus Publishing, 2009. Dr Espinosa also serves on the editorial board of the Natural Medicine Journal.

Dr Sarah Myhill

Dr Sarah Myhill is a British doctor running a specialist myalgic encephalitis clinic in Knighton, Powys LD7 1SL, Wales, United Kingdom. Sarah qualified as a doctor from the Middlesex Hospital Medical School in 1981 and went straight into NHS General Practice working there for 20 years. Dr Myhill has treated in excess of 10,000 chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalitis sufferers over her 30-year career.

Dr Myhill’s view is that myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome is characterised by a cellular metabolic mitochondrial dysfunction and has published several studies. For 17 years she was the Honorary Secretary of the British Society for Ecological Medicine and, together with Dr John McLaren-Howard and Dr Norman Booth, she co-authored three scientific papers studying the link between CFS/ME and mitochondrial dysfunction.

Prof. Kerry Bone

Prof. Kerry Bone BSc (Hons) is the co-founder and innovation driver at MediHerb, where he serves as Director of Research and Development. In 2016 MediHerb was awarded the American Botanical Council’s (ABC’s) Varro E. Tyler Award for excellence in Phytomedicinal Research.

As part of his educational role, Kerry is Principal of the Australian College of Phytotherapy and also Adjunct Professor at New York Chiropractic College, providing input into their postgraduate applied nutrition program. He also founded the successful Masters of Health Science (Herbal Medicine) course at the University of New England in 2004, and served there as Associate Professor from 2004 to 2012.

Kerry is co-author of more than 30 scientific papers on herbal research, including original research and systematic reviews. He currently serves as the only Australian member of the editorial board of the journal Phytomedicine, the top herbal research journal in the world, and is also on the advisory board of the ABC.

He has also written or co-written six popular textbooks on herbal medicine, including his latest with Simon Mills, the long-awaited second edition of Principles and Practice of Phytotherapy, which was awarded the 2013 James A. Duke Excellence in Botanical Literature Award by the ABC. Other key texts include The Essential Guide to Herbal Safety (also awarded the James A Duke Award in 2006), A Clinical Guide to Blending Liquid Herbs and The Ultimate Herbal Compendium. These texts are widely used at naturopathic and medical colleges throughout the world.

Dr Peter Bongiorno

Dr Peter Bongiorno graduated from Bastyr University. He completed five years of training in naturopathic medicine and acupuncture and was honoured to be his class speaker. Before medical school, he researched as a pre-doctoral fellow at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland and at Yale University in New Haven Connecticut, and co-authored numerous medical journal articles in the field of neuroendocrinology. He completed his premedical studies and received a Bachelors degree in Biology and English Literature from Fairfield University.

Dr Bongiorno authored Healing Depression: Integrated Naturopathic and Conventional Treatments (CCNM Press, 2010), the first comprehensive textbook designed to teach physicians how to use the science and art of natural medicine to heal depression. His latest book for the public, How Come They’re Happy and I’m Not was released in November of 2012. He regularly writes articles for the Dr Oz and Sharecare websites and is an invited expert blogger at Psychology Today. Dr Bongiorno is also a major contributor to the 3rd and 4th editions of the Textbook of Natural Medicine.

Dr Bongiorno is Vice-President of the New York Association of Naturopathic Physicians and is active in gaining legislation to license naturopathic doctors in New York State. He is a member of the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians, Physicians for Social Responsibility and is a Diplomat in Acupuncture. Dr Bongiorno is licensed as an acupuncturist in the State of New York and is considered a naturopathic doctor in the State of Washington, where naturopathic doctors are licensed to practice medicine.

Dr Bongiorno helped create the first elective natural and integrative medicine class at the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine, and he regularly guest lectures to medical students about natural medicine and acupuncture. Dr Bongiorno is an adjunct faculty member at New York University and at the Natural Gourmet Institute for Food and Health. He has lectured at the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians conference, CAM Expo in New York City, and numerous other conferences to both physician and public audiences.

Dr Bongiorno has been regularly interviewed on national television as a natural medicine expert and local television, radio, and writes for national media (Psychology Today, MSN.com, Energy Times).
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