Dr. Heidi Noels and Dr. Yvonne Döring receive the W.H. Hauss Award from the DGAF
19-21 April 2018
Dr. Heidi Noels from the Institute for Molecular Cardiovascular Research at RWTH Aachen University together with Dr. Yvonne Döring from the Institute for Prophylaxis and Epidemiology of Circulatory Diseases at LMU Munich together received the DGAF W.H. Hauss Award 2018 from the German Society for Atherosclerosis Research (DGAF) during the 32nd Annual Meeting of the DGAF in Rauischholzhausen, Germany. They were awarded for their publication "Vascular CXCR4 Limits Atherosclerosis by Maintaining Arterial Integrity: Evidence From Mouse and Human Studies." (Circulation. 2017; 136: 388-403). In this work it could be shown that vascular CXCR4 has an atheroprotective function by maintaining the arterial integrity and preserving the endothelial barrier function. In addition, CXCR4 stabilizes a contractile smooth muscle cell phenotype. Targeted enhancement of these CXCR4-mediated protective functions could open up novel therapeutic options in the treatment of atherosclerosis.
The award was sponsored by a long-standing active member of the DGAF, Prof. Dr. Winfried März.
Project area Z
Administrative project
Robert Werner Mertens
MD student
University Hospital RWTH Aachen
Department of Internal Medicine
Project: The role of incretin hormone GLP-2 in septic cardiomyopathy
PI: Michael Lehrke
Robert Werner Mertens
MD student
University Hospital RWTH Aachen
Department of Internal Medicine
Project: The role of incretin hormone GLP-2 in septic cardiomyopathy
PI: Michael Lehrke
Consortium
Mechanisms of Cardiovascular Complications in Chronic Kidney Disease
PhD MD TRR219-associated students
Marieke Sternkopf
PhD student
University Hospital RWTH Aachen
Institute for Molecular Cardiovascular Research
Project: From the pathophysiology of cardiovascular disease to new therapeutic approaches
PI: Heidi Noels
Thrombotic microangiopathies (TMA) are rare diseases associated with poor prognosis, which often lead to chronic kidney disease (CKD) with respective consequences. PDGF stimulates the formation of fibrosis in CKD, but also promotes the regeneration of endothelial cells. The aim of this study is to investigate the potential dual role of PDGF in an animal model of TMA.