VIBRANT

Centre of Biomolecular Interactions (CBIB), Bremen University, Germany

Working Group Leader

Asst. Professor Kathrin Maedler, Ph.D.

Universität Bremen
Bibliothekstrasse 1
28359 Bremen
Germany
Phone: +49-421-218-63290
Fax: +49-421-218-7433
E-mail adress: kmaedler@uni-bremen.de

Group Members

Ayman Hyder
Gitanjali Dharmadhikari
Luan Shu
Federico Paroni
Erna Domsgen
Amin Ardestani
Jennifer Bergemann
Gerd-Ruediger Kueck
Rolf Kuehne

The aim of CBIB is to foster interdisciplinary research addressing the fundamental mechanisms of molecular interactions; e.g. the complex pathology of metabolic diseases. Its activities have established the international master program “Biochemistry and Molecular Biology” (BMB) where students extensively work on the projects within the CBIB. Nine research laboratories and one Medical Centre contribute to CBIB. The Islet Biology Laboratory headed by Kathrin Maedler, focuses on mechanisms of β-cell failure and inflammation within the pancreatic islets in diabetes. The lab consists of the director, 2 post-doctoral fellows, 2 Ph.D. students, 3 master students and 1 technician.

Expertise: Kathrin Maedler`s expertise is in the biology of β-cell function and survival. She has been trained as clinical pharmacist and specialized in diabetes care. In her Ph.D. project, she addressed the problem of β-cell turnover and its contribution to insulin deficiency in diabetes. She found that glucose induced β-cell apoptosis occurs by up-regulation of the Fas receptor in human islets (1; 2) and that environmental factors and genetic predisposition contribute to the pathology of diabetes (3; 4). From her research results (5-7), a new drug (the Interleukin-1 Receptor Antagonist; IL-1Ra) will now be implicated in the treatment of diabetes in collaboration with the group of T. Mandrup Poulsen (NEJM 356:15 2007). In 2005, Kathrin Maedler continued her work as Asst. Prof. at the Larry Hillblom Islet Center at UCLA, where she established her own research group. In 2008, all members had the opportunity to go to her new lab in Germany, where she was offered a position as head of the islet research center with all state of the art equipment for islet research. For her research, Kathrin Maedler has received the Servier Research Award in Endocrinology, 2001, the JDRF fellowship award, 2004, the Fellowship Award of the German Diabetes Society, 2004, the Junior Faculty Award of the ADA 2005, the Award of the Department of Medicine Research Day at UCLA, 2006, the 2007 Ellison Award for Aging Research and the Emmy Noether Founding from the German Research Foundation (DFG) in 2008.

Recent key publication of relevance to the project:

• Maedler K, Spinas GA, Lehmann R, Sergeev P, Weber M, Fontana A, Kaiser N, Donath MY: Diabetes 2001, 50:1683-1690.
• Maedler K, Fontana A, Ris F, Sergeev P, Toso C, Oberholzer J, Lehmann R, Bachmann F, Tasinato A, Spinas GA, Halban PA, and Donath MY, Proc.Natl.Acad.Sci.U.S.A 2002, 99:8236-8241.
• Mehrabian M, Schulthess F, Maedler, K. Diabetologia in Press, 2008
• Shu L, Sauter NS, Schulthess FT, Matveyenko AV, Oberholzer J, Maedler K, Diabetes in Press, 2008
• Maedler K, Sergeev P, Ehses JA, Mathe Z, Bosco D, Berney T, Dayer JM, Reinecke M, Halban PA, Donath MY, Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2004, 101:8138-8143.
• Maedler K, Sergeev P, Ris F, Oberholzer J, Joller-Jemelka HI, Spinas GA, Kaiser N, Halban PA, Donath MY, J.Clin.Invest 2002, 110:851-860.
• Sauter NS, Schulthess FT, Galasso R, Castellani LW, Maedler K, Endocrinology 2008, 149:2208-2218.