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The scientists have the goal of understanding what causes the heart to become weak or sick. The project, which is co-ordinated with the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), dilatory cardiomyopathy (DCM) and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) In both conditions the heart is not enabled In patients suffering from DCM the left ventricle is stretched out of shape like a wet sock, while HCM is characterized by a thickening of the walls of the ventricle. to occur in the heart muscle cells and that connective tissue cells also play a role.
"We do not yet have a good understanding of what exactly happens on the molecular level," says Prof. Norbert Hübner, the project leader and scientist at the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC). The research team is planning to use cutting-edge techniques for the badysis of different types of heart, for example, to find out what genes and proteins are present.
No two heart cells are the same
This approach, which involves directly comparing cells from healthy and failing hearts, may lead to groundbreaking findings. "Our research could pave the way for creating novel therapies for heart failure or methods that prevent heart failure from developing in the first place," says Hübner. Currently, there is no causal treatment and thus no cure. Each year some 200,000 patients with heart failure are admitted to hospitals, and those with the most severe cases are listed on the transplant list.
Even though this is only a question of understanding, researchers can only give a correct description of a cell population because they are affected by a wide range of factors in their environment. These include not only pressure in the ventricles, but also interactions with other cell types, neurotransmitters, and immune processes. "No two cells are alike, not even healthy heart cells," explains Hübner. The spatial localization of cells and the computer modeling of cell populations are therefore incorporated into the research strategy.
The samples are provided by the British partners
The German and British researchers complement each other in the valuable resources and expertise they bring to the project. The British project partners have their disposal of healthy hearts and diseased donors. Thomas Eschenhagen's team in Hamburg knows how to cultivate heart tissue in the lab. This would enable the researchers to model heart diseases and pharmacological agents, which could lead to the discovery and development of new drugs.
The project – entitled "Spatially resolved cellular and molecular drivers of cardiac remodeling in healthy and failing" – is receiving € 2.5 million in total funding over three years from the German Center for Cardiovascular Research (DZHK) and the British Heart Foundation (BHF).
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DZHK project partners
Teacher. Norbert Hübner (coordinator), Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC)
Teacher. Thomas Eschenhagen, Hamburg-Eppendorf University Medical Center (UKE)
Teacher. Nikolaus Rajewsky, Berlin Institute for Medical Systems Biology at the Max Delbruck Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC)
BHF project partners
Dr. Michela Noseda, Imperial College London, National Heart and Lung Institute
Dr. Sarah Teichmann, Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute
Teacher. Stuart Cook, Imperial College London, National Heart and Lung Institute
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