Our research focuses on the fundamental mechanisms determining cardiovascular health during natural aging and conditions of metabolic stress. Our motivation is to identify and validate molecular candidates as effective therapeutic interventions against heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). To tackle this most common chronic cardiovascular disease, we combine whole body physiological and cell-/tissue-specific molecular approaches using aged mouse cohorts, appropriate transgenic animal models, and human liquid and myocardial biopsies from failing and non-failing donors. Our team pioneered the application of caloric restriction mimetics in cardiovascular medicine by demonstrating the cardioprotective effects of the natural autophagy-inducer, spermidine, which is currently being tested in hypertensive patients. Recently, our group made a significant contribution to the international fight against HFpEF by demonstrating that boosting NAD⁺ metabolism with nicotinamide or other precursors might become a therapy for HFpEF.

Our group has long-standing experience with comprehensive in vivo cardiac and metabolic profiling methods:

• invasive hemodynamics (intra-cardiac pressure-volume measurements)
• ultrahigh-resolution transthoracic echocardiography (Vevo 3100, VisualSonics)
• radiotelemetry (ECG and heart rate variability)
• non-invasive blood pressure measurements
• indirect calorimetry coupled to treadmill (exercise tolerance testing)
• indirect calorimetric and metabolic phenotyping in home cages as well as insulin and glucose tolerance testing

The laboratory is well equipped with state-of-the-art technology, including setups for a laser scanning confocal microscope for real-time subcellular Ca²⁺ imaging of single cardiomyocytes and an epi-fluorescent microscope combined with video-edge detection for fast real-time simultaneous acquisition of ratiometric Ca²⁺ changes and sarcomere shortening in isolated cells. This know-how is complemented by histological analysis and standard protein biochemistry and molecular biology methods, which allow us to study autophagy and the impact of longevity-related and nutrient-sensing signalling pathways on the heart.

Our group closely collaborates with laboratories in Graz and across Europe, USA and Australia.

Curriculum vitae

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