Membrane Trafficking in Ageing and Disease
Increasing age causes progressive deterioration of tissues and organs, leading to impaired tissue function, increased organismal vulnerability to infection, and death. Hence ageing is recognized as a prime disease factor. Improving health in the elderly will be crucial to deal with the enormous socio-economic challenges arising as a consequence of increased life expectancy.
Membranes are at the center of cellular biology, compartmentalizing cells into functional distinct sub-compartments and constituting scaffolds for signal initiation and propagation. Hence, it is not surprising that deregulated membrane trafficking emerges also as key processes in ageing and disease. By combining model organisms, such as C.elegans and mouse, with mammalian cell culture, advanced molecular biology and protein biochemistry, and ‘omics’ approaches we aim at characterizing deregulated membrane trafficking in ageing and disease. This will allow a functional understanding of underlying biological processes which can be employed to design strategies promoting healthy ageing.
Portrait of the Research Focus
Organisers of the Research Focus
From left to right: Prof. Dr. Tobias Huber; Prof. Dr. Jörn Dengjel; Prof. Dr. Stefan Eimer; Prof. Dr. Klaus Aktories
Current News
Report on the Black Forest Winter Conference, January 29-31, 2016:
"Autophagic Membrane Trafficking & Dynamics in Aging and Disease"
Speaker of the Research Focus
Prof. Dr. Jörn Dengjel Department of Dermatology and Venereology and ZBSA Center for Biological Systems Analysis, Medical Center - University of FreiburgE-Mail: joern.dengjel@medizin.uni-freiburg.de |
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