Keywords

Aortic Valve Stenosis; Genomics; Hypertension; Hypertension, Pulmonary; Myocardial Infarction

Research group(s)

• Research group Irene Lang
  Members:
  Thomas M Hofbauer
  Adelheid Panzenböck
  Anna S. Ondracek

Research interests

My main research focus is to understand the processes underlying the development and progression of degenerative aortic valve disease.  There exists no medical treatment for this disease, and once patients develop severe symptoms aortic valve replacement is the only treatment option.  We aim to elucidate the role of endothelial cell dysfunction utilizing human tissue samples as well as animal models.  This might help to improve the understanding of this disease, and may lead to the identification of new therapeutical targets. Another important field we are working on is Pulmonary Hypertension. One of our Projects focuses on the roleof monocytes and their effector mechanisms in PH. Especially the balance between proinflammatory capacities like the production of cytokines, and anti-inflammatory functions such as efferocytosis, the removal of apoptotic cells, is of key interest here. We currently perform a study supported by the ÖNB utilizing masscytometry (CyTOF) to perform deep profiling of clinical samples on a single-cell level. I am also involved in studies targeting  single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) influencing blood pressure, thrombosis and myocardial infarction.

Techniques, methods & infrastructure

Isolation, processing and qualitiy-control of RNA, DNA and protein from blood and tissue samples,  Real-time PCR and SNP Genotyping, Analysis of Imunohistochemical and Histochemical Tissue Stains utilizing an automated Scan-Microscope and Analysis Software (TissueFAXS), Life-cell imaging, Ultrasound in Mouse

Grants

• Mass-cytometry analysis of monocyte-mediated immune mechanisms in pulmonary hypertension (2020)
  Source of Funding: OeNB (Oesterreichische Nationalbank), Medical Science
  Principal Investigator

Selected publications

1. Thaler, B. et al., 2019. Differential expression of Plg-RKT and its effects on migration of proinflammatory monocyte and macrophage subsets. Blood, 134(6), pp.561–567. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood.2018850420.
2. Hofbauer, T.M. et al., 2019. Neutrophil extracellular traps and fibrocytes in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. Basic Research in Cardiology, 114(5). Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00395-019-0740-3.
3. Duca, F. et al., 2018. Cardiac Magnetic Resonance T1 Mapping in Cardiac Amyloidosis. JACC: Cardiovascular Imaging, 11(12), pp.1924–1926. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jcmg.2018.06.010.
4. Duca, F. et al., 2016. Cardiac extracellular matrix is associated with adverse outcome in patients with chronic heart failure. European Journal of Heart Failure, 19(4), pp.502–511. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ejhf.680.
5. Andreas, M. et al., 2017. The VKORC1 polymorphism rs9923231 is associated with aneurysms of the ascending aorta in an Austrian population. Thrombosis Research, 152, pp.41–43. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.thromres.2017.02.009.