Institut für Klinische Chemie und Pathobiochemie
Zentrallabor

420

Adresse: Hoppe-Seyler-Str. 3
72076 Tübingen


Telefonnummer: 07071 29-85668


Faxnummer: 07071 29-3188


Research

The aim of our institute is to deepen the understanding of mechanisms that promote or prevent the onset of metabolic diseases with focus on type 2 diabetes and fatty liver disease. We investigate the beneficial preventive effect of exercise on a molecular level and study the compensatory mechanisms in mitochondria, as well as the role of other subcellular structures. To this end, we apply multi-OMICs approaches combined with functional assays. Another focus is on genetic variants and mechanisms that impact the progression of fatty liver disease. It is also our goal to identify biomarkers that can identify risk phenotypes predict the development and progression of metabolic diseases.

Another goal of our institute, focusing on clinical chemical and analytical research, is to develop and validate OMICs and other analytical methods and novel sample pre-treatment strategies. Moreover, we establish biomarkers to control the pre-analytical phase and quality of clinical samples.

Contact

frontend.sr-only_#{element.contextual_1.children.icon}: Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Cora Weigert


frontend.sr-only_#{element.contextual_1.children.icon}: 07071 29-85670


frontend.sr-only_#{element.contextual_1.children.icon}: 07071 29-5348


E-Mail-Adresse: Cora.Weigert@med.uni-tuebingen.de


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Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases

Our research is closely connected to the research activities and clinical studies of the IDM (Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases of the Helmholtz Center Munich at the University of Tuebingen). 

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Molecular Diabetology

Our research focuses on physical exercise as major component in the prevention of type 2 diabetes. The regulation of signal transduction pathways resulting in alterations in gene expression, processing of transcripts, protein translation and posttranslational modifications is the key for the adaptation to physical activity and improvement of metabolic homoeostasis. Together with the IDM and the Sports Medicine of the University Hospital we investigate the underlying mechanisms in human exercise intervention studies, mouse exercise models and primary human cell culture models. To identify the exercise-regulated signaling molecules we apply molecular biological and multi-Omics technologies (transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, lipidomics). In addition to skeletal muscle, other tissues and organs respond to exercise. In cooperation with the Centre for Physical Activity Research and the Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen we unravel the regulation and tissue origin of exercise factors (e.g. myokines, hepatokines, metabolites). Together with the Metabolic Neuroimaging Department of the IDM we study the impact of exercise on brain processes (metabolic control, cognitive function). 

The adaptation of mitochondria to exercise and overnutrition is an important factor in the prevention, development and progression of metabolic diseases. We apply functional assays to assess mitochondrial respiration, substrate preference, reactive oxygen species production and membrane potential in relation to changes in the mitochondrial proteome and lipid profile.

Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Cora Weigert

Telefonnummer: 07071 29-85670

E-Mail-Adresse: Cora.Weigert@med.uni-tuebingen.de

Biomarkers for Personalized Diabetes Therapy

Our research focuses on the identification and establishment of biomarkers for the prediction, early diagnosis and treatment monitoring of patients with diabetes mellitus type 2.

On the one hand, established biomarkers are applied to develop novel algorithms for the identification of risk phenotypes in clinical cohorts to enable early diagnosis and adequate personalized therapy of type 2 diabetes. On the other hand, omics strategies (transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, lipidomics) are applied to identify novel biomarkers that can be clinically validated using targeted analytical approaches. A special focus of this work is on ectopic lipid storage in the liver as the central pathophysiological component of the metabolic syndrome and development of type 2 diabetes. Using human biopsies and primary human cell culture, we address the underlying mechanisms of hepatic lipid storage, especially abnormalities in lipid metabolism. We combine in-depth analytical tools with blood and tissue samples from phenotyped human cohorts to characterize and elucidate functional aspects of common genetic variants influencing glucose and lipid metabolism (Genotyping). A further aim is to identify secreted hepatic mediators as biomarkers and pathophysiological factors of type 2 diabetes and fatty liver.


Prof. Dr. med. Andreas Peter

Telefonnummer: 07071 29-85673

Faxnummer: 07071 29-4582

E-Mail-Adresse: andreas.peter@med.uni-tuebingen.de

Metabolomics and lipidomics in Clinical Chemistry and beyond

This part of our research aim to develop and optimize novel analytical approaches and strategies in the field of Clinical Chemistry as well as biomedical separation sciences, with a special focus on metabolomics and lipidomics strategies. Analytical limitations in our biomedical projects encourage us to develop and establish new, suitable solutions for our cooperation partners. Moreover, sample preparation procedures for multi-omics analysis saving valuable biomedical material (e.g. from biopsies) by the use of minute amounts of samples is another research interest. These goals go hand in hand with our interest in pre-analytical processes aiming to achieve high sample quality not only for –omics analysis and biomarker research, but also for biobanking. The investigation of sample stability, as well as testing the robustness of biomarkers in body fluids for diagnostic purposes is another goal.

Our analytical expertise ranges from various gel electrophoretic techniques to respiration measurements of mitochondria to UPLC-MS-driven metabolomics and lipidomics. Other main topics in the past were new applications of capillary electrophoresis in Clinical Chemistry, as well as studies on the function and regulation of insulin signal transduction including the development of nanoLC-MS strategies for the identification of novel phosphorylation sites in insulin signal transduction proteins. We have a longstanding, very fruitful Sino-German cooperation including regular exchange of scientist with the group of Prof. Guowang Xu at the CAS Key Laboratory of Separation Science for Analytical Chemistry, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (Dalian, China) (see also publication list of R. Lehmann).


Prof. Dr. rer.nat. Rainer Lehmann

Telefonnummer: 07071-29-83193

Faxnummer: 07071-29-5348

E-Mail-Adresse: rainer.lehmann@med.uni-tuebingen.de

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