W3 PROFESSOR FOR MOLECULAR AND TRANSLATIONAL CARDIOLOGY

About 1 million patients in Germany and the United States alone have an acute myocardial infarction (MI) every year. Acute MI is caused by a thrombotic occlusion of a coronary artery, leading to progressive cell death in the non-perfused territory. Even if rapid reperfusion of the infarct-related artery can salvage ischemic myocardium, many patients still experience a massive loss of cardiac myocytes. The capacity of the adult mammalian heart to regenerate viable myocardial tissue after MI is very limited. Instead, MI triggers an inflammatory response that leads to a replacement of the necrotic area with highly vascularized granulation tissue and eventually a collagen-rich scar. Loss of viable tissue and scar formation induce profound alterations of left ventricular tissue architecture leading to chamber dilatation, contractile dysfunction and heart failure. In the Division of Molecular and Translational Cardiology, we are investigating the mechanisms that promote heart failure development after MI. Our goal is to develop more effective diagnostic (biomarker) and therapeutic strategies for patients with acute MI (cell therapy, recombinant protein therapy, small molecules).

News

2024
Rudi-Busse-Young Investigator Award for Experimental Cardiovascular Research (1st price) of the German Cardiac Society to Dr. Felix Polten

Left to right: Prof. Dr. Ch. Maack, Dr. Felix Polten (1st prize), Dr. M. von Scheidt, J. Leberzammer, M. Sausen (2nd prizes), Prof. Dr. H. Thiele (©DGK/Thomas Hauss)

2023
Publication award (1st prize) from the Working Group Chronic Heart Failure (AG 10) of the German Cardiac Society to Dr. Marc Reboll

2022
Meteorin-like activation of KIT+ endothelial cells highlighted in Nature Reviews Cardiology

2022
Our Science publication was highlighted by the Paper of the Manns

2022
Poster Prize of the Clinical Research Group 311 to Drs. Felix Polten and Andrei Sandu

2022
Publication in Science

 Professional Career

  • 1991
    Medical Licensing Exam (Staatsexamen)
  • 1992
    U.S. American Medical State Examination (ECFMG)
  • 1991 – 1993
    Intern (Arzt im Praktikum), Dept. of Cardiology and Angiology, University of Freiburg
  • 1993 – 1995
    Postdoctoral Fellow, Center for Molecular Genetics, University of California, San Diego
  • 1995 – 1996
    Resident (Assistenzarzt), Dept. of Cardiology and Angiology, University of Freiburg
  • 1996 – 2002
    Resident (Assistenzarzt), Dept. of Cardiology and Angiology, Hannover Medical School
  • Since 2002
    Clinical Fellow (Oberarzt), Dept. of Cardiology and Angiology, Hannover Medical School
  • 2000
    Board Certification in Internal Medicine
  • 2004
    Board Certification in Cardiology
  • 2015
    Certification in Interventional Cardiology

 

Scientific Career

  • 1991
    Dr. med. (MD)
  • 2001
    Habilitation
  • 2001 – 2007
    Assistant Professor (Privatdozent), Hannover Medical School
  • 2007 – 2010
    Associate (W2) Professor for Cardiac Cell Therapy, Hannover Medical School
  • 2010
    Offer for Full (W3) Professorship and Head of the Dept. of Cardiology and Angiology at the University of Gießen, Germany (refused)
  • Since 2010
    Full (W3) Professor for Molecular and Translational Cardiology, Hannover Medical School

 

Awards

  • 2018
    Honorary Award Lecture on Basic Science (presented at Annual Meeting of the German Cardiac Society)
  • 2009
    European Society of Cardiology, Council for Basic Cardiovascular Science
    Outstanding Achievement Award
  • 2007
    Jan Brod Prize (Gesellschaft der Freunde der MHH)
  • 2007
    Arthur-Weber-Prize of the German Cardiac Society
  • 2006
    Albert-Fraenkel-Prize of the German Cardiac Society
  • 2004
    Karl-Ludwig-Neuhaus Prize of the German Cardiac Society
  • 1996
    Young Investigators Award, European Society of Cardiology, Working Group Drug Therapy in Cardiology and Cardiovascular Pharmacotherapy
  • 1987
    German National Academic Foundation (Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes)
  • Reboll MR, Klede S, Taft MH, Cai CL, Field LJ, Lavine KJ, Koenig AL, Fleischauer J, Meyer J, Schambach A, Niessen HW, Kosanke M, van den Heuvel J, Pich A, Bauersachs J, Wu X, Zheng L, Wang Y, Korf-Klingebiel M, Polten F, Wollert KC. Meteorin-like promotes heart repair through endothelial KIT receptor tyrosine kinase. Science. 2022; 376:1343-1347. Meteorin-like promotes heart repair through endothelial KIT receptor tyrosine kinase (science.org)
  • Wang Y, Polten F, Jäckle F, Korf-Klingebiel M, Kempf T, Bauersachs J, Freitag-Wolf S, Lichtinghagen R, Pich A, Wollert KC. A mouse model of cardiogenic shock. Cardiovasc Res. 2021; 117:2414-2415. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34499105/
  • Wu X, Reboll MR, Korf-Klingebiel M, Wollert KC. Angiogenesis after acute myocardial infarction. Cardiovasc Res. 2021; 117:1257-1273. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33063086/
  • Korf-Klingebiel M, Reboll MR, Polten F, Weber N, Jäckle F, Wu X, Kallikourdis M, Kunderfranco P, Condorelli G, Giannitsis E, Kustikova OS, Schambach A, Pich A, Widder JD, Bauersachs J, van den Heuvel J, Kraft T, Wang Y, Wollert KC. Myeloid-derived growth factor protects against pressure overload-induced heart failure by preserving sarco/endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase expression in cardiomyocytes. Circulation. 2021; 144:1227-1240. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34372689/
  • Korf-Klingebiel M, Reboll MR, Grote K, Schleiner H, Wang Y, Wu X, Klede S, Mikhed Y, Bauersachs J, Klintschar M, Rudat C, Kispert A, Niessen HW, Lübke T, Dierks T, Wollert KC. Heparan sulfate-editing extracellular sulfatases enhancevascular endothelial growth factor bioavailability for ischemic heart repair. Circ Res. 2019; 125:787-801. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31434553
  • Wang Y, Dembowsky K, Chevalier E, Stüve P, Korf-Klingebiel M, Lochner M, Napp LC, Frank H, Brinkmann E, Kanwischer A, Bauersachs J, Gyöngyösi M, Sparwasser T, Wollert KC. C-X-C motif chemokine receptor 4 blockade promotes tissue repair after myocardial infarction by enhancing regulatory T cell mobilization and immune-regulatory function. Circulation. 2019; 139:1798-812. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30696265
  • Polten F, Reboll M, Widera C, Kempf T, Bethmann K, Gupta P, Miglietta J, Pekcec A, Tillmanns J, Bauersachs J, Giannitsis E, Pich A, Wollert KC. Plasma concentrations of myeloid-derived growth factor in healthy individuals and patients with acute myocardial infarction as assessed by multiple reaction monitoring-mass spectrometry. Anal Chem. 2019; 91:1302-8. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30543396
  • Reboll MR, Korf-Klingebiel M, Klede S, Polten F, Brinkmann E, Reimann I, Schönfeld HJ, Bobadilla M, Faix J, Kensah G, Gruh I, Klintschar M, Gaestel M, Niessen HW, Pich A, Bauersachs J, Gogos JA, Wang Y, Wollert KC. Endoplasmic reticulum membrane protein complex subunit 10 (EMC10) is a bone marrow-derived angiogenic growth factor promoting tissue repair after myocardial infarction. Circulation. 2017;136:1809-23. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28931551
  • Wollert KC, Meyer GP, Müller-Ehmsen J, Tschöpe C, Bonarjee V, Larsen AI, May AE, Empen K, Chorianopoulos E, Tebbe U, Waltenberger J, Mahrholdt H, Ritter B, Pirr J, Fischer D, Korf-Klingebiel M, Arseniev L, Heuft HG, Brinchmann JE, Messinger D, Hertenstein B, Ganser A, Katus HA, Felix SB, Gawaz MP, Dickstein K, Schultheiss HP, Ladage D, Greulich S, Bauersachs J. Intracoronary autologous bone marrow cell transfer after myocardial infarction: The BOOST-2 randomised placebo-controlled clinical trial. Eur Heart J. 2017;38:2936-43. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28431003
  • Wollert KC, Kempf T, Wallentin L. Growth differentiation factor 15 as a biomarker in cardiovascular disease. Clin Chem. 2017;63:140-151. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28062617
  • Wollert KC, Kempf T, Giannitsis E, Bertsch T, Braun SL, Maier H, Reim M, Christenson RH. An automated assay for growth differentiation factor 15. J Appl Lab Med. 2017;1:510-52. http://jalm.aaccjnls.org/content/1/5/510
  • Haddad S, Wang Y, Galy B, Korf-Klingebiel M, Hirsch V, Baru AM, Rostami F, Reboll MR, Heineke J, Flögel U, Groos S, Renner A, Toischer K, Zimmermann F, Engeli S, Jordan J, Bauersachs J, Hentze MW, Wollert KC, Kempf T. Iron-regulatory proteins secure iron availability in cardiomyocytes to prevent heart failure. Eur Heart J. 2017 Feb 1;38:362-372. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27545647
  • Korf-Klingebiel M, Reboll MR, Klede S, Brod T, Pich A, Polten F, Napp CL, Bauersachs J, Ganser A, Brinkmann E, Reimann I, Kempf T, Niessen HW, Mizrahi J, Schönfeld H-J, Iglesias A, Bobadilla M, Wang Y, Wollert KC. Myeloid-derived growth factor (C19orf10) mediates cardiac repair following myocardial infarction. Nat Med. 2015; 21:140-149. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25581518
  • Wang TJ*, Wollert KC*, Larson MG, Coglianese E, McCabe EL, Cheng S, Ho JE, Fradley MG, Ghorbani A, Xanthakis V, Kempt T, Benjamin EJ, Levy D, Vasan RS, Januzzi JL. Prognostic utility of novel biomarkers of cardiovascular stress: the Framing Heart Study. Circulation. 2012;126:1596-604, *equal contribution. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22907935
  • Kempf T, Zarbock A, Widera C, Butz S, Stadtmann A, Rossaint J, Bolomini-Vittori M, Korf-Klingebiel M, Napp LC, Hansen B, Kanwischer A, Bavendiek U, Beutel G, Hapke M, Sauer MG, Laudana C, Hogg N, Vestweber D, Wollert KC. GDF-15 is an inhibitor of leukocyte integrin activation required for survival after myocardial infarction in mice. Nat Med. 2011;17:581-588. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21516086
  • Korf-Klingebiel M, Kempf T, Schlüter KD, Willenbockel C, Brod T, Heineke J, Schmidt VJ, Jantzen F, Brandes RP, Sugden PH, Drexler H, Molkentin JD, Wollert KC. Conditional transgenic expression of fibroblast growth factor 9 in the adult mouse heart reduces heart failure mortality after myocardial infarction. Circulation. 2011;123:504-514. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21262993
  • Bonaca MP, Morrow DA, Braunwald E, Cannon CP, Jiang S, Breher S, Sabatine MS, Kempf T, Wallentin L, Wollert KC. Growth differentiation factor-15 and risk of recurrent events in patients stabilized after acute coronary syndrome. Observations from PROVE IT-TIMI 22. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2011;31:203-210. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20966402
  • Anand IS, Kempf T, Rector TS, Tapken H, Allhoff T, Jantzen F, Kuskowski M, Cohn JN, Drexler H, Wollert KC. Serial measurement of growth-differentiation factor-15 in heart failure: relation to disease severity and prognosis in the Valsartan Heart Failure Trial. Circulation. 2010;122:1387-1395. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20855664
  • Wollert KC, Drexler H. Cell therapy for the treatment of coronary heart disease: a critical appraisal. Nature Reviews Cardiol. 2010;7:204-215. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20177405

Team

Lab manager

Dr. Kerstin Bethmann

bethmann.kerstin@mh-hannover.de

Scientists

Dr. Mortimer Korf-Klingebiel

korf.mortimer@mh-hannover.de

Dr. Yong Wang

wang.yong@mh-hannover.de

Dr. Felix Polten

polten.felix@mh-hannover.de

Additional Scientists
Lillian Hyde
Mircea-Andrei Sandu, PhD
Linqun Zheng

Dr. Marc Reboll

reboll.marc@mh-hannover.de

Technicians
Eva Brinkmann
Anna Kanwischer
Ines Reimann

Prof. Dr. Kai C Wollert
wollert.kai@mh-hannover.de