Regenerative Medicine of Cardiovascular Diseases

(Deutsch: Lehrstuhl für Regenerative Medizin kardiovaskulärer Erkrankungen)

Recent advances in developmental and stem cell biology have paved the way for a wide spectrum of novel cardiovascular therapies, from the transplantation of stem cell-derived cells to the stimulation of endogenous regeneration processes. However, there are still many basic scientific questions to answer before these concepts can be successfully translated into patient treatment. Addressing such questions using state-of-the-art methods is the overarching goal of our group.

In the research projects outlined below, we combine 2D and 3D in vitro models based on human pluripotent stem cells with animal models such as the mouse and pig. Another important facet of our work is the use of CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing for many applications including the generation of reporter cell lines and the design of novel gene therapy approaches.​​​​​​​

  • Generation, culture and differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells in 2D and 3D
  • CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing for the generation of engineered reporter lines and knock-in/knock-out lines
  • Functional characterization of cardiomyocytes via calcium imaging, optical action potential recordings, contractility measurements
  • Bulk and single-cell RNA-sequencing and ATAC-sequencing
  • Immunofluorescence analysis, confocal microscopy
  • Flow cytometry and FACS sorting
  • Cell injection in embryos and ex vivo embryo culture
  • Molecular biology techniques including cloning, digital PCR
  • Capillary Western Blot, chromatin immunoprecipitation