Zeisberg lab

Heart failure and Alzheimer's dementia occur so frequently at the same time that this cannot be a coincidence. Both age-associated diseases have common risk factors such as diabetes or high blood pressure.  We therefore suspect that there are common mechanisms for both diseases, which we want to decipher. Alzheimer's disease is known to cause the deposition of amyloid-b-peptides in the brain in the form of so-called extracellular plaques. We and others have also been able to detect corresponding protein deposits in the heart. Our research aims to identify the origin of this protein deposition and to decipher the underlying mechanisms and the interaction between cardiac stress and increased protein deposition in the heart and brain. We have cell culture and mouse models as well as patient material and patient data at our disposal, which we use to find answers to our research questions with a wide range of methods and which we would like to use for the benefit of patients.