Iron metabolism and bone health: EUR 4.7 million for the DFG research group “FerrOs” led by Dresden scientists

Iron is a trace element that is essential for life. Both too little and too much iron increase bone fragility and thus the risk of osteoporosis. However, the underlying mechanisms of this phenomenon are still poorly understood. This is where Research Group 5146 “FerrOs” comes in, led by Prof. Martina Rauner, Professor of Molecular Bone Biology at Medical Clinic 3 at the University Hospital and the University Center for Healthy Aging at the TUD Faculty of Medicine. To continue its pioneering research into iron and bone metabolism, the consortium she leads will receive funding of EUR 4.7 million from the German Research Foundation (DFG) over the next four years.

Prof. Martina Rauner has been coordinating the “FerrOs” research group since 2021. The extension of the DFG funding for another four years will now enable scientists at the TU Dresden Faculty of Medicine and the Carl Gustav Carus University Hospital, in collaboration with research groups from Heidelberg and Cologne, to continue investigating the mechanisms involved in fine-tuning iron regulation and the molecular links between the liver and bones. The liver is the central organ responsible for iron homeostasis, i.e. the absorption, distribution, and excretion of iron, keeping the systemic iron level within the narrow range that is optimal for human health. Iron deficiency due to wrong diet or chronic blood loss, or iron overload due to hematological or genetic disorders, has a detrimental effect on the bones.

“In the individual projects, we are investigating how the absorption, transport, and distribution of iron in the organism are controlled, which cellular emergency programs protect against too little or too much iron, and what effects certain disturbances in this regulation have on disease and aging processes,” explains Martina Rauner: “We aim to gain new insights into the mechanisms of iron-related diseases and develop novel dual therapies that target both the prevention and treatment of bone and liver diseases.”

“On behalf of the Faculty of Medicine, I am delighted that the DFG is continuing its funding of the 'FerrOs' research group,” said Prof. Esther Troost, Dean of TU Dresden's Faculty of Medicine. “In addition to the numerous impressive research results, the review committee particularly praised the promotion of early-career researchers, clinician scientists, and women in research. It is something we are especially proud of. The concepts will now serve as a role model for future applications.”

Prof. Uwe Platzbecker, Medical Director of the University Hospital, said: “This funding is a recognition of the many years of excellent bone research, which takes an interdisciplinary approach to investigating the major medical interrelationships. 'FerrOs' at the Dresden University Medicine is making an essential contribution to key issues of the future: healthy longevity and healthy aging.”

Research Group 5146 “FerrOs”

The “FerrOs” research group is an alliance of national and international researchers from TU Dresden, Heidelberg University, the German Cancer Research Center, and the University of Cologne.
Prof. Martina Rauner (Scientific Director of the Bone Lab), Dr. Ulrike Baschant (Research Group Leader at the Bone Lab), Dr. Maria Ledesma-Colunga (Junior Group Leader at the Bone Lab), and Professor Lorenz Hofbauer (Director of the University Center for Healthy Aging and Medical Director of the Bone Lab) are leading the projects with a total volume of EUR 2.9 million for the Dresden site.

Contact:
Prof. Martina Rauner
Bone Lab Dresden
Medical Clinic 3 & Center for Healthy Aging
Carl Gustav Carus Faculty of Medicine at TU Dresden
01307 Dresden, Germany
+49 351 458 4206

Anne-Stephanie Vetter
Staff Unit Public Relations of Carl Gustav Carus Faculty of Medicine
at TUD Dresden University of Technology
+49 351 458 17903

www.tu-dresden.de/med