Defining the osteohepatic axis in iron metabolism - FerrOs (FOR 5146)
Prof. Lorenz Hofbauer, PD Ulrike Baschant, Dr. Maria Ledesma-Colunga and project manager Prof. Martina Rauner (from left to right).
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.”
Further information on the scientific sub-projects, the joint publications or the scientists involved can be found on the FerrOs website.