Nutrition & Metabolism
Nutrition plays a crucial role in the development of obesity and type 2 diabetes and is also crucial therapeutically for all types of diabetes.
Obesity and diabetes, both rapidly increasing in prevalence worldwide, have a tremendous medical and socio-economic impact. Both are multifactorial in their etiology, influenced by genetic and environmental factors. Obesity and Diabetes also share the characteristic of a chronic low-grade inflammatory state, that indicates that altered metabolism may alter the immune system. The gut microbiota, and microbial metabolites in particular, have been described to play an important role in disease development. However, the underlying mechanisms are still ill-defined.
In the lab, innovative gnotobiotic, metagenomic and metabolomic approaches will be applied to advance the mechanistic understanding of the complex pathophysiologic interplay between gut microbiota, metabolism and inflammation driving obesity and diabetes, with the ultimate goal to inspire novel and innovative strategies for prevention and therapy of these important diseases.
Projects in this focus area
Hypoxanthine Project
Exploring Microbial Metabolites and Immune ActivationUnveiling the Role of Hypoxanthine in Dendritic Cell FunctionThe...
Wound Infection Project
Understanding Immune Dysregulation in Obesity and DiabetesObesity and diabetes, which are both rapidly increasing in...
The Moonwalk Project
Investigating the relationship between glucose values and motion patterns during sleepGlucose Levels and Sleep...
DCB Research AG
Freiburgstrasse 3
3010 Bern
Switzerland