Hannah Spahits works on Metabolomics research in human studies with focus on aging.
The primary focus of Hannah Spahits research is to investigate the emerging field of metabolomics as part of the EU funded project NUTRIAGING. Metabolomics represents the latest omics technology and is defined as the study of all metabolites in a biological sample or organism. The metabolome directly reflects the functional endpoints of biological events, highlighting the importance of this research field. The objectives of this doctoral project are to investigate the metabolic profiles of the aging population and to examine the impact of lifestyle interventions such as dietary factors or strength training on the metabolome.
Tamara Stelzer's research aims to understand the protective role of mildly elevated unconjugated bilirubin (as observed in individuals with gilbert syndrome) against chronic metabolic diseases.
Bilirubin is the end product of heme catabolism. Often, elevated serum bilirubin levels are associated with jaundice in babies and liver diseases during the development of chronic diseases. However, our group and others have demonstrated that mildly elevated levels of unconjugated bilirubin (UCB) have protective roles against chronic metabolic diseases. It has been shown that people with mildly elevated bilirubin levels have a lower BMI, a lower fat mass, and a favorable lipid phenotype (e.g., lower triglyceride and LDL-cholesterol levels). Dr. Claudia Hana, who recently finished her PhD in our working group, demonstrated in a recent Metabolism paper that individuals with Gilbert’s syndrome had an increased lipid catabolism compared to their age- and gender-matched controls. Based on this latest knowledge, the new FWF-funded project “Bilirubin and Metabolic Health” aims to understand more deeply the mechanism behind and further investigate the metabolism of hyperbilirubinemia.
We wish you all the best for your upcoming projects.
