Gerner Lab

Bioanalysis using mass spectrometry delivers huge amounts of data and thus seems to be the most appropriate tool to target complex biomedical challenges. Indeed, thousands of different molecules can be detected and monitored, resulting in even larger numbers of molecular associations. Our research does not stop at the observation of associations, as they hardly help to answer complex questions. We put biomolecules in context, as all processes making up a living organism have agency. The introduction of causality allows us to design specific strategies to correct for confounders and avoid non-causal associations introduced by colliders.

This strategy helps us to focus on chronic inflammation and associated diseases in model systems covering cell culture model systems, animal models and humans. In contrast to acute inflammation, specific therapeutic strategies hardly exist targeting chronic inflammation. Evidently, chronic inflammatory processes cause the progression of a large number of chronic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, musculoskeletal disorders, psychiatric conditions, neurodegenerative diseases and cancer. We suggest that a profound molecular understanding of disease processes will help to design improved diagnostic and therapeutic strategies supporting countless patients suffering from such diseases.

In order to establish molecular relations based on causality and meaningful for inflammatory processes, we have established an analytical platform linking immediate consequences of inflammatory processes with systemic responses. This platform comprises:

• Proteome profiling: applied mainly for cells, tissue samples and blood plasma 
• Phosphoproteomics: applied mainly to cell culture model systems
• Bioactive lipid profiling: applied to cells, tissue samples and blood plasma
• Fingersweat analysis: our in-house developed metabolomics assay working with non-invasively collected human samples.

Our rationale for this analytical platform: 

Phosphoproteomics, bioactive lipid profiling and metabolomics provide essential information about immediate and short-term effects of any kind of biological challenge. Phosphoproteomics is limited to cell culture model systems, but provides deep insight into signaling mechanisms. Metabolomics provides information regarding immediate stress reactions and specific adaptive responses of cells. Bioactive lipids such as oxylipins provide independent information about adaptive responses to different kinds of stress, linking intracellular processes with inter-cellular communication. Proteomics identifies the most important long-term consequences of any kind of stress.

As we aim to translate the molecular mechanisms related to inflammation from cells to organisms, we combine the analysis of blood plasma with the analysis of sweat. Only sweat analysis provides us with the opportunity to determine immediate effects of any kind of intervention in humans. Thus, sweat analysis combined with plasma proteomics and plasma bioactive lipid profiling is a unique strategy to link short-term effects with adaptive responses in humans.