Nationality German Name Johann Bauersachs | Residence Germany | |
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Born April 22, 1966 (age 58)
Karlsruhe ( 1966-04-22 ) Fields internal medicine, cardiology, intensive care Institutions Hannover Medical School Known for acute coronary syndrome, left ventricular healing and remodeling after ischemia as well as acute and chonic heart failure. | ||
Johann Bauersachs (born 22 April 1966 in Karlsruhe) is a German internist, cardiologist, intensive care physician and professor at the Hannover Medical School. He is director of the Department of Cardiology and Angiology. He is known for his scientific work in the fields of acute coronary syndrome, left ventricular healing and remodeling after ischemia as well as acute and chonic heart failure.
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Scientific contribution
Research activities of Bauersachs focused initially on endothelial dependent dilatation which is crucial for the regulation of blood pressure and organ perfusion, and especially the characterisation of nitric oxide (NO) dependent and independent endothelial factors. Supported by research grants from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) ad personam and within special research programs (SFBs 355 und 688 at Wuerzburg University) he investigated endothelial dysfunction in heart failure, and myocardial remodeling after experimental myocardial infarction in rats and mice. He could demonstrate the importance of vascular oxidative stress for abnormal endothelial function in heart failure. His group showed the attenuation of left ventricular remodeling after myocardial infarction by treatment with statins, the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) antagonist Eplerenone and a novel enhancer of endothelial NO synthase. The importance of the MR for early healing and remodeling after myocardial infarction was demonstrated by treatment with MR antagonists, but also by cell specific MR deletion. These research activities were the basis for clinical trials to improve MR antagonist therapy in patients with myocardial infarction, heart failure and renal dysfunction.
Together with T. Thum, Bauersachs published research on the role of non-coding RNA, especially microRNA, for cardiovascular diseases, that also led to several patents. The importance of microRNAs for fetal reprogramming of gene expression in heart failure was demonstrated, as well as the treatment using a so-called Antagomir in a mouse model of heart failure.
These research activities are continued within the DFG cluster of excellence REBIRTH („From Regenerative Biology to Reconstructive Therapy“) at Medical School Hannover with special emphasis on translation to clinical application. Bauersachs is chair of two clinical trials funded by the German Ministry of Research and Education (BMBF) in patients with heart failure: the study investigating the efficacy of Bromocriptine on left ventricular function in women with peripartal cardiomyopathy (PPCM) and the large endpoint trial DIGIT-HF (DIGitoxin to Improve ouTcomes in patients with advanced chronic systolic Heart Failure; EudraCT No: 2013-005326-38).
Memberships
Bauersachs is a board member of the Heart Failure Association (HFA) of the European Society of Cardiology and chair of the HFA-Study Group on Peripartum cardiomyopathy. He is a member of the program committees of the German Cardiac Society (DGK) and of the German Society of Internal Medicine (DGIM). Furthermore he is chair of the ESAC Germany as well as one of the coordinators of the COST Action ADMIRE (Aldosterone and Mineralocorticoid Receptor), supported by the European Union. Bauersachs is a member of the editorial boards of Hypertension, Cardiovascular Research, Basic Research in Cardiology as well as Clinical Research in Cardiology. He has been a DFG review board member since 2012. He is a member of the Steering committee and area manager in the excellence cluster REBIRTH (From Regenerative Biology to Reconstructive Therapy). Bauersachs ist speaker of the Clinical Research Group (KFO) 311 “(Pre-)terminal heart and lung failure – mechanical unloading and repair”, Medical School Hannover; funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) 2016-19 since October 2016.