The Angioedema working group focuses on "bradykinin-induced angioedema". This primarily includes hereditary angioedema (HAE) and angioedema triggered by drugs such as ACE inhibitors. The research group is characterised by close networking between clinical and basic science. For example, we are a study centre for various clinical studies that deal with the approval of new drugs, the long-term monitoring of already approved therapies and the development of new diagnostic procedures. On the other hand, we carry out basic scientific investigations in our research laboratory. We focus on barrier function and bradykinin signalling pathways in endothelial cells. These form the innermost layer of blood vessels and protect against uncontrolled water influx into the connective tissue in a healthy state.
We are investigating the individual cell biological structures and processes involved in bradykinin-mediated endothelial barrier dysfunction, which is the basis for the swelling attacks. We work with commercially available endothelial cell cultures as well as those isolated in our laboratory. For our research, we investigate these on a biophysical and cell biological level.
- Icatibant Outcome Survey (IOS): The aim of the IOS is to investigate the safety of Icatibant, which is used for the acute treatment of swelling attacks in HAE disease, in routine clinical practice.
- Study to Evaluate the Real-World Long-Term Effectiveness of Lanadelumab in Participants With Hereditary Angioedema (ENABLE): The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of lanadelumab, an antibody against plasma kallikrein, which is approved for the prophylactic treatment of hereditary angioedema, in the occurrence of HAE attacks in clinical practice.
- Prophylaxis Impact on Quality of Life Impariment of HAE Patients with Lower Annual Base Attack Rates (PIQHAR): The aim of this study is to investigate the efficacy of lanadelumab in terms of improving health-related quality of life, particularly in patients with less frequent swelling attacks.
- Dose-ranging Study of Oral PHA-022121 for Acute Treatment of Angioedema Attacks in Patients With Hereditary Angioedema (RAPIDe-1): This phase II study is investigating the efficacy of a new oral medication for the acute treatment of attacks in patients with hereditary angioedema (HAE).
Angelina Gierke (medical doctoral student, research assistant)
Topic: Characterisation of blood outgrowth endothelial cells with a special focus on their barrier properties
Scholarship holder of the Experimental Medicine doctoral programme at the University of Ulm
Hannes Müller (medical doctoral student)
Topic: Establishment of a new method for the determination of endothelial barrier function using the D2O dilution method
Scholarship holder of the Experimental Medicine doctoral programme at the University of Ulm
Nevena Dimitrova (medical doctoral student)
Topic: Characterisation of differences in the bradykinin signalling pathway between healthy volunteers and patients with bradykinin-mediated angioedema in primary endothelial cells
Scholarship holder of the doctoral programme Experimental Medicine at the University of Ulm
Anna Reich (medical doctoral student)
Topic: The role of the endothelial glycocalyx in the pathophysiology of bradykinin-mediated angioedema
Scholarship holder of the doctoral programme Experimental Medicine at the University of Ulm
Caroline Zimmermann (Bachelor student of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Biberach University of Applied Sciences)
Topic: The role of the B1 receptor and B2 receptor in bradykinin-mediated angioedema.
Julia Haug (medical doctoral student)
Topic: Investigation of changes in bradykinin metabolism in bradykinin-mediated angioedema
Scholarship holder of the Experimental Medicine doctoral programme at the University of Ulm
Elisa-Sophie Heilig (dental doctoral student)
Topic: Analysis of messenger ribonucleic acid sequencing data from endothelia of different origin with regard to barrier function and the bradykinin signalling pathway
If you are interested in a (dental) medical doctoral thesis or a bachelor's thesis in our working group, please contact us by e-mail at robin.lochbaum@uniklinik-ulm.de.
There is a co-operation with the Institute of Pharmacology and Clinical Pharmacology at the University of Düsseldorf. We are evaluating the significance of cyclooxygenase for bradykinin B2 receptor-mediated extravasation in humans. Cyclooxygenase produces pro-inflammatory mediators such as prostaglandins. Animal experiments have already shown that these contribute significantly to the development of bradykinin-induced extravasation. Therefore, a bradykinin intradermal test should be used to check whether drug inhibition of cyclooxygenase (e.g. by taking cortisone or NSAIDs) reduces bradykinin-mediated wheal formation in the intradermal test. Depending on this, the influence that this signalling pathway has on the development of bradykinin-induced angioedema can be evaluated.