news 2022

An Austrian study led by MedUni Vienna showed that active brain metastases in breast cancer patients are partially or even completely regressed by a novel class of drug. This is a chemical conjugate of an antibody and a chemotherapy drug that, according to current findings, opens up a completely new avenue in oncological research and targeted therapy.

The different geographic and climatic regions from which ragweed pollen originates, as well as the degree of environmental pollution, may influence the severity of allergic reactions such as hay fever and asthma. Pollen from plants in different areas exhibit different levels of aggressiveness. This is the conclusion reached by an inter-university study team led by MedUni Vienna and involving the University of Vienna and the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences.

A multidisciplinary study led by Vanja Nagy (LBI-RUD/CeMM/Medical University of Vienna) and Josef Penninger (UBC/IMBA) characterized a novel gene, known as FIBCD1, to be likely causative of a new and rare neurodevelopmental disorder. Using data from two young patients with neurological symptoms, the researchers from both groups found evidence of a novel function for the FIBCD1 gene in the brain, and a potentially pivotal role in diseases such as autism, ADHD, schizophrenia, and neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer-s.

One in two premature babies receives transfusions of red blood cells (RBC) due to anaemia. There are no generally accepted clinical guidelines for the degree of anaemia necessitating blood transfusions. MedUni Vienna researchers have now conducted a critical review of the currently available literature.

The Hertha Firnberg Fellowship was established by the FWF to support highly qualified young female researchers in their university careers. In 2021, the grant was awarded to Anna Breger, who is now starting her research work as a postdoc at MedUni Vienna as part of this programme. With her research project "Image based Data Evaluation Analyses and Medical Application", Anna Breger and her new colleagues at the Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering aim to improve the generalisation of automated quality assessment of digital image data.

A MedUni Vienna research team has developed a new blood test that indicates a person's status of cellular immunity to SARS-CoV-2 within just 48 hours. This test is particularly relevant for vulnerable patient groups, whose own antibody response is not meaningful. The test can even indicate whether immunity is the result of vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 or of survived infection.

Since 2020, Austria has played an internationally pioneering role in monitoring the COVID-19 pandemic by sequencing virus particles from wastewater samples. A recent study by CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, the Medical University of Vienna, the University of Innsbruck, and many other collaboration partners now demonstrates unprecedented detail and accuracy when it comes to analyses of how wastewater reflects virus variant dynamics.

In case of heart and/or lung failure, an ECMO machine can be used to maintain organ function for days or even weeks. Although extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) technology has advanced, its use can still cause fatal complications in patients. In a recent study conducted with intensive care patients at University Hospital Vienna, MedUni Vienna researchers showed that the agent prostaglandin E1 could enhance the safety of the procedure.

A drug used in the clinical treatment of angina symptoms also has an anti-inflammatory effect and reduces atherosclerotic plaques in blood vessels - thereby reducing the risk of heart attack or stroke. The study, led by MedUni Vienna and including access to data from Harvard Medical School, has now been published in the highly regarded journal "PNAS".

A collaboration between researchers at the Center for Virology of the Medical University of Vienna and the Pasteur Institute in Paris has provided unexpected insights into the atomic interactions of the tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) virus in infected cells. In particular, the researchers identified a new molecular switch that is used to control the processes of virus assembly, virus maturation and entry into new cells.

It is important to know whether patients have non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) or alcohol-related liver disease (ALD), as this distinction plays a key role in treatment and prognosis but cannot be reliably determined by established diagnostic means. In a study led by MedUni Vienna, a new method has now been used to determine alcohol consumption in fatty liver disease.

Splitting fat, binding fat - the enzyme ATGL manages both. The success story of a multitasker It is an enzyme that has worked in secret for a long time. It was not until 2004 that Rudolf Zechner, a biochemist at the University of Graz, and his team discovered that ATGL (short for adipose triglyceride lipase) is mainly responsible for the cleavage of triglycerides ("fat") in adipose tissue.

A research team at MedUni Vienna has discovered key mechanisms of allergy to pollen from the common weed mugwort, thereby also laying the foundation for the development of the world's first vaccine. Mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris) poses a serious problem for allergic individuals in our latitudes from July through to September.

A MedUni Vienna study team has identified the role of a specific subtype of macrophages (white blood cells) in progressive non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. As part of the immune system, these cells have a protective function against fibrosis and liver cirrhosis. At the same time, they are useful as biomarkers of liver disease progression as they can be measured by a blood test.

Patients with chronic liver disease may suffer hepatic complications as a result of severe Covid-19. A study conducted by a research team led by Lukas Hartl, Thomas Reiberger and Michael Trauner from the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology of MedUni Vienna and University Hospital Vienna found that a rise in cholestasis parameters and subsequent damage to the bile ducts, so-called secondary sclerosing cholangitis (SSC), develops with striking frequency in patients with pre-existing liver disease.

Micronutrient deficiencies can promote inflammation and render the immune system particularly sensitive to allergenic substances. In particular, iron deficiency signals danger to immune cells and leads to a more pronounced, exaggerated immune response. For the first time, scientists at the Messerli Research Institute of MedUni Vienna, Vetmeduni Vienna and the University of Vienna conducted a placebo-controlled trial and showed that targeted dietary measures can reduce the symptom burden in allergic reactions.

In view of the constant emergence of new viral variants and the limited duration of immune protection through recovery or vaccination, it is becoming increasingly likely that an annual COVID-19 booster vaccination might be needed. Working with colleagues from the Transatlantic Research Lab on Complex Societal Challenges, Jakob Weitzer and Eva Schernhammer from the Department of Epidemiology at the Medical University of Vienna and Gerald Steiner from the University of Continuing Education Krems investigated the willingness of the population to be vaccinated annually against COVID-19.

In the wake of the pandemic, there have been fewer births in poorer, more disadvantaged areas, while there has hardly been any change in births in affluent and more advantaged areas.

Especially older people often overestimate their health Older people who overestimate their health go to the doctor less often. This can have serious consequences for their health, for example, when illnesses are detected too late. By contrast, people who think they are sicker than they actually are visit the doctor more often.

In a recent study, an interdisciplinary research team from MedUni Vienna showed that functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) can be used as a non-invasive method for predicting complications in chronic liver disease. The scientists combined a simple risk stratification system developed at MedUni Vienna - the functional liver imaging score (FLIS) - with splenic diameter.