Alornyo

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  • Mailadresse: Karl King Alornyo
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  • Datum + Kategorie: PhD student

Alves

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  • Mailadresse: Justus Alves, MD
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  • Datum + Kategorie: Clinician Scientist

Batool

  • Tags: B
  • Mailadresse: Lilas Batool, PhD
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Birtasu

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  • Mailadresse: Alexandra Birtasu, PhD
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  • Datum + Kategorie: Post Doc
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Bouchard

  • Tags: B
  • Mailadresse: Michelle Bouchard
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Brauer

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  • Mailadresse: Celine Brauer
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Braun

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  • Mailadresse: Fabian Braun, MD
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  • Datum + Kategorie: Research Group Leader

Fabian Braun

Laboratory for renal intercellular communication via extracellular vesicles

Mission Statement

“Decipher the intercellular crosstalk via extracellular vesicles in health, glomerular diseases and acute kidney injury to identify novel disease pathways and establish innovative diagnostics”

— Dr. med. Fabian Braun

Team Members

The Braun lab is always looking for scientists (PhD, PostDoc) and technicians to investigate immune mediated glomerular disease, glomerulosclerosis, Fabry’s disease and acute kidney injury.Please get in touch with your CV via This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.!

Research

© Fabian Braun, created with BioRender

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have been identified to be critical contributors to cancer cell biology, immune mediation and metabolic signalling. EVs are small membrane bound packages that contain specific proteins, nucleic acids and lipid cargo, facilitating intercellular signalling across great distances. Because of this, the use of EVs as a source for biomarkers has drawn significant attention. Yet, in nephrology, we currently lack 1) a concise understanding of cell-specific vesicle release and content, 2) how renal cells communicate through vesicles and 3) what effect different diseases exert on these parameters. Our group aims to characterize the release and cargo of small and medium-sized extracellular vesicles of podocytes and proximal tubular cells to identify alterations upon cellular damage in glomerular diseases and acute kidney injury. To facilitate this, we employ and establish advanced disease modeling in mice, rats and organoids investigating immune mediated glomerular disease, glomerulosclerosis, Fabry’s disease and acute kidney injury.

Fabian Braun, MD

Research Group Leader

III. Department of Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE)
Martinistr. 52
20246 Hamburg, Germany

CV

  • Current Position

    since 2025 Principal Investigator CRC/TRR 422 Project B4

    since 2023

    Managing Attending, III. Department of Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg- Eppendorf

    since 2023

    Attending Physician at the Martin Zeitz Center for Rare Diseases

    since 2022

    Research Group leader supported by the iSTAR program for advanced clinician scientists

    since 2018

    Physician, III. Department of Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg- Eppendorf, Prof. Dr. Tobias B. Huber 

  • University Training

    2006 - 2012

    Study of Medicine, University of Cologne, Germany

  • Academic qualifications

    2024

    Board Certification in Nephrology and Internal Medicine

    2022

    Board Certification in Internal Medicine
    2013 - 2017- 2020

    Clinician Scientist at the Department II of Internal Medicine and Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne, University of Cologne, Germany
    2011 - 2014

    MD Thesis: 
„The molecular pathogenesis of Fabry disease in human podocytes“
at the Department II of Internal Medicine and Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne, University of Cologne, Germany,
supported for one year by the „Köln Fortune“ scholarship program

  • Previous professional career

    Clinical postgraduate education:

    since 2018

    Physician, III. Department of Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg- Eppendorf, Prof. Dr. Tobias B. Huber
    2013 - 2017

    Physician, Department II of Internal Medicine and Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne, University of Cologne, Germany

    Scientific postgraduate education:

    starting 2023

    iSTAR Program for Advanced Clinician Scientists
    since 2021

    Clinician Scientist through an Else-Kröner Memorial-Scholarship
    2019 - 2020

    Gerok Position at the CRC 1192: Immune-Mediated Glomerular Diseases

  • Selected awards and honors

    2022 - 2020

    Teacher of the Year 2022 – for Module E awarded by the Students and faculty of the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf
    2021

    Research Scholarship 2021 of the German Society of Nephrology, Berlin, Germany
    2020

    Paper of the Month, August 2020, Braun et al., SARS-CoV-2 renal tropism associates with acute kidney injury, The Lancet

Selected publications

1.
Braun F, Mandel AM, Blomberg L, Wong MN, Chatzinikolaou G, Meyer DH, Reinelt A, Nair V, Akbar-Haase R, McCown PJ, Haas F, Chen H, Rahmatollahi M, Fermin D, Ebbestad R, Slaats GG, Bork T, Schell C, Koehler S, Brinkkoetter PT, Lindenmeyer MT, Cohen CD, Kann M, Unnersjö-Jess D, Bloch W, Sampson MG, Dollé ME, Puelles VG, Kretzler M, Garinis GA, Huber TB, Schermer B, Benzing T, Schumacher B, Kurschat CE.  JCI Insight. 2025 May 20:e172370. 
2.
Ng MSY, Burger D, Svenningsen P, Martens E, Erdbrügger U, Braun F. Kidney Int. 2025 Jan;107(1):44-50. 
3.
Lassé M, El Saghir J, Berthier CC, Eddy S, Fischer M, Laufer SD, Kylies D, Hutzfeldt A, Bonin LL, Dumoulin B, Menon R, Vega-Warner V, Eichinger F, Alakwaa F, Fermin D, Billing AM, Minakawa A, McCown PJ, Rose MP, Godfrey B, Meister E, Wiech T, Noriega M, Chrysopoulou M, Brandts P, Ju W, Reinhard L, Hoxha E, Grahammer F, Lindenmeyer MT, Huber TB, Schlüter H, Thiel S, Mariani LH, Puelles VG, Braun F, Kretzler M, Demir F, Harder JL, Rinschen MM. Nat Commun. 2023 Aug 14;14(1):4903.
4.
Braun F, Abed A, Sellung D, Rogg M, Woidy M, Eikrem O, Wanner N, Gambardella J, Laufer SD, Haas F, Wong MN, Dumoulin B, Rischke P, Mühlig AK, Sachs W, von Cossel K, Schulz K, Muschol N, Gersting SW, Muntau AC, Kretz O, Hahn O, Rinschen MM, Mauer M, Bork T, Grahammer F, Liang W, Eierhoff T, Römer W, Hansen A, Meyer-Schwesinger C, Iaccarino G, Tøndel C, Marti HP, Najafian B, Puelles VG, Schell C, Huber TB. J Clin Invest. 2023 Apr 4:e157782.
5.

SARS-CoV-2 renal tropism associates with acute kidney injury.
Braun F, Lütgehetmann M, Pfefferle S, Wong MN, Carsten A, Lindenmeyer MT, Nörz D, Heinrich F, Meißner K, Wichmann D, Kluge S, Gross O, Pueschel K, Schröder AS, Edler C, Aepfelbacher M, Puelles VG, Huber TB. Lancet. 2020 Aug;396(10251):597–8.
6.

Multiorgan and Renal Tropism of SARS-CoV-2.
Puelles VG*, Lütgehetmann M*, Lindenmeyer MT*, Sperhake JP*, Wong MN, Allweiss L, Chilla S, Heinemann A, Wanner N, Liu S, Braun F, Lu S, Pfefferle S, Schröder AS, Edler C, Gross O, Glatzel M, Wichmann D, Wiech T, Kluge S, Pueschel K, Aepfelbacher M, Huber TB. N Engl J Med. 2020 Aug 6;383(6):590–2.
7.
Braun F, Rinschen M, Buchner D, Bohl K, Plagmann I, Bachurski D, Richard Späth M, Antczak P, Göbel H, Klein C, Lackmann JW, Kretz O, Puelles VG, Wahba R, Hallek M, Schermer B, Benzing T, Huber TB, Beyer A, Stippel D, Kurschat CE, Müller RU. J Extracell Vesicles. 2020 Oct;10(1):e12026.
8.

Enzyme Replacement Therapy Clears Gb3 Deposits from a Podocyte Cell Culture Model of Fabry Disease but Fails to Restore Altered Cellular Signaling.
Braun F, Blomberg L, Brodesser S, Liebau MC, Schermer B, Benzing T, Kurschat CE. Cell Physiol Biochem. 2019;52(5):1139-1150.
9.
Slaats GG, Braun F, Hoehne M, Frech LE, Blomberg L, Benzing T, Schermer B, Rinschen MM, Kurschat CE. Sci Rep. 2018 Jul 23;8(1):11042. 
10.
Braun F, Rinschen MM, Bartels V, Frommolt P, Habermann B, Hoeijmakers JH, Schumacher B, Dollé ME, Müller RU, Benzing T, Schermer B, Kurschat CE.  Aging (Albany NY). 2016 Mar;8(3):441-57. 

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Cantutan

  • Tags: C
  • Mailadresse: Berk Cantutan
  • Datum + Kategorie: MD student

Chilla

  • Tags: C
  • Mailadresse: Silvia Chilla
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  • Datum + Kategorie: Technician

Edenhofer

  • Tags: E
  • Mailadresse: Ilka Edenhofer
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  • Datum + Kategorie: Technician

Freiwald

  • Tags: F
  • Mailadresse: Tilo Freiwald, MD
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  • Datum + Kategorie: Research Group Leader

Mission Statement

“Bringing together state-of-the-art high-throughput functional genomics and computational analysis approaches to uncover the roles of the complement system in kidney disease”

— Tilo Freiwald, MD

Team Members

Research

© Chauss et al. 2022, Nature Immunology; © Yan et al. 2021, Science Immunology; © Created with BioRender.com

Tissue inflammation is a key determinant of kidney fibrosis and progressive loss of organ function.  Defective control and deregulation of the complement pathways is a hallmark of a broad range of kidney diseases leading to fibrosis, including C3 glomerulopathy, haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), lupus nephritis, and ANCA-associated necrotising glomerulonephritis. These are all diseases in which complement targeting therapies are being developed.

Complement proteins are present both within the circulation and made locally by kidney cells because these are sites inaccessible to plasma-circulating complement. Currently approved pharmaceuticals only target the complement that is present within the circulation. We believe that elucidating the local and intracellular, as opposed to systemic, complement functions will lead to a better understanding of the specific causes and consequences of complement activation in related diseases. We and others have shown that these non-canonical functions of complement fundamentally shape immune and non-immune cell function and metabolism. Improved knowledge of the role of the complement system in kidney-specific inflammation will provide a rationale to further target and personalise anti-inflammatory kidney therapeutics as well as inform the need for intracellular and local drug delivery.

Our lab routinely employs state of the art multi-dimensional single cell genomic methodologies and has computational expertise that allows us to handle big data challenges by bringing machine learning and AI to bench and bedside. Through our international partnerships we share the latest innovations and bring exchange opportunities at other top institutions to our trainees. Our role as co-founder of the medical knowledge platform AMBOSS highlights our commitment to mentorship and training in the medical field.

The Freiwald lab is committed to promotion of practices that support diversity and inclusion in clinicalscience.

The Freiwald lab is always looking for scientists (PhD, PostDoc) and technicians to unravel mechanisms and translate the role of the innate immunity′s complement system in inflammatory kidney disease.Please get in touch with your CV via This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.!

Tilo Freiwald, MD

Research Group Leader

III. Department of Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE)
Martinistr. 52
20246 Hamburg, Germany

CV

  • Current Position

    since 2022 Junior group leader supported by the BMBF iSTAR Advanced Clinician Scientist program
    since 2022 Physician, III. Department of Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Prof. Dr. T. B. Huber

  • University Training

     2004 - 2011

    Study of Medicine, University Hamburg, Germany. Clinical rotations at King’s College London, Cerrahpasa Medical Faculty Istanbul University and Stadtspital Waid Zurich

  • Academic qualifications

    2020 - 2022- 2020

    DFG Fellowship at Immunoregulation Section and Laboratory for Complement and Inflammation Research, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA (Dr. B. Afzali/NIDDK and Dr. C. Kemper/NHLBI)
    2018 - 2020

    Postdoctoral Fellowship at Immunoregulation Section and Laboratory for Complement and Inflammation Research, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA (Dr. B. Afzali/NIDDK and Dr. C. Kemper/NHLBI) 
    2009 - 2014

    MD thesis, Institute of Immunology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Prof. Dr. F. Haag

  • Previous professional career

    Clinical postgraduate education:

    2018 Nephrology fellow at the III. Department of Medicine, University Hospital Frankurt, Germany
    2018 Board Certification for Internal Medicine
    2017

    Board Certification for Emergency Medicine
    2013 - 2018

    Physician, III. Department of Medicine, University Hospital Frankurt, Germany

    Scientific postgraduate education:

    2020 - 2022

    DFG Fellowship at Immunoregulation Section and Laboratory for Complement and Inflammation Research, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA (Dr. B. Afzali/NIDDK and Dr. C. Kemper/NHLBI)
    2018 - 2020

    Postdoctoral Fellowship at Immunoregulation Section and Laboratory for Complement and Inflammation Research, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA (Dr. B. Afzali/NIDDK and Dr. C. Kemper/NHLBI)
    2012 - 2013

    Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of AMBOSS GmbH

  • Selected awards and honors

    since 2022 - 2020

    Spokesperson BMBF iSTAR Clinician Scientists Hamburg
    2022

    Orloff Science Award from the NIH for work on complement biology

Selected publications

1.

The secret life of complement: challenges and opportunities in exploring functions of the complosome in disease.
Freiwald T, Afzali B. J Clin Invest. 2025 Jun 16;135(12):e188350. 
2.

C5a-licensed phagocytes drive sterilizing immunity during systemic fungal infection.
Desai JV, Kumar D, Freiwald T, Chauss D, Johnson MD, Abers MS, Steinbrink JM, Perfect JR, Alexander B, Matzaraki V, Snarr BD, Zarakas MA, Oikonomou V, Silva LM, Shivarathri R, Beltran E, Demontel LN, Wang L, Lim JK, Launder D, Conti HR, Swamydas M, McClain MT, Moutsopoulos NM, Kazemian M, Netea MG, Kumar V, Köhl J, Kemper C, Afzali B, Lionakis MS. Cell. 2023 Jun 22;186(13):2802-2822.e22. 
3.

Systematic single-cell pathway analysis to characterize early T cell activation.
Bibby JA, Agarwal D, Freiwald T, Kunz N, Merle NS, West EE, Singh P, Larochelle A, Chinian F, Mukherjee S, Afzali B, Kemper C, Zhang NR. Cell Rep. 2022 Nov 22;41(8):111697.
4.

Autocrine vitamin D signaling switches off pro-inflammatory programs of TH1 cells.
Chauss D*, Freiwald T*, McGregor R*, Yan B*, Wang L*, Nova-Lamperti E, Kumar D, Zhang Z, Teague H, West EE, Vannella KM, Ramos-Benitez MJ, Bibby J, Kelly A, Malik A, Freeman AF, Schwartz DM, Portilla D, Chertow DS, John S, Lavender P, Kemper C, Lombardi G, Mehta NN, Cooper N, Lionakis MS, Laurence A, Kazemian M, Afzali B. Nat Immunol. 2022 Jan;23(1):62-74.
5.

Mitochondrial C5aR1 activity in macrophages controls IL-1β production underlying sterile inflammation.Mitochondrial C5aR1 activity in macrophages controls IL-1β production underlying sterile inflammation.Mitochondrial C5aR1 activity in macrophages controls IL-1β production underlying sterile inflammation.
Niyonzima N, Rahman J, Kunz N, West EE, Freiwald T, Desai JV, Merle NS, Gidon A, Sporsheim B, Lionakis MS, Evensen K, Lindberg B, Skagen K, Skjelland M, Singh P, Haug M, Ruseva MM, Kolev M, Bibby J, Marshall O, O'Brien B, Deeks N, Afzali B, Clark RJ, Woodruff TM, Pryor M, Yang ZH, Remaley AT, Mollnes TE, Hewitt SM, Yan B, Kazemian M, Kiss MG, Binder CJ, Halvorsen B, Espevik T, Kemper C. Sci Immunol. 2021 Dec 24;6(66):eabf2489.
6.

SARS-CoV-2 drives JAK1/2-dependent local complement hyperactivation.SARS-CoV-2 drives JAK1/2-dependent local complement hyperactivation.
Yan B*, Freiwald T*, Chauss D*, Wang L*, West E*, Mirabelli C, Zhang CJ, Nichols EM, Malik N, Gregory R, Bantscheff M, Ghidelli-Disse S, Kolev M, Frum T, Spence JR, Sexton JZ, Alysandratos KD, Kotton DN, Pittaluga S, Bibby J, Niyonzima N, Olson MR, Kordasti S, Portilla D, Wobus CE, Laurence A, Lionakis MS, Kemper C, Afzali B, Kazemian M. Sci Immunol. 2021 Apr 7;6(58):eabg0833.
7.

Renal diseases and the role of complement: Linking complement to immune effector pathways and therapeutics.
Freiwald T, Afzali B. Adv Immunol. 2021;152:1-81.
8.

CD4+ T cell lymphopenia predicts mortality from Pneumocystis pneumonia in kidney transplant patients.
Freiwald T, Büttner S, Cheru NT, Avaniadi D, Martin SS, Stephan C, Pliquett RU, Asbe-Vollkopf A, Schüttfort G, Jacobi V, Herrmann E, Geiger H, Hauser IA. Clin Transplant. 2020 Sep;34(9):e13877.
9.

Aberrant type 1 immunity drives susceptibility to mucosal fungal infections.
Break TJ, Oikonomou V, Dutzan N, Desai JV, Swidergall M, Freiwald T, Chauss D, Harrison OJ, Alejo J, Williams DW, Pittaluga S, Lee CR, Bouladoux N, Swamydas M, Hoffman KW, Greenwell-Wild T, Bruno VM, Rosen LB, Lwin W, Renteria A, Pontejo SM, Shannon JP, Myles IA, Olbrich P, Ferré EMN, Schmitt M, Martin D; Genomics and Computational Biology Core, Barber DL, Solis NV, Notarangelo LD, Serreze DV, Matsumoto M, Hickman HD, Murphy PM, Anderson MS, Lim JK, Holland SM, Filler SG, Afzali B, Belkaid Y, Moutsopoulos NM, Lionakis MS. Science. 2021 Jan 15;371(6526):eaay5731.
10.

Diapedesis-Induced Integrin Signaling via LFA-1 Facilitates Tissue Immunity by Inducing Intrinsic Complement C3 Expression in Immune Cells.
Kolev M, West EE, Kunz N, Chauss D, Moseman EA, Rahman J, Freiwald T, Balmer ML, Lötscher J, Dimeloe S, Rosser EC, Wedderburn LR, Mayer-Barber KD, Bohrer A, Lavender P, Cope A, Wang L, Kaplan MJ, Moutsopoulos NM, McGavern D, Holland SM, Hess C, Kazemian M, Afzali B, Kemper C. Immunity. 2020 Mar 17;52(3):513-527.e8.
11.

Pattern recognition as a concept for multiple-choice questions in a national licensing exam.
Freiwald T, Salimi M, Khaljani E, Harendza S. BMC Med Educ. 2014 Nov 14;14:232.

* Represents equal contributions as co-first or co-senior authors.

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Gies

  • Tags: G
  • Mailadresse: Sydney Gies, MD
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  • Datum + Kategorie: CLINICIAN SCIENTIST

Goldmann

  • Tags: G
  • Mailadresse: Birgit Goldmann
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  • Datum + Kategorie: Study Nurse

Greszkowiak

  • Tags: G
  • Mailadresse: Elisabeth Greszkowiak
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  • Datum + Kategorie: Technician
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Gunkel

  • Tags: G
  • Mailadresse: Maja Gunkel
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  • Datum + Kategorie: MD student

Guo

  • Tags: G
  • Mailadresse: Yubing Guo, PhD
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  • Datum + Kategorie: Post Doc

Gürler

  • Tags: G
  • Mailadresse: Selin Gürler
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  • Datum + Kategorie: study coordinator

Hengel

  • Tags: H
  • Mailadresse: Felicitas Hengel, MD
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  • Datum + Kategorie: Clinician Scientist

Holtfrerich

  • Tags: H
  • Mailadresse: Sarah Holtfrerich, PhD
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  • Datum + Kategorie: Research Management

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20246 Hamburg Germany
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