Prof. Dr. Antje Körner started as head of the Metabolism Division at the Helmholtz Institute for Metabolic, Obesity and Vascular Research (HI-MAG) on July 1, 2023.

Professor Antje Körner, a renowned scientist and pediatrician, has joined HI-MAG as the head of Metabolic Research with a joint professorship at the University of Leipzig.

"We are delighted that Antje Körner, with her pediatric scientific and clinical profile, will establish and expand the new and important field of Childhood Obesity and Metabolic Research at HI-MAG and Helmholtz Munich," explains HI-MAG Director Matthias Blüher.

Antje Körner's research focuses on the development, mechanisms and consequences of childhood obesity in a translational approach that combines clinical studies, experimental research and genetic approaches. She and her research group address questions on the pathogenesis of obesity and its associated comorbidities in children. This aims to identify risk factors, uncover underlying mechanisms such as the interaction of genetic predispositions and environmental factors, and understand alterations in the biology and function of adipose tissue. Her work promises to reveal novel approaches to sustainable prevention and treatments for children with obesity.

"I am very happy that our integrative research approach to childhood obesity is appreciated and supported in Helmholtz Munich. The excellent perspective resulting from the interface of the university and the research center enables us to bring together clinical research, mechanistic understanding and new innovative therapeutic approaches. Thus, we can ultimately identify the children at highest risk and overcome the treatment gap for children with obesity," Antje Körner explains. Her scientific achievements include the identification of early childhood as a critical vulnerable window for the manifestation of childhood obesity, new evidence that insulin-based and age-adjusted reference values allow a much more accurate prediction of developing metabolic disorders than standard guideline proposed methods, and most recently the discovery of a new monogenic form of obesity that was previously undetectable with standard diagnostics.

Antje Körner has received numerous national and international awards, including the Research Award of the European Society of Pediatric Endocrinology (ESPE), the International Journal of Obesity Outstanding New Faculty Award, the Elliot Joslin Prize and the Ferdinand Bertram-Award of the German Diabetes Society (DDG), the Obesity Research Award of the German Society for the Study of Obesity (DAG), and the Adalbert Czerny-Award of the German Society of Pediatrics (DGKJ). Antje Körner is integrated in local and international research networks. She coordinates the Leipzig-Dresden site SaxoChiLD of the new German Center for Child and Adolescent Health Research (DZKJ). In addition, she has been a senior physician at the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Leipzig Medical Center.

Related News:
Obesity researchers discover new gene mutation in children

Publications:
Acceleration of BMI in Early Childhood and Risk of Sustained Obesity

Fasting indices of glucose-insulin-metabolism across life span and prediction of glycemic deterioration in children with obesity from new diagnostic cut-offs

Aberrant expression of agouti signaling protein (ASIP) as a cause of monogenic severe childhood obesity

Helmholtz Munich is a leading biomedical research center. Its mission is to develop breakthrough solutions for better health in a rapidly changing world. Interdisciplinary research teams focus on environmentally triggered diseases, especially the therapy and prevention of diabetes, obesity, allergies and chronic lung diseases. With the power of artificial intelligence and bioengineering, the researchers accelerate the translation to patients. Helmholtz Munich has more than 2,500 employees and is headquartered in Munich/Neuherberg. It is a member of the Helmholtz Association, with more than 43,000 employees and 18 research centers the largest scientific organization in Germany. More about Helmholtz Munich (Helmholtz Zentrum München Deutsches Forschungszentrum für Gesundheit und Umwelt GmbH): www.helmholtz-munich.de/en     

The German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD) is a national association that brings together experts in the field of diabetes research and combines basic research, translational research, epidemiology and clinical applications. The aim is to develop novel strategies for personalized prevention and treatment of diabetes. Members are Helmholtz Munich – German Research Center for Environmental Health, the German Diabetes Center in Düsseldorf, the German Institute of Human Nutrition in Potsdam-Rehbrücke, the Paul Langerhans Institute Dresden of Helmholtz Munich at the University Medical Center Carl Gustav Carus of the TU Dresden and the Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases of Helmholtz Munich at the Eberhard-Karls-University of Tuebingen together with associated partners at the Universities in Heidelberg, Cologne, Leipzig, Lübeck and Munich. www.dzd-ev.de/en