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Therapeutic options for patients with autoimmune kidney diseases and other inflammatory conditions are often unspecific and harbour significant side effects. Our aim is therefore to uncover novel therapeutic strategies for tailored precision medicine, that is clearly needed in theses patients. This approach based on a deep molecular and cellular characterization of immune cells in the inflammed tissue. Specifically, we define cell-cell communication networks and pathogenic players in renal inflammation in order to block delerious interactions, specifically deplete proinflammatory cells and to push pathogenic into tolerogenic immune responses.

T cell characterization

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Deep T cell characterization

T cells are key components in the pathogenesis of renal autoimmune diseases. In order to understand the biology of T cells in kidney inflammation, we aim to comprehensively characterize these cells by high-dimensional transcriptional profiling at the single cell level. These studies will pave the way to more specific and less toxic treatment in individual patients.

Renal Trm17 cells

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Targeting Trm17 cells

Autoimmunity promoter tissue-resident memory T (Trm) cells are involved in peripheral immunity against reinfection. We have uncovered the contribution of Trm cells in patients with ANCA-assiciated glomerulonephritis (GN). In our ongoing studies, we perform a high-dimensional, multi-OMICS characterization of Trm cells from the kidney. In addition, we develop new medication to target these cells in the tissue in a therapeutic approach.

T cell trajectories

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Plasticity of Th17 cells in renal autoimmune disease

T cells play a critical role in the pathogenesis in autoimmune diseases, by their ability to differentiate into pathogenic effector T cells cells or protective regulatory T cells. Our long-term goal is to identify mechanisms for a shift of pro-inflammatory T cells towards anti-inflammatory T cells that could be used as a therapeutic strategy in GN patients.

Christian Krebs

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Christian Krebs is Professor for Systemsnephrology and Cellular Immunity and principal investigator in the Division of Nephrology / Translational Immunolgy, Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf, Germany.

His research interests are T cells in settings of autoimmunity and he has intensively addressed the role of Th17 cells in glomerulonephritis in the past few years. His group is focusing on state-of-the-art characterization and therapeutic targeting of kidney infiltrating T cells.

CKlab

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Prof. Dr. Christian Krebs (PI)

Dr. Saskia Jauch-Speer (Coordinator Single Cell Core Facility)

Zeba Sultana (Post-doc)

Varshi Sivayoganathan (PhD student)

Alina Borchers (technician)

Lilaf Mamo (technician)

Jens Kleiner (MD student)

Malte Hellmig (MD student)

Leon Enk (MD student)

Tobias Neben (MD student)

Alumni

Patricia Bartsch

Tobias Koyro

Christoph Kilian

Yu Zhao (co-supervised with Stefan Bonn and Ulf Panzer)