Amanda Foks receives ERA-CVD consortium grant
Amanda Foks (Division of BioTherapeutics) has been awarded a Horizon 2020, ERA-CVD joint transnational cardiovascular research grant. She will lead a consortium consisting of early career European scientists (Dimitrios Tsiantoulas, Medical University of Vienna, Austria; Julia Polansky-Biskup, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany) and together they receive € 836,000 to investigate the role of B cell immunity in accelerated atherosclerosis. This research is nationally supported by the Dutch Heart Foundation.
Consortium:
B-eatATHERO; The role of B cell immunity in accelerated atherosclerosis
Coordinator:
Amanda Foks, Leiden University (LACDR), The Netherlands
Contact:
a.c.foks@lacdr.leidenuniv.nl
Partners:
- Dimitrios Tsiantoulas, Medical University of Vienna, Austria
- Julia Polansky-Biskup, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany
Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide, and results in the formation of atherosclerotic plaques that upon rupture or erosion cause myocardial infarction and stroke. The recent clinical trial CANTOS (Canakinumab Anti-Inflammatory Thrombosis Outcome Study) has demonstrated the therapeutic value of immunomodulation in secondary prevention of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. This is very important as survivors of myocardial infarction exhibit a particularly high risk for recurrent infarctions. Experimental studies have attributed this risk profile to accelerated atherosclerosis. However, the role of the immune system in this setting is not well understood. Here, we aim to investigate how major risk factors for secondary atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, such as aging and history of myocardial infarction, modulate B lymphocyte responses and thereby affect atherosclerosis progression. Our studies will employ atherosclerosis-prone mice and will include analysis of plaque specimens and peripheral B cell subsets from coronary artery disease patients. These studies will provide new insights for the development of precise therapeutic strategies, which will be particularly relevant for the secondary prevention of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
