Laura Krieg, M. Sc.


PhD student in the working group Functional Genomics

Contact / Address

Department of Molecular Systems Biology

Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ

Permoserstraße 15
04318 Leipzig, Germany

Tel: 0341 235 1078
laura.krieg@ufz.de

LK

Project description

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) the percentage of people suffering from overweight has more than tripled since the 1970s. Unhealthy overweight (obesity) is one of the major risk factors, in children and adults, for the development of metabolic disorders like diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, hypertension or fatty liver disease. In previously studies it could be shown that environmental factors like phthalates promote the development of obesity. Understanding the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms is essential for the design of new prevention strategies and more effective treatment procedures for obese patients. Obesity is accompanied by the excessive extension of white adipose tissue, which secretes an array of hormones and cytokines, so called adipokines. Adipokines play a central role in the whole body homeostasis by influencing a variety of biological and physiological processes (e.g. food intake, insulin action, glucose and lipid metabolism) and are a key factor in the development of the metabolic syndrome. My PhD project is situated in the Collaborative Research Centre 1052 (DFG) for interdisciplinary research on ‘Mechanism in Obesity’. As part of this, I am establishing a mass spectrometry-based assay for the simultaneous identification and quantification of adipokines in human serum and tissue samples. This method allows the parallel detection and quantification of over 30 adipokines and apolipoproteins. Furthermore, also metabolites in human tissue and serum will be quantified in my PhD project. The overall goal is to investigate the impact of environmental factors on adipokine and metabolite levels and correlate these to clinical parameters and obesity-related comorbidities.


Cooperations

AG Dr. Antje Körner
Clinic for Children and Adolescents
University Hospital Leipzig
Medical Research Center
Liebigstr. 21
04103 Leipzig

AG Dr. Assaf Rudich
Faculty of Health Science
Department of Clinical Biochemistry and Pharmacology
Labpratory of Study of Obesity
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel


Curriculum vitae

since 2017

PhD
Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Leipzig

 Proteomics und Metabolomics in Obesity Research


2015

Semester abroad and research projects
Monash University, Melbourne, Australia

 Classification of Trillium tschonoskii Maxim Using
 Headspace SPME Coupled to GC-MS

 Synthesis of coordination polymers with heterotopic
 sulfonate containing ligands (for the application
 as stationary phase in HPLC columns)


2014-2016

Master of Science in Chemistry
University of Leipzig

 Protein glycation in soy milk products

2011-2014

Bachelor of Science in Chemistry
University Leipzig

 Structure and thermoelectric properties 
 of multinary thallium chalcogenides



Publications

Poster


L. Krieg, A. Schaffert, J. Schmidt, K. Schubert, M. von Bergen, Adipokines: A Targeted Quantitative Analysis using Tandem Mass Spectrometry. Poster presented at the 14th Research Festival 2018, University of Leipzig.

L. Krieg, A. Schaffert, J. Schmidt, K. Schubert, M. von Bergen, Multiplexed LC-MS/MS Analysis for the Quantification of Serum Adipokines. Poster presented at the European Mass Spectrometry Conference 2018 , Saarbrücken.