Eming, Sabine | Reznick, Jane - C 05 (TP)

Fibrosis is a dominant outcome of tissue injury in adult mammals and a major cause of permanent organ dysfunction in tissues such as the heart and skin. In contrast, regenerative healing requires the coordinated control of fundamental processes, including cellular plasticity, tissue remodeling, metabolic adaptation, immune responses, and long-term maintenance of tissue integrity. Lower vertebrates and neonatal mammals have served as established models to study these principles and to identify mechanisms that limit fibrotic repair and promote functional tissue restoration. However, how such regenerative programs might be re-engaged in adult mammals remains largely unresolved. The naked mole-rat (NMR) is among the longest-lived mammals with a lifespan exceeding 35 years, is highly resilient to extreme stresses and protected from cancer. Recent work by Reznick and colleagues has identified that NMRs can regenerate the heart after injury, a capacity lost in most adult mammals. This finding positions the NMR as a unique model to explore the hallmarks of regeneration in mammals and to investigate how fibrosis can be avoided while tissue function is restored. Building on this, Jane Reznick and Sabine Eming will investigate how regenerative processes, cellular heterogeneity, and multi-cellular crosstalk diverge between regenerative NMRs and non-regenerative mice. 

This project addresses fibrosis, a major cause of chronic organ failure, by identifying signaling molecules and pathways that mediate intercellular communication and determine whether tissue repair follows a regenerative or fibrotic trajectory. By understanding how cells and extracellular matrix interact to promote pro-regenerative versus pro-fibrotic responses, we aim to define molecular targets that could be leveraged to shift repair away from fibrosis and toward functional regeneration. Insights gained from the NMR model are expected to inform strategies applicable across multiple organs, including the heart and skin, with the goal of guiding regenerative therapies in humans.

This tandem project combines complementary expertise in skin and heart biology and leverages cross species comparisons to uncover mechanisms of regeneration and fibrosis. 

Sabine Eming’sgroup offers expertise in skin biology, fibrosis, immune regulation, and fibroblast function, together with robust methodology to study these processes including pre-clinical animal models and clinical trials. JaneReznick’s lab established the NMR heart regeneration model and brings deep knowledge of this species’ unique biology. These complementary strengths will enable rigorous cross-species experimental design and analysis, and provide the opportunity to establish the NMR as a novel regenerative model.

For information about Prof. Eming's and Dr. Reznick´s research and work, please visit the following pages: Eming Group and Reznick Lab

• Department of Dermatology and Venereology, University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne
• Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne
• Cologne Excellence Cluster on Cellular Stress Responses in Aging-Associated Diseases (CECAD), University of Cologne
• Institute of Zoology, Developmental Biology Unit, University of Cologne
• CRC 1403
• SFB 1218

• Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne
• Cologne Excellence Cluster on Cellular Stress Responses in Aging-Associated Diseases (CECAD), University of Cologne