1 June 2026, by Newsroom editorial office

Photo: UKE

Prof. Dr. Viacheslav Nikolaev, Director of the Institute of Experimental Cardiovascular Research at the UKE

The University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) has been awarded another Research Training Group by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and will receive a total of approximately €5.9 million in funding over the next five years. The German-French Research Training Group “Microdomains in Heart Disease” aims to advance cardiovascular research and training in collaboration with the Université Paris-Saclay.

“Funding for the new Franco-German Research Training Group strengthens the UKE as an internationally connected research hub and creates excellent conditions for training early-career researchers. Young researchers are given the opportunity to work in a highly topical field, network across locations, and benefit from a close connection between research and clinical application,” says Prof. Dr. Blanche Schwappach-Pignataro, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and member of the UKE Executive Board.

Graduate College Microdomains in Cardiac Disease

The international Graduate College (IGK) “Microdomains in Cardiac Disease” aims to promote the international training of doctoral researchers in the field of cardiovascular diseases. To this end, the Hamburg Center for Cardiovascular Research (HCCR) at the UKE is collaborating with the Laboratory of Signaling and Cardiovascular Pathophysiology at the Université Paris-Saclay (France). The central area of concentration for the scientific projects and the training program of the new IGK 3215 is on researching microdomain-specific disease mechanisms and their influence on the progression of cardiovascular diseases.

Microdomains are tiny, specialized regions within cells that control important signaling processes. Disruptions or structural changes in these microdomains are discussed as causes of cardiovascular diseases and heart failure. Using modern methods, the aim is to better understand pathological changes in these regions and develop new therapeutic approaches.

“The German-French collaboration expands existing educational opportunities through research stays at partner universities as well as joint supervision models,” says the spokesperson for the international Graduate College, Prof. Dr. Viacheslav Nikolaev, Director of the Institute of Experimental Cardiovascular Research at the UKE.

DFG funds Graduate Colleges for a maximum of nine years

Research training groups are university-based institutions designed to support researchers in the early stages of their careers, funded by the DFG for a maximum of nine years. The focus is on training doctoral researchers within the framework of a thematically focused research program and a structured training concept. The DFG expressly encourages an interdisciplinary orientation for research training groups. The goal is to prepare doctoral candidates for the complex academic job market while simultaneously fostering their early scientific independence.

The Research Training Group “Urban Future-Making: Scopes of Action in Professional Practice Across Time and Space” has been extended for another funding period. The University of Hamburg is a partner in this initiative, and HafenCity University Hamburg serves as the coordinating institution.

(This content has been translated automatically.)