FEBS Workshop on the Molecular and Cellular Pathways of Aging in Hematopoiesis in Greece MAy 2023
What an incredible experience at the FEBS Workshop on the Molecular and Cellular Pathways of Aging in Hematopoiesis in Greece! Karoline, Alessia, Lisa and Isabella enjoyed some great conference days beginning of May 2023 in Heraklion Greece. Although the weather was not as expected, we decided to have our own slogan “When you can’t find sunshine, be the sun!”. With that, Alessia and Lisa had the opportunity to present their work as posters. Not even that, Lisa also won the poster prize! Isabella got selected for a short talk to present her data in front of a great audience and experts. Congrats to the CDK6 team – Cheerfully demonstrating knowledge*6! Karoline was a great support, and it was a pleasure to network in person!
EHA Research Conference October 2022
Exciting days at the EHA ReCon in sunny Palermo Sicily!
Eszter, Alessia, Karoline and Isabella had the opportunity to show their scientific projects as poster presentations at this conference. Veronika and us not only had fruitful discussions with ongoing collaborators, but also had the opportunity to network with experts in the field of hematopoietic/leukemic stem cells from all over the world. Great scientific talks, food and people!
April 2023
Congrats Tania brandstötter
Young Investigator Award 2023 to Tania Brandstötter
Big congratulations to Tania for winning one of this years “Young Investigator Awards” at the OeGHO (Österreichische Gesellschaft für Hämatologie & Medizinische Onkologie) Conference in Innsbruck for her project“SBNO2 is a critical mediator of STAT3-driven hematological malignancies“!
April 2023
CONGRATS ELisabeth Gamper M.Sc.
Elisabeth finished her master thesis with the title”The Role of CDK6 in megakaryopoiesis and its potential as a target in CALR-mutated MPNs” in our lab.
NEW PUBLICATION
CONGRATS Tania Brandstötter
For her first-author paper: “SBNO2 is a critical mediator of STAT3-driven hematological malignancies” published in the prestigious “Blood” journal. Thanks to our amazing collaborators from the Zuber, Grebien and Mustjoki Labs as well as from the MLL!
Link to paper:https://ashpublications.org/blood/article/doi/10.1182/blood.2022018494/494104/SBNO2-is-a-critical-mediator-of-STAT3-driven?searchresult=1more info:https://www.vetmeduni.ac.at/en/universitaet/infoservice/presseinformationen/presseinformationen-2023/basic-research-opens-up-new-therapeutic-opportunities-for-fighting-leukaemia
award of excellence 2022
Federal Ministry Republic of Austria – Education, Science and Research
Congrats to Sebastian Kollmann who won the Award of Excellence 2022 for his PhD thesis “STAT5A and STAT5B in Hematopoiesis and Leukemogenesis“
https://www.vetmeduni.ac.at/universitaet/infoservice/news/news-detail/award-of-excellence-fuer-sebastian-kollmann
https://www.bmbwf.gv.at/Ministerium/staatspreise-auszeichnungen/Staatspreise.html
WE wish you amerry christmas and a happy new year
.
Wilhelm türk-Preis 2022
OeGHO – Österreichische Gesellschaft für Hämatologie & Medizinische Onkologie
CONGRATS TO SEBASTIAN
Sebastian won the Wilhelm Türk-Preis 2022 for his publication “A STAT5B–CD9 axis determines self-renewal in hematopoietic and leukemic stem cells“.
EMBO|FEBS Lecture Course “Mitochondria in life, death and disease” in Budva, Montenegro
ConGrats to Lisa Scheiblecker
Lisa presented her work at the poster session and was able to gain many new insights in the field of mitochondrial biology.
New Publication
ConGrats to Karoline Kollmann
for her paper “The nature inspired peptide [T20K]-kalata B1 induces anti-tumor effects in anaplastic large cell lymphoma” in Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy in cooperation with Christian Gruber from the Medical University of Vienna and Dagmar Stoiber from KL Krems.
New Publication
ConGrats to Alessia Schirripa and Karoline Kollmann
for their review “Cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors in malignant hematopoiesis” in Frontiers in Oncology.
Congrats Veronika!
Veronika was chosen from 23 candidates to be the next rector of the University of Innsbruck, Austria. We are so proud and whish her all the best.
EACR Conference in SevillA
Jana and Belinda presented their work as a Poster at the European Association for Cancer Research (EACR) conference in Sevilla, Spain.
Postdoc Retreat in Windischgarsten
Lots of fruitful discussions with our guests Joanna Loizou, Katrin Thediecke und Thomas Decker
4th International Conference on Cytokines in Cancer 2022 in Crete
ConGrats to Tania Brandstötter and Sebastian Kollmann
Tania Brandstötter won the Travel Award for her work: “SBNO2 as a new target for STAT3 driven leukemias” and Sebastian Kollmann for his work with the title: “A STAT5B-CD9 axis determines self-renewal in hematopoietic and leukemic stem cells”
https://www.aegeanconferences.org/src/App/conferences/view/150
EHA 2022
Congress in Vienna June 9-17
Exciting days at this year’s EHA Congress! We enjoyed many interesting talks and discussions! It was a great opportunity to finally talk again in person with so many friends and collaborators from across the world. We are particularly proud of Veronika and Tania who represented the work of our lab with brilliant talks. Lisa, Isabella, Belinda, Alessia, Klara, Thorsten and Eszter presented their projects at the poster session. Looking forward to many upcoming interactive conferences like this one!
2022
Bella Italia
In March our PhD student Jana Trifinopoulos visited the Armenise-Harvard Laboratory of Cell Division (University of Trento, Italy) for a month-long scientific collaboration with PhD Florian Bellutti under the supervision of Prof. Luca Fava. The exciting project aims to elucidate the role of cyclin C in B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) and to increase our understanding of the disease. We thank Prof. Fava for this unique opportunity!
04.04 2022
Congrats Isabella Mayer and Eszter Doma
Virtual High-5 to Isabella Mayer and Eszter Doma for their published Review about “Isolation, Maintenance and Expansion of Adult Hematopoietic Stem/Progenitor Cells and Leukemic Stem Cells” in Cancers.
APHAR Research Highlights
Online Symposium
12 April 2022
https://www.aphar.at/
Vanessa Knab (University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna):
“CDK8 degrader in breast cancer“
Sebastian Kollmann (University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna):
“The STAT5 – CD9 axis regulates haematopoetic stem cells“
Thank You ALL!
Thank you all for the donations!
Congrats
Veronika Sexl is a new member of the Supervisory Board of the Austrian Academy of Science (Akademierat)
Science days 2022
Congrats to Our Winners
Jana Trifinopoulos, Tania Brandstötter, Belinda Schmalzbauer, Sebastian Kollmann (back)
Klara Klein and Alessia Schirripa (front)
Thank you for your excellent presentations of your work!
Science days 2022
Congrats to our Question Queens
Jana Trifinopoulos, Isabella Mayer, Klara Klein and Belinda Schmalzbauer.
Thank you for great questions and interaction!
Congrats Vanessa Knab
Newest publication: “Triple-negative breast cancer cells rely on kinase-independent functions of CDK8 to evade NK-cell-mediated tumor surveillance” in Cell Death & Disease @NaturePortfolio
27.12.2021
Congrats
Klara Klein and Jana Trifinopoulos won the IMMUNOTOOLS-AWARD
20.12.2021
WE WISH YOU A MERRY CHIRSTMAS AND
A HAPPY NEW YEAR
By Sabine Fajmann
03.11.2021
Congrats
Veronika Sexl is now officially a board member of the Wiener Wissenschafts-, Forschungs- and Technologiefonds (WWTF).
23.11.2021
Congrats
Our former colleague Klavdija BASTL, BSc MSc won a prize from BMBWF for her student achievements.
11.11.2021
Our team won awards at Science Day Vetmeduni Vienna
Dagmar Gotthardt: Young scientist of the year (third party funds, non-clinical)
Isabella Mayer and Sebastian Kollmann: Third (IM) and second (IM, SK) places at different poster competitions Congratulations!
Veronika Sexl is a founding member of the EHA Initiative for Equality Diversity and Inclusion.
10.09.2021
Research Topic
Working on ILCs and ILC plasticity? Then be aware of our special issue at @FrontImmunol and submit an abstract to participate with an original research article or review in our article collection!
24.06.2021
New publication
“T Cell-Intrinsic CDK6 Is Dispensable for Anti-Viral and Anti-Tumor Responses In Vivo” by Klara Klein et al.
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2021.650977/full
23.06.2021
New paper accepted
Our cooperation with the Institute of Fish Medicine has been published “Kinetics of CD4-1+ lymphocytes in brown trout after exposure to viral haemorrhagic septicaemia virus”.
Congrats Sabine!
21.06.2021
Kinder Uni Wien
Young researchers supported our cancer research activities! Our workshop at this year’s #KinderUni was a lot of fun and all participants learned a lot. We are looking forward to the next generation of scientists.
22.05.2021
New paper accepted
The review “Untwining Anti-Tumor and Immunosuppressive Effects of JAK Inhibitors—A Strategy for Hematological Malignancies?” by Klara Klein, Dagmar Stoiber, Veronika Sexl and Agnieszka Witalisz-Siepracka has been accepted for publication in the journal “Cancers”.
https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6694/13/11/2611
Congrats!
26.03.2021
NEw phd-student representative of vetmed curriculum comission
Isabella Mayer has been selected as new representative of the Vetmeduni Vienna’s PhD-student Curriculum Commision.
Congrats!
26.03.2021
Webinar NK-cells in cancer therapy
Join our PhD-student Klara Klein at her zoom-webinar from 19:00-20:30 to learn about NK-cells in cancer therapy.
https://www.vhs.at/de/k/292561354
“SCIENCE – das Wissenschaftsprogramm der VHS: Das VHS Science Programm präsentiert über 300 Vorträge aus der Welt der Wissenschaft. Renommierte und aufstrebende Wissenschaftler*innen zeigen neue wissenschaftliche Erkenntnisse, Forschungsergebnisse und State of the Art (https://www.vhs.at/files/downloads/r7KJM6r3h7LutBZknnNf4zW1yfer1u7Byhtqx9Qb.pdf).”
31.12.2020
New publication
Virtual High-5 to Eszter Doma and Isabella Mayer for the published paper “A robust approach for the generation of functional hematopoietic progenitor cell lines to model leukemic transformation” of their in vitro HPCLSK cell line model in Blood Advances.
24.11.2020
New publication
The review “CDK4/6 and MAPK—Crosstalk as Opportunity for Cancer Treatment” by Lisa Scheiblecker, Karoline Kollmann and Veronika Sexl has been published in the journal Pharmaceuticals.
news archive
11.2020
We are proud that our publication “Twins with different personalities: STAT5B—but not STAT5A—has a key role in BCR/ABL-induced leukemia” is featured in the “Reader’s Choice: The Best of Leukemia 2019″ list. Congratulations also to our colleagues from the Florian Grebien lab!
11.2020
JAK-STAT Pathways in Health & Disease meeting
Veronika is a co-organizer of this year’s virtual JAK-STAT conference hosted by the Cold Spring Harbor Labs from Nov 18th-20th. Veronika and Barbara Maurer present our JAK/STAT-related projects in live sessions, Klara Klein and Tania Brandstoetter invite to discuss their posters! We enjoy discussing with colleagues and collaborateurs and meeting new interesting researchers.
11.2020
Elisabeth-Lutz-Award to Karoline Kollmann
Karoline Kollmann received the prestigious ‘Elisabeth-Lutz Award’ from the ÖAW, for her excellent work on the cell cycle kinase CDK6. The award is given for outstanding applied research in the field of bio or life sciences, especially for new findings or innovative research approaches that could help develop new therapeutic methods.
23.10.2020
New publication
The paper “The Effect of CDK6 Expression on DNA Methylation and DNMT3B Regulation” by Sofie Nebenführ and Gerwin Heller has been published in the journal iScience.
20.10.20
50th annual Krka research award for Klavdija Bastl
Our Master Student Klavdija Bastl received a prestigious award from Krka, a leading generic pharmaceutical company from Slovenia. The Krka Awards Fund Board selected her work among the best research assignments in the category of under- and post-graduate research projects.
Her awarded project “Elucidating the Physiology of KRAS-Amplified Gastric Cancer” was her bachelor thesis from the FH IMC Krems (mentor: DI (FH), PhD Rita Spilka (Seeböck)), while the project itself was conducted at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, under the supervision of Adam Bass, MD (Harvard Medical School).
18.09.20
Graduation Patricia Testori
Our bachelor student Patricia Testori finished her project “The role of Cyclin C in BCR/ABL+ leukemia” and graduated with distinction. Thank you for joining our team and good luck for the future!
27.08.2020
New publication
The paper “Inducible deletion of CDK4 and CDK6 – deciphering CDK4/6 inhibitor effects in the hematopoietic system” by B. Maurer, T. Brandstoetter, S. Kollmann and M. Prchal-Murphy has been published in Haematologica.
06.08.20
Good bye and welcome
We’re sad to announce that Florian Bellutti left our Institute and his beloved CDK6 after 8 years of great research to start a new chapter in his life.
Good luck and come visit us some time Florian!
However, our team also welcomes Thorsten Klampfl! We are looking forward to working together.
01.07.20
Fellinger Research Grant for Dagmar Gotthardt
Dagmar Gotthardt was awarded the Fellinger Research Grant for her project „Mutant STAT5B in Natural Killer cells – oncogenic driver and therapeutic target in aggressive NK cell malignancies?“.
04.05.2020
New paper accepted
The review “The role of CDK6 in cancer” has been accepted for publication in the International Journal of Cancer.
17.04.2020
New project
The breast cancer project “CDK8 is a checkpoint blocking NK cell anti-tumor functions in triple negative breast cancer” of Dagmar Gotthardt has been awarded a fund by MA 7 of Vienna.
02.04.2020
New review accepted for publication
The review “CDK6 Inhibition: a novel game changer in AML management” by Iris Z. Uras, Veronika Sexl and Karoline Kollmann has been accepted for publication in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
13.02.2020
New project for Klara Klein-Eberl
OEAW approved funding of the project “Oncogenic mechanisms of mutant STAT5B in natural killer cells”. Starting with first of July, Klara Klein-Eberl will receive funds for the following two years to boost her research regarding this promising and interesting topic.
25.01.2020
Ball der Wissenschaften 2020
The representatives of our team at the Vienna Ball of Sciences on January 25th. Amazing event – see you there next year!
29.11.2019
Dagmar Gotthardt selected as TRTH trainee
Dagmar Gotthardt was selected as participant in 2020’s TRTH (Translational Research Training in Hematology) program. TRTH is a prestigious joint effort of the European Hematology Association (EHA) and the American Society of Hematology (ASH) providing training and mentoring for young scientists in the field of hematology, designed to boost their career. The competition was very large and strong this year which makes us even more proud of this announcement. Dagmar is the second TRTH participant of the Sexl Lab after Iris Uras Jodl in 2016.
12.11.2019
Review published
The review article “JAK/STAT Cytokine Signaling at the Crossroad of NK Cell Development and Maturation” by Dagmar Gotthardt, Jana Trifinopoulos, Veronika Sexl and Eva-Maria Putz hast been published in the journal Frontiers in Immunology.
04.11.2019
Review published
A review on the roles of STAT5A and STAT5B in hemtaopoiesis and leukemia by Barbara Maurer and Sebastian Kollmann has been published in the Journal “Cancers” appearing in the Special Issue “JAK-STAT Signalling Pathway in Cancer”.
30.10.2019
PhD-Defense Ingeborg Menzl
Ingeborg Menzl successfully defended her PhD-thesis “A kinase-independent role for CDK8 in BCR-ABL1+ leukemia” yesterday. We are very proud, wish her all the best and are very sad that our team loses such an exceptional scientist and person!
24.10.2019
Andrea Hölbl-Kovacic is teacher of the year 2019
On October 24th Andrea Hölbl-Kovacic was voted as teacher of the year 2019 of the Vetmeduni Vienna in the category “non-clinical”.
Well deserved and congratulations!
12.10.2019
Wilhelm Türk-award to Iris Uras Jodl
The annual Wilhelm Türk-award of the OeGHO goes to Iris Uras Jodl for her work published in blood “Cdk6 coordinates Jak2V617F mutant MPN via NFκB and apoptotic networks” in course of the “Jahrestagung der Deutschen, Österreichischen und Schweizerischen Gesellschaften für Hämatologie und Medizinische Onkologie” in Berlin from 11th to 14th of October.
She is the second Wilhelm Türk awardee of the Sexl lab after Wolfgang Warsch in 2011.
Congratulations!
05.09.2019
Wien Energie Business Run 2019
Our athletic participants of the Business Run 2019.
11.07.2019
Molecular Oncology poster prize
The Molecular Oncology poster prize at FEBS Congress in Krakow was awarded to Barbara Maurer for her poster “CDK6 is an essential signaling node in JAK2V617F-mutant MPN”.
Good job!
02.07.19
Fellinger grant to Barbara Maurer
Barbara Maurer has been awarded a Fellinger Research Grant for her project „Uncover therapeutic vulnerabilities of STAT3- and STAT5B-hyperactive mutations in hematopoietic malignancies by using a novel hematopoietic stem/progenitor cell line“, which will greatly support and boost her interesting work.
Congratulations!
01.07.19
CDK6 retreat at Meduni Vienna
First of July was dedicated to our old friend CDK6. The team around Veronika Sexl who focus on researching everything about this interesting kinase met at the Institute of Pharmacology at Meduni Vienna to highlight their running projects, to exchange experience and data and to discuss future and ongoing publications.
We thank Matthias Farlik for joining us as our special guest that day and we also thank Lisa Scheiblecker and Isabella Mayer for the great organisation!
The hard work was concluded with food, beer and sunshine at Stiegl’s Ambulanz.
19.06.19
New publication
The review “CDK8-Novel Therapeutic Opportunities” by Ingeborg Menzl et al. has been published in the journal Pharmaceuticals.
Congratulations!
24.05.19
New paper accepted
First author Barbara Maurer’s manuscript “High activation of STAT5A drives peripheral T-cell lymphoma and leukemia” has been accepted for publication in the journal Haematologica.
26.04.19
PhD-defense Barbara Maurer
Our Stat5 specialist Barbara Maurer, student in the PhD program “Molecular Signal Transduction” of Meduni Vienna, successfully defended her PhD thesis “Dosing the STAT5 signaling core cancer pathway” on Friday.
Congratulations, and keep up the good work!
10.04.19
TissueHome PhD Track Kick-off Meeting 2019
TissueHome constitutes a new interdisciplinary MFPL PhD track shared between the VetmeduniVienna and the MeduniVienna. At the Kick-off Meeting 2019 in Prein our PhD student Jana Trifinopoulos presented her exciting project about the role of CDK8 in NK cell cytotoxicity.
We thank Karl Kuchler for this unique opportunity to exchange ideas and form new collaborations!
09.04.19
New publication
The manuscript “STAT5B^N642H drives transformation of NKT cells: A novel mouse model for CD56+ T-LGL leukemia” by Klara Klein, Agnieszka Witalisz-Siepracka, et al. has been published in the journal Leukemia.
19.03.19
Cell Cycle Day
We thank Ludger Hengst, group leader at Biocenter, Area Biochemistry and Chemistry, Meduni Innsbruck for his interesting talk and for giving us insights on p27 and its role in cell cycle progression and proliferation.
12.02.19
Saying goodbye and welcome
Matthias Tonner leaves us after being the backbone of our FWF project “Triggers and Targets of Ascaridole Action in Leishmania” for years. We wish him all the best for his industry career at MSD.
We welcome Lianet again.
Our long term cooperation partner from the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Havana, Dr. Lianet Monzote, arrived for another 3-month visit supported by an Ernst-Mach-Follow-Up Grant.
11.02.19
Science Day at the IMP
On February 11th the teams of Florian Grebien, Veronika Sexl and Hannes Zuber met at the IMP to exchange ideas and discuss projects.
We thank Hannes Zuber for hosting this event and Tanja Brandstötter and Johannes Schmöllerl for the excellent organisation!
11.02.19
Master thesis defended: congratulations to Nicoletta Leidenfrost
Nicoletta worked on her master thesis project for almost a year in our NK cell team. We are very happy and proud that she defended her thesis with excellent success and wish her all the best for her future! #WomenInScience
05.02.19
Malignant bone marrow disease: New hope for MPN patients
Press release about our work regarding the published manuscript “Cdk6 coordinates Jak2V617F mutant MPN via NFκB and apoptotic networks” in Blood last month.
04.02.19
3rd Symposium on Comparative Medicine
Our PhD student Ingeborg Menzl presented her project entitled “Let`s degrade! A new treatment approach for ALL” to the audience at the 3rd Symposium on Comparative Medicine at the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna on February 1st, 2019.
After a passionate presentation she received overwhelming feedback for an excellent talk.
24.01.19
New treatment approach for leukemia
Our team around Sebastian Kollmann, Eva Grundschober and Barbara Maurer identified STAT5B as an important factor for the development of lymphatic leukemias and as a possible target for novel precision medicine strategies.
Andrea Hölbl-Kovacic: “Our data show that STAT5A and STAT5B are twins with different personalities, and that STAT5B facilitates leukemogenesis in BCR/ABL leukemia. Our findings might help explain the high frequency of STAT5B mutations in hematopoietic tumors.”
08.01.19
New publication
The manuscript “Loss of JAK1 drives innate immune deficiency” by Agnieszka Witalisz-Siepracka, Klara Klein, Daniela Prinz et al. has been published in the journal Frontiers in Immunology.
Watch this video for an interactive abstract about the core findings in this paper.
Congratulations!
11.01.19
New paper published in blood
“Cdk6 coordinates Jak2V617F mutant MPN via NFκB and apoptotic networks” by Iris Z. Uras, Barbara Maurer, et al. has been accepted for publication in the journal Blood.
Congratulations to the authors!
17.12.18
“Gütesiegels des Theodor-Billroth-Preises” to Edit Porpaczy (MUW), Sabrina Tripolt and Andrea Hölbl-Kovacic
Congratulations to Edit Porpaczy (MUW), Sabrina Tripolt and Andrea Hölbl-Kovacic for receiving the “Gütesiegel des Theodor-Billroth-Preises” award for their shared publication „Aggressive B-cell lymphomas in patients with myelofibrosis receiving JAK1/2 inhibitor therapy“ in the journal Blood.
11.12.18
Fonds der Stadt Wien für innovative interdisziplinäre Krebsforschung award to Dagmar Gotthardt
For her publication from 2016 “STAT5 is a key regulator in NK cells and acts as molecular switch from tumor surveillance to tumor promotion” our former colleague Dagmar Gotthardt received this year’s Fonds der Stadt Wien für innovative interdisziplinäre Krebsforschung award.
We are very proud and congratulations!
11.12.18
New publication
The manuscript “Therapeutic vulnerabilities in FLT3-mutant AML unmasked by palbociclib” by Iris Z. Uras, Barbara Maurer, et al. has been published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
Congratulations!
07.12.18
FWF grant awarded to Karoline Kollmann
Karoline Kollmann has been awarded the FWF standalone grant “Linking CDK6 to the epigenome in AML”.
A short abstract about her upcoming research:
“DNA methylation and histone modifications are epigenetic mechanisms that result in altered gene expression and cellular phenotype. The exact role of methylation in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remains unclear. According to our preliminary data we hypothesis that CDK6 effects the methylation pattern by altered expression and phosphorylation of several epigenetic modifiers, such as DNMTs and EZH2, in AML and therefore enhances the sensitivity towards specific epigenetic agents. In addition we shall investigate if CDK6 influences the epigentic landscape and resulting therapeutic vulnerabilities for novel treatment options differently for LSCs and the non-stem cell pool.” – Karoline Kollmann
Congratulations on this great achievement!
04.12.18
Paper accepted in Leukemia
Sebastian Kollmann, Eva Grundschober, Barbara Maurer and other members of our group worked on the project “Twins with different personalities: STAT5B – but not STAT5A – has a key role in BCR/ABL-induced leukemia” which has been accepted for publication in the journal Leukemia.
04.12.18
New paper accepted
The manuscript “The interplay of CDK4 and CDK6 in melanoma” by Karoline Kollmann, et al. has been accepted for publication in the journal Oncotarget
03.12.18
Reinforcements (big)
We welcome four new colleagues, Valentin Just, Lisa Scheiblecker, Jana Trifinopoulos and Blerana Zeka and we are looking forward to a productive collaboration!
Reinforcements (small)
Our smallest, yet most important additions to the lab-team named Felix Ernst Kollmann and Noah Ian Uras-Jodl manage to fill more diapers than Eppis or Falcons yet but time goes by so fast …
Welcome to life and thank you for filling our hearts with joy!
15.10.18
Heribert-Konzett-Award to Andrea Hölbl-Kovacic
The Heribert-Konzett-Award of the Austrian Pharmacological Society (APHAR) is awarded anually to young independent scientists, with an outstanding record of publications and a great scientific career. We are proud to announce that this year’s renowned price was awarded to Andrea Hölbl-Kovacic on 28th of September who also is the first Heribert-Konzett awardee of the Vetmeduni Vienna.
Her focus on leukemic research and the gained insights regarding the role of the transcription factor STAT5 in leukemia help to identify and utilise important therapeutic windows in Chronical Myeloid Leukemia (CML). Andrea Hölbl-Kovacic’s current research in the field of precision pharmacology will open new ways of finding the most effective therapies with the least side effects for each individual patient.
Congratulations Andrea, you really deserved this award!
05.09.18
New publication
The paper “Cdk6: At the interface of Rb and p53” by Sofie Nebenführ, Florian Bellutti and Veronika Sexl has been published in the journal “Molecular & Cellular Oncology“.
Good job!
24.08.18
NK-Team event
Our NK-cell-team set up an amazing retreat in Alpenhotel Gösing near Mariazell to discuss data, exchange experiences, problems, suggestions and solutions with each other. (And of course to enjoy nature at this beautiful location).
Special guests were our former team members and NK veterans Dagmar Gotthardt and Eva-Maria König.
16.08.18
Blood Vol 132, Issue 7 “Aggressive B-cell lymphomas in patients with myelofibrosis receiving JAK1/2 inhibitor therapy”
Sabrina Tripolt’s and Andrea Hölbl-Kovacic’s cooperation regarding JAK2 inhibitors with Meduni Vienna (Porpaczy et al.) was chosen as the cover article of Blood, Volume 132, Issue 7!
Link to press release of publication
18.06.18
Standard myelofibrosis drug can awaken “dormant” lymphoma
JAK2 inhibitors awaken “dormant” lymphomas in the bone marrow and hence cancer as shown by a close cooperation of researchers of MedUni Vienna and and our research group. (Sabrina Tripolt, Andrea Hölbl-Kovacic et al.)
13.06.18
New publication in Cancer Discovery
The team around Florian Bellutti and Veronika Sexl show astounding new insights of Cdk6 contribution to tumor formation focusing on Cdk6, p53 and p53 antagonist interactions.
07.06.18
Sommerfest 20180607 25Connect – Interact – Celebrate
We are proud to announce that the award “Arbeit des Jahres 2017” went to Agnes Dadak and Alexander Tritthart for their Review “Review der rechtlichen Rahmenbedingungen zum Arzneimitteleinsatz in der Veterinärmedizin in Österreich” in the context of the Vetmed’s annual summer festivity on June 07th.
Congratulations!
20.04.18
Visit from Zurich
We had the pleasure to host Enni Markkanen as a guest at our institute from 16th to 20th of april. Enni Markkanen is a PI at the Institute of Pharmacology at the Veterinary University of Zurich. She is an expert in the field of DNA repair and breast cancer.
Thank you very much for your interesting talk and for sharing your expertise, Enni! We hope you enjoyed your stay as much as we did.
31.01.18
New publication: “NK cell-specific CDK8 deletion enhances antitumor responses”
The paper “NK cell-specific CDK8 deletion enhances antitumor responses” with shared first-authorship of Agnieszka Witalisz-Siepracka and Dagmar Gotthardt has been published in the journal Cancer Immunology Research.
In this publication they show that NK-cell activity is suppressed by cyclin-dependent kinase 8 (Cdk8). Therapies targeting Cdk8 in cancer patients might enhance NK-cell activity against tumor cells.
Congratulations!
30.01.18
„Career’s day“ at the AHS Contiweg secondary school in Vienna
On Tuesday 30th of January, Armin Zupan was invited to the secondary school “AHS Contiweg” to present his profession and teach the students about the challenges of being a specialist animal care taker. Armin was part of a group coming from various professions discussing his education and professional experience. It was a great success and a new experience for Armin Zupan.
Thanks Armin – for taking this challenge and doing so well!
24.01.18
Award to Agnes Dadak
Prof. Agnes Dadak and Dr. Alexander Tritthart received the award “Beste Arbeit 2017” for their review “Review der rechtlichen Rahmenbedingungen zum Arzneimitteleinsatz in der Veterinärmedizin in Österreich” of Wiener Tierärztliche Monatsschrift – Veterinary Medicine Austria.
30.11.2017
“Preis der Stadt Wien” award to Veronika Sexl
Veronika Sexl was awarded the “Preis der Stadt Wien” in category Medical Sciences for her outstanding life’s work. The “Preis der Stadt Wien” is an annual prize in different categories, from architecture to literature and sciences. Awardees are selected by an independent jury.
In this video-message Veronika Sexl explains what being a scientist means to her. (german)
We congratulate her and are very proud to be part of her team!
24.11.2017
Ursula und Fritz Melchers Award (ÖGAI) to Dagmar Gotthardt
Dagmar Gotthardt was awarded the highly prestigious Ursula und Fitz Melchers Award of the Austrian Society for Immunology and Allergology (ÖGAI) for the best PhD thesis.
Dagmar was part of our institute from 2010 to 2016. Her most important and pioneering work was to identify STAT5 as molecular switch turning Natural Killer (NK) cells into tumor promotors – she was thereby the first one to uncover the dark and tumor promoting side of these cells. Through her PhD thesis Dagmar authored 14 publications – in 4 she served as the first and leading author. This is absolutely unique and outstanding and is accounted to Dagmar’s scientific and experimental talents, to her unique ability to analyse, to her never ending energy and fearless way to approach any problem.
It was a pleasure to accompany Dagmar through the last years, to see her grow and develop. Her joy and enthusiasm for science, the critical discussions will for ever stick in my memory. It was a truly outstanding moment to be part of the award ceremony where such a young and gifted scientist received a well-deserved award.
Dagmar – congratulations – you are amazing!
We are so proud,
Veronika and the team
25.09.17
Awards for Daniela Prinz and Ana Puga
“Together one step further” was the theme of the 2nd Joint Symposium of the IAI and MCCA PhD programs held at the Medical University of Vienna (MUW) from 25th to 26th of September.
Two Vetmeduni Vienna PhD students were honoured: Daniela Prinz, Pharmacology, was awarded a prize for best oral student’s presentation for her talk “NKG2D: friend or foe in NK cell mediated tumor surveillance” and Ana Puga, Animal Breeding and Genetics was awarded a poster prize for her poster: “The role of STAT1 isoforms in Th cell differentiation and CD4+ T cell-mediated diseases.
07.09.17
PhD Defense Eva Grundschober
Eva Grundschober successfully defended her PhD thesis “Jak2 – Stat5 Important players in leukemogenesis”!
07.09.17
Wien Energie Business-Run
The Institute of Pharmacology participated with two teams at the annual Wien Energie Business-Run, Team Pharmablitz (Vanessa Knab, Daniela Prinz, Alexandra Schoos) and Team VetRoadRunners (Faridi Farnaz, Barbara Maurer).
Due to unfortunate sick leave of one of the participants Sebastian Kollmann helped out and managed to sneak (or rather run) into women’s ranking at rank 22 under the alias Faridi Farnaz. Barbara Maurer reached a great rank 50 in the same category.
We congratulate all participants on their performance!
Thanks go to Vetmeduni Vienna for sponsoring the registration fee of our runners!
08.17
New article published: p27 in FLT3-driven acute myeloid leukemia: many roads lead to ruin
The article “p27 in FLT3-driven acute myeloid leukemia: many roads lead to ruin” by Iris Z. Uras, Florian Bellutti and Veronika Sexl has been published in August’s issue of Haematologica.
28.07.17 – 29.07.17
World University Vet Series: Camelid Congress Vienna 2017
The Camelid Congress Vienna 2017 organized by Ass.-Prof. DVetPharm Dr. Agnes M. Dadak and a.o. Univ.Prof. Dr. Sonja Franz took place on the campus of the Vetmeduni Vienna on 28th to 29th of July 2017.
Some impressions from the successful and interesting event on camelid knowledge, research and treatment:
14.07.17
New paper published: Expansion of BCR/ABL1+ cells requires PAK2 but not PAK1
The paper “Expansion of BCR/ABL1+ cells requires PAK2 but not PAK1″ by Leo Edlinger, Angelika Berger-Bečvař, et al. has been published in the British Journal of Haematology.
28.06.17
Annual Department 1 “Biomedical Sciences” BBQ
This year’s annual Department 1 barbecue took place on 28th of June and was hosted by the Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology. With up to 90 hungry and thirsty guests in peak hours it was a great success. Our utmost gratitude goes to Renée Pollak for organizing everything and to all the numerous helping hands that made sure that none of the guests had to stay hungry and thirsty.
Thank you all for coming and for enjoying this nice and relaxed evening with us!
01.06.17
New paper published: Cdk6 contributes to cytoskeletal stability in erythroid cells
The paper “Cdk6 contributes to cytoskeletal stability in erythroid cells” by Iris Z Uras, Ruth Scheicher, Veronika Sexl et al. has been published in the journal Haematologica, the journal of the European Hematology Association.
28.02.17
Brigitte Holnsteiner retired
One of our long term technical assistants Brigitte Holnsteiner went into well earned retirement today.
Brigitte Holnsteiner was at the Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology for almost 12 years, first as technical assistant of Katrin Staniek and from 2011 until now as technical assistant of Veronika Sexl’s team of scientists.
We wish her all the best and a pleasant and relaxed retirement!
18.01.17
New article: JAK-STAT in NK cells: the good, the bad and the ugly
The article “JAK-STAT in NK cells: the good, the bad and the ugly” by Dagmar Gotthardt and Veronika Sexl describing the role and contributions of JAK–STAT molecules in NK-cell biology has been published in Frontiers in Immunology.
09.01.17
Florian Bellutti selected as speaker at EMBO Meeting “Cell death, inflammation and cancer” in Obergurgl
Florian Bellutti was selected as speaker at the “Cell death, inflammation and cancer” EMBO Meeting in Obergurgl from January 10th to January 14th.
The title of his short talk is “CDK6-p53: A non-canonical function of CDK6 in hematological malignancies” and it will take place on January 13th.
09.01.17
Prototype Research Fund “PRIZE 2016”
The project “Cyclotides in Cancer Therapy” from Christian Gruber, Karoline Kollmann and Dagmar Stoiber-Sakaguchi was granted the research fund “PRIZE 2016” by AWS, supported by the Austrian Ministry of Science and Research in the amount of 145.526,98€.
PRIZE rewards new patented or patentable innovations from fundamental research at universities or in cooperation with defined research facilities. A jury selects the most promising projects in the scope of a competition to receive a research fund for creating a prototype. Prerequisite is a demand at small or medium sized companies.
01.01.17
Project approval for WTZ India 2017-18
Lars Gille’s application for the call WTZ India 2017-18 (Wissenschaftlich Technische Zusammenarbeit/Scientific & Technological Cooperation) was selected for support by the Centre for International Cooperation & Mobility (ICM) of the Austrian Agency for International Cooperation in Education and Research (OeAD-GmbH).
01.01.17
24.12.16
23.12.16
PhD defense Florian Bellutti
Florian Bellutti defended his PhD thesis “CDK6 in transformation and drug resistance” with great success, congratulations!
Just in time to celebrate a merry and relaxed Christmas!
15.12.16
SFB F47 “Myeloproliferative Neoplasms” prolongued
The funding of SFB F47 Project #06: “Targeting CDK6-regulated growth and transcription in MPN” of Veronika Sexl and Iris Uras has been prolongued for additional 4 years. Project #06 is an important part of the SFB MPN research program.
SFB F28 “Jak-Stat – Signalling from Basis to Disease” prolongued
In addition, Veronika Sexl’s contribution to the SFB F28 “Jak-Stat – Signalling from Basis to Disease” of Mathias Müller namely “Jak-Stat involvement in leukemogenesis and NK-mediated tumor surveillance” has been granted an additional funding period.
29.11.16
“Teaching Mobility” attendance Dr. Erzsébet Pásztiné Gere
Dr. Erzsébet Pásztiné Gere from the Veterinary University of Budapest, Hungary stayed at our institute for one week in the context of a CEEPUS lecturer program. She attended lectures and tutorials to share her experience and to gain insight in veterinary education in Austria.
It was a mutually beneficial experience for both sides!
24.10.16
Guest speaker Kaan Boztug
Kaan Boztug (head of LBI for Rare and Undiagnosed Diseases and of CeRUD Vienna; Adjunct PI at CeMM) was here and shared his expertise on the discovery of novel mutations in primary immunodeficiencies with us!
We enjoyed the talk and discussions a lot, thanks again for coming!
06.10.16
Angelika Berger, Dagmar Gotthardt and Andrea Hölbl-Kovacic receive “Fonds der Stadt Wien für innovative Krebsforschung”-Awards
The Fonds der Stadt Wien für innovative interdisziplinäre Krebsforschung awards Angelika Berger, Dagmar Gotthardt and Andrea Hölbl-Kovacic for their outstanding scientific works on cancer research.
Angelika Berger and Andrea Hölbl-Kovacic were awarded for their publication “PAK-dependent STAT5 serine phosphorylation is required for BCR-ABL-induced leukemogenesis” which was published in Leukemia in December 2013.
Dagmar Gotthardt was awarded for her publication “Loss of STAT3 in murine NK cells enhances NK cell–dependent tumor surveillance” which was published in Blood in March 2014.
Congratulations!
23.09.16 (german)
Seminar: Neuweltkameliden-Tagung für VeterinärmedizinerInnen
Ass.-Prof. Dr. Agnes Dadak und Ao. Univ.-Prof. Dr. Sonja Franz fungieren als Veranstalterinnen für Tagung und Workshop zum Thema “Neuweltkameliden-Tagung für VeterinärmedizinerInnen – Praktische Aspekte der Neuweltkameliden-Medizin” am 23.09.16.
Informationen und Programm finden Sie unter folgendem Link.
Wir wünschen einen lehrreichen und interessanten Seminartag!
10.08.16
New paper accepted in Oncogene
The paper “MYC selects against reduced BCL2A1/A1 protein expression during B cell lymphomagenesis” of Andreas Villunger, Maja Sochalska, Johannes Weiss, Michaela Prchal-Murphy, Veronika Sexl, and Fabian Schuler has been accepted for publication in Oncogene.
19.07.16
Annual Pharma-Barbecue at Vetmeduni Vienna
We celebrated our annual barbecue on 20th of July.
This year’s highlight: a volleyball tournament.
Thanks go to Renée Pollak for the organization, Reimar David for taking over the tongs and the grill, Ingeborg Menzl for delivering the tasty meat and of course Veronika Sexl for the financing, as well as to all the other helping hands for making desserts, salads and/or assisting with the preparations. It was a lot of fun with good food, cool drinks, hot weather, exhausting volleyball and nice people.
Volleyball tournament photo story by Renée Pollak
05.06.16
EMBL Poster prize awarded to Eszter Doma
Eszter Doma was awarded a poster prize at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Conference “Hematopoietic Stem Cells: From the Embryo to the Aging Organism”, for her poster “Generation of immortal murine hematopoietic/progenitor cell lines from transgenic mice by ectopic expression of Lhx2”.
19.05.16
New paper accepted in OncoImmunology!
The paper “Novel non-canonical role of STAT1 in Natural Killer cell cytotoxicity” of Eva Maria Putz, Andrea Majoros, Dagmar Gotthardt, Michaela Prchal-Murphy, Eva Maria Zebedin-Brandl, Daniela Alexandra Fux, Andreas Schlattl, Robert D. Schreiber, Sebastian Carotta, Mathias Müller, Christopher Gerner, Thomas Decker & Veronika Sexl has been accepted in the journal OncoImmunology.
Press release at www.vetmeduni.ac.at
11.04.16
New paper accepted in blood!
The paper “Palbociclib treatment of FLT3-ITD+ AML cells uncovers a kinase-dependent transcriptional regulation of FLT3 and PIM1 by CDK6” of Iris Z. Uras, Gina J. Walter, Ruth Scheicher, Florian Bellutti, Michaela Prchal-Murphy, Anca S. Tigan, Peter Valent, Florian H. Heidel, Stefan Kubicek, Claudia Scholl, Stefan Fröhling, and Veronika Sexl has been accepted in the journal blood.
Press release at www.vetmeduni.ac.at
05.04.16
ERC Advanced Grant for Veronika Sexl
Veronika Sexl has been awarded a coveted ERC Advanced Grant from the European Research Council. The grant will provide funding of about € 2.5 million over the next five years for research into new possibilities of cancer therapy using the enzyme CDK6.
Congratulations!
Press release at www.vetmeduni.ac.at
Link to European Research Council
11.03.16
Iris Uras elected for EHA-ASH-Translational Research Training in Hematology (TRTH)
Iris Uras was elected for the annual EHA-ASH-TRTH as one of the 20 annual trainees worldwide.
The TRTH program contains a week-long spring course, from March 11 – 18, 2016 in Milano, Italy, a meeting at the EHA Annual Congress from June 9 – 12, 2016 in Copenhagen, Denmark and a meeting at the ASH Annual Meeting from December 3 – 6, 2016 in San Diego, USA where trainees make a final presentation on the status of their research.
Congratulations!
Press release at www.hematology.org
15.02.16
Dagmar Gotthardt receives “Translate & Innovate” award of the OeGHO
The annual “Translate & Innovate” award of the Österreichische Gesellschaft für Hämatologie & Medizinische Onkologie (OeGHO) (“Austrian Society of Hematology and Medical Oncology”) goes to Dagmar Gotthardt for her innovative submission.
09.02.16
New paper accepted in Cancer Discovery!
The paper “STAT5 is a key regulator in NK cells and acts as molecular switch from tumor surveillance to tumor promotion” of Dagmar Gotthardt, Eva M. Putz, Eva Grundschober, Michaela Prchal-Murphy, Elisabeth Straka, Petra Kudweis, Gerwin Heller, Zsuzsanna Bago-Horvath, Agnieszka Witalisz-Siepracka, Abbarna A. Cumaraswamy, Patrick T. Gunning, Birgit Strobl, Mathias Müller, Richard Moriggl, Christian Stockmann and Veronika Sexl has been published in the journal “Cancer Discovery“, congratulations!
Press information at www.vetmeduni.ac.at
First revised manuscript as .pdf
28.01.16
PhD defense Dagmar Gotthardt
Dagmar Gotthardt successfully defended her PhD thesis “The Role of STAT3 and STAT5 in murine Natural Killer Cells”, congratulations!
Acknowledgements go to Sabine Fajmann and Ingeborg Menzl for creating the fabulous celebration hat!
Veronika Sexl Lab 
