Wir überwinden Grenzen

Since May 2019, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research has been funding the "German multi-organ Auto-Immunity Network" (GAIN) with around three million euros for an initial period of three years. The doctors and scientists from Freiburg, Munich, Kiel and Hanover will conduct research into the causes and therapies of autoimmune diseases that affect several organs in eleven sub-projects. Such diseases are extremely rare, which is why it often takes a long time for patients to receive the correct diagnosis. "With GAIN, we want to better understand the genetic, epigenetic and environmental factors of these serious hereditary diseases. This will enable us to facilitate the diagnosis and counseling of affected families and improve therapies," says Prof. Dr. Bodo Grimbacher from the Center for Chronic Immunodeficiency (CCI) at the Freiburg University Medical Center and project leader of GAIN.

Inflammation of the intestines, lungs, kidneys and skin

Patients typically have inflammation of several organs, for example the bone marrow, intestines, lungs, kidneys, skin and central nervous system. Research in recent years has shown that multi-organ autoimmune diseases can be caused by genetic mutations in a single gene. "However, not all mutation carriers become ill and when they do, the same organs are not always affected. Our goal in GAIN is to shed light on these connections," says Grimbacher.

In GAIN, three research teams are each focusing on a known genetic cause of multi-organ autoimmune diseases in order to decipher the underlying dysregulation. Three other research teams are clarifying the role of specific immune cell types and the possible epigenetic regulation that leads to the onset of multi-organ autoimmunity. Another research team is dedicated to the functional elucidation of novel monogenetic causes of multi-organ autoimmune diseases.

These seven research teams are supported by a state-of-the-art Germany-wide biomaterial bank with samples from these rare patients. Genetic, clinical and laboratory data as well as data on therapy and quality of life of patients with multi-organ autoimmune diseases will be documented in a patient registry. The patient registry is in turn important for the rapid recruitment of patients for an accompanying clinical trial in which the safety and efficacy of a drug is to be investigated. "For us physicians, the investigation of such rare disorders that can be traced back to a single gene is very instructive. They offer us the opportunity to decipher more common autoimmune diseases in which several genes are disrupted," says Grimbacher.

About the CCI

The Center for Chronic Immunodeficiency (CCI) at the Freiburg University Medical Center is dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of immunodeficiencies and research into the immune system. The special feature of the CCI is that it brings together experts from the fields of immunology, infectious immunology, immunobiology, rheumatology, hematology, cell and gene therapy under one roof. From infants to the elderly, patients are treated in two specialized outpatient clinics - the paediatric and adult outpatient clinic. Those affected suffer from congenital or acquired immunodeficiencies, frequent infections, unusual infections, unclear inflammations, autoimmune diseases or HIV diseases. Under the motto "Recognize - understand - treat immunodeficiency", the CCI helps people suffering from rare and sometimes life-threatening disorders of the immune system. It has become the most important point of contact for patients with immune disorders in Germany.

Further information:

Center for Chronic Immunodeficiency, University Medical Center Freiburg

Contact 
Julia Andris 
Public Relations Officer 
Center for Chronic Immunodeficiency 
University Medical Center Freiburg 
Phone: 0761 270-77695 
julia.andris@uniklinik-freiburg.de