Catherine Meyer-Schwesinger

Catherine Meyer-Schwesinger studied medicine at the Universities of Freiburg, Imperial College London and Harvard, receiving her MD in 2003. She performed her nephrology training at the University of Hamburg, Germany. After completing her postdoctoral training at the University of California, San Diego, USA, from 2001 to 2002, she established her laboratory at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE), balancing 3 children with clinical as well as scientific and academic obligations. 2019, she was appointed Heisenberg Professor for subcellular pathophysiology at the Institute of Cellular and Integrative Physiology at the UKE, and since 2025, she serves as the Director of the Institute of Cellular and Integrative Physiology (IZIP). Her laboratory focuses on the degradative principles of resident, terminal differentiated cells of the kidney, brain and heart, focusing on proteasomal and lysosomal degradation systems and their changes/alterations in inflammatory, degenerative as well as atrophic diseases. Within the FOR 5705 her interest lies in the immunoproteasomal alterations encountered in the setting of neuronal inflammatory stress response, which is driving continues neurodegeneration in inflammatory disease, such as multiple sclerosis.

Publications

The immunoproteasome disturbs neuronal metabolism and drives neurodegeneration in multiple sclerosis. Woo M.S., Brand J., Bal L.C. et al. Cell. 188, 4567-4585.e32 (2025).

Regulation of podocyte surface proteins by the enzyme A Disintegrin And Metalloproteinase 10 (ADAM10). Rosenbaum D., Reichelt J., Gudaitis S. et al. Kidney Int. 108, 214-232 (2025).

The proteasome modulates endocytosis specifically in glomerular cells to promote kidney filtration. Sachs W., Blume L., Loreth D. et al. Nat Commun. 15, 1897 (2024).

The AE4 transporter mediates kidney acid-base sensing. Vitzthum H., Koch M., Eckermann L. et al. Nat Commun. 14, 3051 (2023).

Non-functional ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase L1 drives podocyte injury through impairing proteasomes in autoimmune glomerulonephritis. Reichelt J., Sachs W., Frömbling S. et al. Nat Commun. 14, 2114 (2023).

Links

Hamburg Center for Kidney Health

Institution