Understanding the spatial organization of inflammation and fibrogenesis in pediatric MASH (B01)

• Subject Area: Gastroenterology
• Term: since 2025
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 535081457

Portal zonation is a common histologic feature of pediatric MASH and is associated with a progressive disease course. At this time, the mechanisms defining zonal MASH phenotypes are not resolved yet. We will analyze the metabolic, inflammatory and fibrogenic signatures associated with portal and centrilobular disease phenotypes in a comprehensively characterized cohort of children and adolescents with MASLD, applying multiplex immunostaining, single-nucleus sequencing and spatial transcriptomics. Mechanistic studies will be performed in patient-derived iPSC lines and organoids of the very same cohort to further validate newly identified therapeutic strategies.

• DFG Programme: CRC/Transregios
• Subproject of: TRR 412: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease: Translating mechanisms to tailored therapeutic concepts
• Applicant Institution: shared FU Berlin and HU Berlin through:; Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
• Project Heads: Professor Dr. Philip Clemens Reinhard Bufler; Dr. Christian Hudert