Research Vision
Our research focus is on biochemical and biophysical aspects of disease relevant proteins and their interacting ligands with special emphasis on proteins implicated in cancer dissemination or dyslipidemia. We provide a detailed understanding on how a given biochemical pathway maintains homeostasis in normal physiology and why certain aberrations — such a missense mutations and natural polymorphisms—cause dysregulation in pathophysiology.
Ultimately, we seek to use this information in translational pipelines – as illustrated by our development of a uPAR‐targeting peptide used for non‐invasive PET imaging of uPAR‐expression in patients with solid cancer and chronic inflammation.
Research Focus
To address our overall research vision, the overarching goals are to:
- Understand the molecular mechanisms driving intravascular lipolysis under normal homeostasis and decipher why certain missense variants cause hypertriglyceridemia.
- Understand how negative regulators (ANGPTLs) of lipoprotein lipase catalyze unfolding and permanent inhibition of the key effector lipase responsible for plasma triglyceride homeostasis.
- Define the molecular properties that render lipoprotein lipase metastable and find ways to amend this instability. A stable lipoprotein lipase could be a useful as enzyme replacement in individuals that are deficient in lipoprotein lipase or its transporter GPIHBP1.
- Define the molecular basis for the action of positive regulators of lipoprotein lipase activity—the apo-lipoproteins APOC2 and APOA5. Use that knowledge to develop small peptide-based surrogate molecules that could improve intravascular triglyceride hydrolysis.
Orcid profile of Michael Ploug
Orcid profile of Michael Ploug including CV and publications