International Research Training Group 1566 Giessen – Barcelona

Welcome to the interactive home-page of PROMISE, the International Research Training Group in Giessen, Bad Nauheim & Barcelona.

Cardiovascular diseases represent the highest socio-economic burden of all diseases in industrialized countries. Most frequent among these are ischemic heart diseases, based on atherosclerotic alterations of the coronary vessels often leading to the sequelae of myocordial infarction. Coronary revascularization can salvage the heart, but may also result in complications of reperfusion injury of the myocardium and restenoses of the reopened coronary vessels.

The multiple underlying causes of this complex pathophysiological scenario are the major focus of this International Research Training Group 1566 "Protecting the Heart from Ischemia" (PROMISE), that was implemented by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft in 2009. Together, 17 research groups in Giessen, Bad Nauheim and Barcelona investigate new molecular strategies that would interfere with atherosclerosis and restenosis of coronary vessels, thus targeting vascular pathophysiology in the early and late stages of ischemic heart disease. Other projects study the interventions that may protect cardiac muscle and vascular endothelium from severe damage in ischemia / reperfusion and may thus improve the chances for recovery upon successful intervention. A third group of projects addresses options for tissue regeneration in the post-ischemic heart that may reduce post-infarct cardiac remodeling.