معرفی
Maria Keller is Team Leader and Scientist at the Helmholtz-Institute for Metabolic, Obesity and Vascular Research (HI-MAG), Helmholtz Center Munich, hosted at the University of Leipzig since 2020. Previously, she served as Principal Investigator at the Integrated Research and Treatment Center-AdiposityDiseases (IFB) at the University of Leipzig (2018-2020) and completed postdoctoral training at Lund University Diabetes Centre and University of Leipzig Medical Center.
Her academic foundation includes a Bachelor of Science in Ecotrophology from the University of Kiel and Master of Science in Nutritional Science from the University of Vienna, followed by a PhD from the University of Leipzig where she pioneered research on fat depot-specific DNA methylation patterns in obesity.
Dr. Keller's research centers on epigenetic mechanisms in metabolic diseases, investigating how dietary polyphenols, bariatric surgery, and weight-loss interventions alter DNA methylation and gene expression in adipose tissue. Her work bridges molecular biology with clinical applications to identify biomarkers and therapeutic targets for obesity and type 2 diabetes.
Analysis of her publications (2016-2024) reveals a cohesive trajectory from foundational epigenetic mechanisms to clinical translation, with increasing focus on dietary interventions like the green Mediterranean diet and weight-loss procedures. Her studies consistently leverage large-scale trials and advanced epigenomic techniques.
She has received significant recognition including the 2024 Research Prize of the German Obesity Society, 2022 PreDoc-Mentor Award from Leipzig University, 2021 Research Award Lipidology, and 2016 DFG Postdoctoral Fellowship.
Dr. Keller has supervised DNA methylation analyses for high-impact publications in Gut, Nature Communications, and Diabetes Care. Her mentorship excellence was acknowledged with the 2022 PreDoc-Mentor Award, and she secured competitive DFG funding for GeneXEnvironment interaction research.
At HI-MAG, she leads a research team developing CRISPR-Cas9-based in vitro models to study gene-environment interactions, with recent work demonstrating that DNA methylation editing can reprogram adipogenesis and mirror metabolic remodeling after weight loss.
