Alexander von Humboldt Professorship 2021

Christian Frezza

Cancer cells grow significantly quicker in the body than normal cells. Their metabolism thus functions differently and utilises nutrients at a much faster rate. The metabolism researcher Christian Frezza is searching for ways of disturbing or even preventing nutrient utilisation in cancer cells so that they can no long grow and eventually die.

  • Nominating University: University of Cologne
Porträt von Christian Frezza
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Metabolic physiology

Christian Frezza works at the interface of mitochondrial biology, cancer and metabolism research, and is set to be appointed to a professorship in Metabolomics and Aging in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Cologne. Frezza is currently a programme leader in the unit working on cancer metabolism at the University of Cambridge. In Cologne, he will become the director of the new Institute for Metabolomics, Aging and Cancer, and collaborate closely with the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences. Interdisciplinary cooperation is a hallmark of Frezza’s work, such as evaluating tumour tissue using a database he built himself and developing mathematical models of cancer cell metabolism. His research could also generate knowledge on therapies for other age-related diseases like diabetes and neurodegeneration.

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Christian Frezza at the University of Cambridge

Brief bio

Dr Christian Frezza started his academic career in his native country, Italy. After a post-doctoral stay at the Beatson Institute for Cancer Research in Glasgow, Scotland, he moved to the University of Cambridge, England, where he has held the position of a programme leader since 2017. His research has been recognised with many prizes and grants such as a European Research Council Consolidator Grant in 2019 and the UK Programme Foundation Award in the same year. In October 2021 he took up his position as a Humboldt Professor at the University of Cologne.

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