Meet Cardiovascular Diabetology's Associate Editor of the Year - Dr. Jens Kroll
Published in General & Internal Medicine
Congratulations on winning the first edition of Cardiovascular Diabetology’s Associate Editor Award! How does it feel to win the first edition?
Thank you for selecting me for this award. I'm very happy and proud that the Editor-in-Chief of Cardiovascular Diabetology appreciate my work for the journal and the way I respond to manuscripts.
But first, please introduce yourself.
I studied biochemistry at the Martin-Luther University Halle/Wittenberg, Germany, and received my graduate and postdoctoral training in angiogenesis and vascular biology research at the University of Ulm, Germany, and at the University of Texas, Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, TX, USA. Since 2007 I've been working at the University of Heidelberg, Medical Faculty Mannheim. I do basic research and run a lab with a couple of PhD/MD students, I teach physiology to medical students and I'm the scientific director of the graduate school STMM (School of Translational Medicine Mannheim) at my faculty.
Why did you choose this research area?
Based on my research experience in angiogenesis and vascular biology with a focus on basic mechanisms, I believe it is now important to better understand how blood vessels contribute to disease processes with a special focus on metabolism. Microvascular diseases such as diabetic retinopathy, diabetic nephropathy and diabetic neuropathy are a major burden for type 2 diabetic patients with limited therapeutic options. Reactive carbonyl species are formed spontaneously in our bodies, and as long as they are detoxified by the appropriate enzyme systems, we are protected from the reactive carbonyl stress that can lead to many diseases, including diabetes and its microvascular complications. My lab studies these enzyme systems and in recent years we have found that the loss of specific detoxifying enzyme systems for reactive carbonyls can lead to the formation diabetes and the hallmarks of diabetic retinopathy and diabetic nephropathy. We are using the zebrafish model because of its excellent imaging capabilities and the fact that diabetic zebrafish can overcome existing limitations of other animal models in diabetes research.
What is your vision? What you’d like to achieve with your research?
I want to better understand the interplay between the different reactive carbonyls in the development of diabetes and its microvascular complications. I aim to identify and understand some of their cellular and molecular targets and how these modifications can lead to disease processes. The perspective is to determine reactive carbonyls in patients with pre-diabetes and diabetes, which may help to predict disease progression in these patients, and eventually to develop drugs that may delay or even reverse the onset of diabetes and its organ complications.
How does a typical working day look like for you?
I spent 50% of my working day on research, 30% on teaching and 20% on organizational matters. This includes discussing data with my students, lab meetings, drafting, writing and proofreading manuscripts, writing grant proposals, giving talks, reviewing manuscripts and grant applications. I manage scientific collaborations and I’m the head of the zebrafish core facility at the Medical Faculty Mannheim. I also manage animal welfare considerations and safety issues in my lab. In my faculty, I co-direct our graduate school for MD and PhD students and I’m an active member of the PhD committee. I also teach physiology to medical students and act as an oral examiner.
You have been working as Associate Editor for Cardiovascular Diabetology since November 2022, what do you like about your work as Associate Editor for the journal?
Working for Cardiovascular Diabetology gives me a great insight how a scientific journal works, the opportunity to read unpublished work, provide constructive and fair criticism and support the authors of submitted manuscripts.
Now that you’ve worked for over 2 years on the journal, is the work how you expected it before or did you have any surprises or challenges?
The work is mostly as expected and I like the professionalism of Cardiovascular Diabetology. The challenge is to find qualified reviewers who respond in a timely manner, and I'm still surprised that some reviewers agree to review a manuscript but then fail to provide a report.
Has the journal work had any impact on your research or views?
It has broadened my perspective on my own research questions.
If you are interested in reading more about Cardiovascular Diabetology's Associate Editor Award, visit Cardiovascular Diabetology's homepage.
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Cardiovascular Diabetology
This journal considers manuscripts on all aspects of the diabetes/cardiovascular interrelationship and the metabolic syndrome; this includes clinical, genetic, experimental, pharmacological, epidemiological and molecular biology research.
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All submissions in this Collection undergo the journal’s standard peer review process. Similarly, all manuscripts authored by a Guest Editor(s) will be handled by the Editor-in-Chief. As an open access publication, this journal levies an article processing fee (details here). We recognize that many key stakeholders may not have access to such resources and are committed to supporting participation in this issue wherever resources are a barrier. For more information about what support may be available, please visit OA funding and support, or email OAfundingpolicy@springernature.com or the Editor-in-Chief.
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