David Unnersjö-Jess, PhD

Department II of Internal Medicine and Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne, University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Cologne, Germany

David Unnersjö-Jess has a background as an engineering physicist and received his BSc, MSc, and PhD degrees from the Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden. His research was during his PhD mostly focused towards developing new protocols for high-resolution optical imaging of the kidney. In his current position as a post-doctoral researcher and a junior group leader at Nephrolab Cologne, he continues to apply novel microscopy tools to nephrology, with special focus and interest towards the glomerular filtration barrier.

Linus Butt, MD

Department II of Internal Medicine and Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne, University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Cologne, Germany

Linus Butt is a physician-scientist in the Department II of Internal Medicine at the University Hospital Cologne, Germany. In his research, he combines genetically modified mice together with omics techniques and super-resolution microscopy to elucidate pathomechanisms of glomerular diseases. He is particularly interested in understanding the physiology of glomerular filtration and its disintegration upon glomerular injury.  

Thomas Benzing, MD

Department II of Internal Medicine and Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne, University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Cologne, Germany

Thomas Benzing is Professor of Medicine and Chairman of the Department II of Internal Medicine and the Director of the Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany. His research is focused on the pathogenesis of genetic kidney diseases, particularly podocyte disorders on one hand and ciliopathies on the other. Recently, his team provided the first experimentally validated model of glomerular ultrafiltration. Benzing has received numerous prizes and awards including the Young Investigator Award of the American Society of Nephrology, the Volhard Prize of the German Society of Nephrology, the prestigious Ernst Jung Prize in Medicine among many others. He is elected member of the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, the American Society of Clinical Investigation (ASCI), the American Clinical and Climatological Association (ACCA), and Honorary Fellow of the American Society of Nephrology.