DZHK Munich Heart Alliance

Therefore, to effectively decrease CHD mortality, an integrated approach is needed that includes both prevention of the establishment of CHD via primary preventive measures and therapeutic targeting of established CVD with manifest vascular and myocardial damage.

The mission of the Munich Hart Alliance  is to accelerate the development of strategies to prevent and treat CHD. To fulfill this mission, the MHA Centre focuses on the following scientific objectives, each addressed by a distinct research program:

1. identify population level risk factors predisposing to CHD
2. model CHD in order to dissect the underlying mechanisms
3. develop novel therapeutic strategies against CHD

The Munich research area is the ideal site to address these goals, as it combines excellent basic and clinical research on the disease mechanisms and interventions to prevent and treat CHD. In particular, Munich provides the nation's leading cardiovascular framework with regards to the conduct of large clinical phase III/IV trials.

Built on this expertise, the MHA Centre aims to accelerate the translation of mechanistic findings into clinical application. Through the foundation of the MHA Centre, we want to achieve the following structural goals:

• to focus the broad local cardiovascular expertise onto the common topic CHD
• to establish research groups at the interface of basic and clinical science,
• to join the forces of these interdisciplinary groups under the roof of the MHA Centre.

As a node in the GCRC, the MHA Centre contributes its unique epidemiological resources (e.g. KORA) and its leading clinical trial infrastructure and serve as a platform for the efficient translation of novel therapeutic concepts in CHD.