Obesity Prize for Excellence for Antje Körner

Antje Körner , Photo: Christian Hüller - News from Professor Antje Körner, Professor of Metabolic Research at Leipzig University's Faculty of Medicine and Head of the Metabolism Division at the Helmholtz Institute of Metabolic, Obesity and Vascular Research (HI-MAG) at Helmholtz Munich, has been named as the 2024 recipient of the EASO-Novo Nordisk Foundation Obesity Prize for Excellence. The prize was established in January 2023 by the European Association for the Study of Obesity (EASO) and the Novo Nordisk Foundation and recognizes outstanding research or technology contributions which improve the understanding of obesity, its aetiology, complications, prevention, and management. It includes a DKK 2 million award (ca. 270,000 euros), with DKK 1.7 million allocated for research. Professor Körner's research has significantly contributed to the understanding of the origin and consequences of childhood obesity. As a paediatrician-scientist, Antje Körner addresses the complexity of obesity by applying a translational and holistic research approach that combines experimental cell and molecular biology, clinical and genetic studies. It is her ambition to not only describe the epidemiological and clinical associations but to better understand the underlying mechanisms. Employing experimental research, she addresses whether and how genetic and environmental risk factors contribute to obesity risk.