Taras Afonyushkin, PhD
Medical University of Vienna,
Department of Laboratory Medicine, KILM
Anna Spiegel Research Building
Lazarettgasse 14, AKH BT25.2, Level 6
1090 Vienna, Austria
ORCID: 0000-0002-2545-585
Taras Afonyushkin studied Biochemistry at Lviv State University, Ukraine. In 2001, he joined the group of Prof. Udo Blaesi at the Vienna Biocenter and completed his PhD at the University of Vienna in 2005. From 2000 to 2012 he was doing his research as a postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Vascular Biology of the Medical University Vienna in the group of Valery Bochkov. He was working as Visiting Scientist at the University of Chicago, Illinois in 2013. Thereafter he joined the group of Prof. Christoph Binder at the Department of Laboratory Medicine of the Medical University Vienna as a Senior Research Fellow.
Know-how and research interests
Taras has longstanding interest in understanding mechanisms mediating vascular response to stress factors relevant for vascular pathology and the role of small regulatory RNAs in regulation of gene expression. More recently, the role of extracellular vesicles (EV) in the intercellular communication and coagulation became a part of his research.
He contributed to the basic understanding of mechanism regulating gene expression at the level of RNA stability. His works demonstrated the modulatory role of small regulatory RNAs in alteration of gene expression during stress.
He contributed to the understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in sensing of oxidized phospholipids by endothelial cells.
He made essential contributions to the works demonstrating the contribution of mitochondria to the EV-mediated intercellular communication between vascular cells and the protective role of natural IgM antibody in EV-induced coagulation and thrombosis.
He obtained FWF Stand-Alone Grant and essentially contributed to several successful SFB FWF (Special Research Program) Grant Applications and WWTF (Vienna Science and Tecnology) Grant.
Results of his work were published in high ranked journals, including Nucleic Acid Research, RNA, ATVB, Circulation Research, Atherosclerosis Journal of Immunology, Journal of Lipid Research, and Blood.
Main Research Interests
- Understanding mechanism modulating intra- and extracellular signaling in and between stressed vascular cells
- Functional effects and biomarker value of extracellular vesicles in vascular pathology
- Role of small regulatory RNAs in regulation of gene expression