Professorial Faculty
Technical University of Munich

Prof. Dr. Angelika Harbauer

Professorship

Neurons and Metabolism

School

TUM School of Medicine and Health

Contact Details

Business card at TUMonline

Academic Career and Research Areas

Prof. Harbauer (*1984) studies the metabolism of neurons, with a special focus on mitochondrial biogenesis. Even small disturbances in the energy conversion process can lead to toxic reactive oxygen species, therefore rigorous mitochondrial quality control is essential for cellular survival. If not addressed adequately, damaged mitochondria can lead to neurodegenerative diseases, most prominently Parkinson’s disease. Her laboratory researches the mechanisms and signals that adapt mitochondrial output to their surroundings to ensure their functionality specifically in neurons.

Prof. Harbauer studied Molecular Medicine at the University of Freiburg and did her PhD at the Institute for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (Prof. Meisinger). She spent 2015-2019 researching as a PostDoc in the lab of Prof. Tom Schwarz at Boston Children’s Hospital /Harvard Medical School in Boston. Since September 2019, Prof. Harbauer is a Max-Planck Research Goup Leader at the MPI for Neurobiology in Martinsried. She was appointed the Professorship “Neurons and Metabolism” at the TUM in September 2019.

    Awards

    • Featured as "Cell Scientist to Watch" by the Journal of Cell Science (2025)
    • ERC starting grant (2022)
    • Howard Hughes Medical Institute/Jane Coffin Childs Memorial Fund Fellow (2015-2018)
    • Bayer-Healthcare-Award for the best PhD thesis in 2014, German society for Biochemistry (GBM) (2015)
    • Barbara-Hobom-Award to promote young women in science, BIOSS Excellence Cluster (2013)

    Key Publications

    Hees J.T*., Segura, I*, Schneider, A., Schifferer, M., Misgeld, T. and Harbauer, A.B. PINK1 protein biogenesis in neurons requires integration of signals from the ER and Endolysosomes to enable mitophagy. bioRxiv 2024 2024.06.21.600039.

    Abstract

    Hees. J.T., Wanderoy, S., Lindner, J., Helms, J, Murali Mahadevan, H. and Harbauer, A.B. (2024) Insulin signaling regulates Pink1 mRNA localization via modulation of AMPK activity to support PINK1 function in neurons. Nat. Metab. 2024 6, 514–530.

    Abstract

    Harbauer, A. B.; Hees, J. T.; Wanderoy, S.; Segura, I.; Gibbs, W.; Cheng, Y.; Ordonez, M.; Cai, Z.; Cartoni, R.; Ashrafi, G., Wang,C., Perocchi, F., He Z., Schwarz T.L Neuronal mitochondria transport Pink1 mRNA via synaptojanin 2 to support local mitophagy. Neuron 2022 110 (9), S. 1516 - 1531.e9.

    Abstract

    Harbauer A.B., Opalińska M., Gerbeth C., Herman J.S., Rao S., Schönfisch B., Guiard B., Schmidt O., Pfanner N., Meisinger C.: „Mitochondria. Cell cycle-dependent regulation of mitochondrial preprotein translocase.” Science. 2014; 346 (6213): 1109-1113.

    Abstract

    Schmidt O., Harbauer A.B., Rao S., Eyrich B., Zahedi R.P., Stojanovski D., Schönfisch B., Guiard B., Sickmann A., Pfanner N., Meisinger C.: „Regulation of mitochondrial protein import by cytosolic kinases.“ Cell. 2011; 144 (2): 227-239.

    Abstract

    If you wish your profile to be changed or updated please contact Franz Langer.