HI-CAM
Helmholtz-Initiative Climate Adaptation and Mitigation: two Sides of the same Coin
Within the HI-CAM Initiative, we aim to understand the underlying physiological responses in health, with a focus on cardio-metabolic and cognitive function, in order to contribute to climate change adaptation planning in the health sector
HI-CAM I & II
Helmholtz-Initiative Climate Adaptation and Mitigation: two Sides of the same Coin
Within the HI-CAM Initiative, we aim to understand the underlying physiological responses in health, with a focus on cardio-metabolic and cognitive function, in order to contribute to climate change adaptation planning in the health sector
Overview
Climate change poses a major threat for the ecosystems and the human health, and its magnitude will increase in the future, if no action is taken. Within the framework of the Helmholtz Climate Initiative, researchers focus on the two main clusters of climate change, mitigation - Net Zero 2050, and adaptation - Adapting to Extreme Events, as well as on the communication of the research findings:
Mitigation: The development of science-based scenarios to support a mitigation strategy for quick and consistent emissions reduction leading to a carbon-neutral Germany in 2050.
Adaptation: The development of sectorial impact projections and their interlinkages across sectors in order to develop appropriate options for adaptation to extreme events from a systemic perspective.
Communication: The development of coherent communication strategies and campaigns to raise the awareness and interact with society on the issue of climate change impacts, risks and challenges.
Several epidemiological studies have reported effects of exposure to air temperature on cardiovascular and metabolic disease outcomes while the evidence regarding the air temperature effects on cognitive function is scarce. Therefore, our interest lies in the investigation of the association between the short-term exposure to air temperature and cardio-metabolic biomarkers and cognitive function. For this purpose, a high-resolution hybrid spatiotemporal air temperature model derived by combining satellite, meteorological and land cover data for Germany will be used to assign the minimum, mean and maximum air temperature to the participants on a daily basis.
- To analyze the association between short-term exposure to air temperature and biomarkers of cardiovascular diseases (total-, HDL-, LDL-cholesterol and triglycerides)
- To analyze the association between short-term exposure to air temperature and metabolic biomarkers (HbA1c, glucose)
- To analyze the association between short-term exposure to air temperature and cognitive function through a battery of standardized neuropsychological tests and an olfactory test
Participants of the German National Cohort (NAKO) study recruited in 18 study centers across Germany
The Helmholtz-Climate-Initiative (HI-CAM) is funded by the Helmholtz Associations Initiative and Networking Fund (funding period: 07/2019 - 12/2021)
Within the scope of the Helmholtz Climate Initiative, the following Helmholtz centers are involved:
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Helmholtz Zentrum München, Institute of Epidemiology: Prof. Dr. Annette Peters, Dr. Alexandra Schneider, Dr. Susanne Breitner, Nikolaos Nikolaou
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Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI), www.helmholtz-hzi.de
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German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), www.dkfz.de
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German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), www.dzne.de
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Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), www.mdc-berlin.de
Contact PI
Contact PI
