Cichlid fish are well-known for their beautiful colors and multitude of body shapes. They are found in the East African Rift lakes where they have formed so-called adaptive radiations, in which hundreds of new species originated extremely quickly – sometimes within less than 100,000 years.
Prevalence of myopia (shortsightedness) increases considerably in industrialized countries. The mechanisms behind this development need to be fully understood in order to arrive at prevention. The aim of Sandra Wagner’s research was to allow a better understanding of accommodation, address unanswered question regarding myopia onset and support the development of new devices.
The project investigates composition and function of microbial communities in Fram Strait, the major gateway between the Arctic and the Atlantic Oceans, and how these are linked with environmental conditions. A series of cutting-edge, molecular approaches are applied to assess microbial functional capacities, community composition and their temporal variation in a region under special threat by climate change. The project is supervised by Hector Fellow Antje Boetius.
This project aims to explore the use of young and old pulsating variable stars to improve our current understanding of the Milky Way. This will be achieved by performing a novel study of the kinematics, ages and chemical compositions of Cepheids and RR Lyrae stars which, in spite of being archetypes of different stellar populations, represent key tracers of the recent star formation and assembly history of the Galaxy.
The European Water Framework Directive requires that all waterbodies achieve a good ecological status until 2027. In urban environments the restricted spatial conditions and different interests cause problems in river restoration.
Visual experience during a sensitive period is crucial for the normal development of the brain. Individuals who are treated for congenital cataracts more than a few weeks from birth suffer from low visual acuity as well as specific deficits (such as impaired face processing). This project investigates the possible mechanisms that mediate this sensitive period, by non-invasively assessing brain structure and function in congenitally and developmentally visually deprived individuals.
Reproductive isolation, the ceased exchange of genetic material, is crucial for the divergence of populations into distinct species. This is commonly facilitated by an extrinsic physical barrier, but rarely it can also occur devoid of such barriers. Whether speciation proceeds by the same or different reproductive isolation mechanisms under these two geographic scenarios remains a matter of debate. We aim to contribute to this fundamental question in biology by taking advantage of a model system of speciation: the Midas cichlid fishes.
Aggression can be distinguished in a reactive form, which is a protective response to an acute threat and an instrumental form, which is goal directed. Appetitive aggression is a sub form of instrumental aggression, which is defined by the experience of lust when perpetrating violence. So far, the latter has been only assessed through self-report. The doctoral project under supervision of Prof. Thomas Elbert intends to create an objective, epigenetic marker for appetitive aggression.
SARS-CoV-2 hat eine Pandemie ausgelöst und ist für mehr als 18 Millionen Infektionen verantwortlich. Es wird vermutet, dass COVID-19 das Ergebnis des Absterbens infizierter Zellen und einer exzessiven Aktivierung des Immunsystems ist. Um Zelltypen und Signalwege zu identifizieren, die zur Pathogenese oder viralen Replikation beitragen, werde ich Transkriptomanalysen und funktionelle Untersuchungen ausgewählter Gene vornehmen. Diese Arbeit könnte zu der Entwicklung neuer Therapien beitragen.
The efficient design of chemical processes is of great importance for the chemical industry. Current research makes an essential contribution to synthesizing complex substrates inexpensively in as few steps as possible and in high yield. This PhD project, under the direction of Hector Fellow A. Stephen K. Hashmi, therefore, deals with the mechanism and the functionalization of a wide range of 1,3-diynes with varying nucleophiles.
