An exciting program highlights the intersection of brain research, supercomputing, and artificial intelligence How similar are the human brain and artificial intelligence, and what can each learn from the other? What role do supercomputers play in developing modern...
Non-electric actuators offer a promising alternative for sustainable and remote operations. My research focuses on the development of thermal micro-actuators based on thermomagnetic thin films, which harness the intrinsic material property of magnetization loss near the Curie temperature to achieve controlled mechanical motion. Unlike conventional actuators that rely on electrical stimulation, these devices operate by thermal triggering, eliminating the need for continuous electrical input and thereby reducing power consumption.
This project investigates how sulfur-containing amino acids regulate tRNA thiolation in endothelial cells, thereby controlling protein translation during vessel growth. Mapping the human endothelial tRNA thio-epitranscriptome will uncover novel translational control mechanisms and lay the foundation for potential therapeutic strategies targeting pathological angiogenesis.
This project investigates the mutualism between Vachellia trees and Pseudomyrmex ants, focusing on their role in wound care. Using chemical ecology, proteomics, microbiology, and behavioral experiments, we plan to identify relevant wound healing compounds as well as the evolutionary mechanisms that enabled inter-kingdom wound care. This research expands on our concept of the social immune system by expanding it towards the ants’ host in this unique relationship.
This project investigates how mechanisms of learning and brain plasticity differ between young and older adults using Visual Perceptual Learning (VPL) as a model. VPL refers to an improvement in a visual skill with repeated visual experience or training. VPL will be studied using behavioral training protocols combined with techniques such as eye-tracking, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS).
This project aims to elucidate the neural mechanisms underlying vision recovery through visual perceptual learning in patients treated for congenital blindness. Led by Dr. Sebastian Frank, Prof. Dr. Brigitte Röder and Prof. Dr. med. Dr. h.c. mult. Eberhart Zrenner, in collaboration with the LV Prasad Eye Institute, the study uses MRS and EEG to assess changes in excitation and inhibition. The goal is to bridge neuroscience, psychology, and ophthalmology to improve rehabilitation strategies, deepen a comprehensive understanding of visual plasticity, and advance treatments for visual impairments.
This project, led by Jun.-Prof. Dr. Anna Stöckl and Prof. Dr. Axel Meyer (University of Konstanz), investigates how moths adapt to artificial light at night. By combining genomics, neuroanatomy and behavioral studies, the team aims to elucidate the mechanisms of sensory plasticity during metamorphosis. Using transcriptomics, epigenetics, and behavioral analysis, the research will investigate how caterpillar light exposure affects adult moths. The results will provide critical insights into animal adaptation to human-induced environmental change and shape future ecological and evolutionary studies.
This project, led by Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Ralf Bartenschlager (University of Heidelberg) and Prof. Dr. Tessa Quax (University of Groningen), investigates whether archaic viruses form specialized replication compartments, a strategy that has already been demonstrated in bacterial and eukaryotic viruses. By combining structural biology, cell biology, medicine, and chemistry, the goal is to identify universal mechanisms of viral replication. Using advanced imaging, genetic labeling, and lipid analysis, the viral replication process in archaea will be studied and compared to other life forms. The results will provide new insights into the evolution of viruses and identify potential approaches for antiviral therapies. In addition, young scientists will be trained in interdisciplinary virology to promote virus research in different biological areas.
The aim of the project led by Hector RCD Awardee Agnieszka Nowak-Król (University of Würzburg) and Hector Fellow A. Stephen K. Hashmi (Heidelberg University) is to develop well-defined helically chiral gold(III) complexes, the first examples of helically chiral gold complexes with gold atoms on either an outer or an inner helicene rim. The catalytic potential of these unprecedented complexes and their practical utility will be demonstrated in the enantioselective synthesis of small organic compounds and biologically or pharmaceutically relevant targets, i.e. natural products and pharmaceutically active compounds.
Hector Science Award Winner to Take Office in October 2025
