Honours Students 2021

Course of Studies: Literature-Art-Culture (M.A.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Juliane von Fircks

Analysis of the images in the “Koelhoffsche Chronik” of Cologne from 1499
Medieval City Chronicles usually begin with the Genesis and include central moments of the bible, which are treated as real elements of the past. These are then connected with important events of the respective city’s history. Thus, City Chronicles provide deep insight into the understanding of the world and history in the late Middle Ages as well as into specifics of the respective city and they are a rich testimony of cultural history – this is also the case in Cologne.
With about 40 000 inhabitants, Cologne was the largest city of the German empire in the late Mittle Ages. Situated near the Rhine, Cologne became a cultural, scientific and economic centre of Europe by the end of the 15^th century and had a leading role in the young letterpress printing industry, which opened up many new possibilities for the design and illustration of books. That is why it is interesting to reconstruct how cultural developments effected the production of books and how the letterpress-technique impacted the illustrations in City Chronicles. Therefore, I will analyse the 368 woodcuts of the “Cronica van der hilliger Stat Coellen” (also caled “Koelhoffsche Chronik” after its printer Johann Koelhoff), which is the first printed chronicle of Cologne, and was published in 1499; With an interdisciplinary approach, I especially focus on the iconography and depictions of the images and contribute to medieval literary studies and art history in particular.

 

Contact:
Jill-Marie.Brogner@uni-jena.de 

Course of Studies: German Classicism in the European Context (M.A.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Alice Stašková

Balthasar Haug (1731–1792) – A Educator and Patron of Literary Arts and Humanities in the educational landscape of Württemberg
While the external structure of the Karlsschule (Friedrich Schiller's educational institution from 1770 to 1782) is well documented and revamped, parts of the internal structures, which concern the personal and content-related aspects of the education, have been processed so far only partially.
Balthasar Haug (Schiller's poetics, stylistics and mythology teacher at the Karlsschule) is the subject of my pilot project as a part of the overall project "Educational Landscapes of the Englightenment".
His role in the context of the education system Württemberg's will be presented as well as his function as a patron of the literary arts and humanities. Therefore it will be essential to reconstruct his curriculum vitae and areas of activity, furthermore to edit his writings (such as poems, examination theses, essays etc.) and to make all written documents (journals, etc.) bibliographically available. The aim is to portray Haug as a popular philosopher, poet and publisher in the sense of an exemplary biography of the late Englightenment in a local context (Württemberg) .

Course of Studies: History and Politics of the 20th Century (M.A.)

Supervision: Dr. Jochen Böhler

Poland and Czechoslovakia in the aftermath of WW1: the governments’ responses to violence on the example of Cieszyn Silesia 
Poland and Czechoslovakia both started their existence in 1918 after the conference in Versailles. As two very new republics, they both had to deal with problems concerning their ethnic division, their national borders and their security. The small territory of the former duchy Cieszyn Silesia brought a wave of violence in the relations of both republics. Historically and industrially important to Czechoslovakia but ethnically inhabited by mostly Polish workers, this region was the reason for the Seven-day war in 1919 between the neighboring countries. 
In the context of the Honours Programme I will analyze how the respective Czechoslovak and Polish governments dealt with the tension-filled region and the organized paramilitary groups and how they acted upon the numerous armed disputes that occurred between the years 1918-1920. 

Contact:
barbora.fischerova@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: English, French, Latin (Teacher Training, State Examination)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Thomas Scharinger

Friedrich Wilhelm Riemer and Romance Philology in the Early 19th Century
Friedrich Wilhelm Riemer (1774-1845) is known to researchers primarily because of his many years of service as Goethe’s secretary. Although it is often emphasized that Riemer was also an outstanding philologist, no detailed studies of his linguistic work have been presented to date. As part of my research project, I am intensively examining Riemer’s handwritten notes stored in the Goethe and Schiller Archive, whereby I am particularly interested in his studies of the Romance languages. Since Romance philology was established as an independent academic discipline in the 19th century, the question arises as to how he fits into the panorama of Romance studies in the early 19th century. How does he explain the language change, especially regarding the emergence of the Romance languages from Latin? Are there even innovative ideas in his treatises that were far ahead of his time, but were not published and therefore not received?

Contact:
nico.huenniger@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Literature-Art-Culture (M.A.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Dirk von Petersdorff

Processing the American occupying power in exemplary articles of the "Ruf" and their ideological-cultural tradition(s)
My project will examine the magazine landscape of the American zone of occupation - more precisely the high-circulation Munich "Ruf", which established itself as a medium for political-cultural debates.
A text-immanent examination of exemplary articles (preferably articles by the editors) can be used to check the extent to which there were references to or verbal attacks on the occupation policy of the Americans and whether these exceeded the framework of the press policy rules of the time. Were there even direct verbal attacks? To what extent were American control authorities able to react to this and are there any possible clues as to the reasons for the publisher's dismissal? What is the tradition of the criticism in terms of culture and the history of ideas?
The main topics will be: the demand for basic democratic rights, captivity, hunger and misery of the civilian population, language regulation measures / censorship, democracy and party skepticism, nationalistic language particles.

Contact:
celine.koegler@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Intercultural Human Resources Development and Communications Management (M.A.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Daniela Gröschke

The cultural capital of female community leader in Jerusalem
Jerusalem is a crossroads of different ethnic, religious, cultural, and political influences. Historically evolved dynamics and a coexistence approach has divided the city into communities. They are unified by shared narratives and perspectives while being physically and mentally separated by walls and mental borders. Local realities are overshadowed by the interests and concerns of the international community.
Within these complex structures, an increasing number of women are successfully taking action and emerging as leaders. They lead initiatives and NGOs to improve their communities and develop agency. This research examines who these women are, what cultural capital contributes to their recognition as leaders and what collaborations exist between them.
Their strategies and motives, their emergent success in complex structures and the benefits or hinders of their cultural capital is relevant for future female leader generations.

Contact:
mariem.nabli@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: History and Politics of the 20th Century (M.A.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Gisela Mettele

Professor Anna Lindemann (1892-1959) in the SZO and the early GDR: a (women's) biography.
Gender equality in the GDR is still a widespread myth today. What differences prevailed in various professional fields and in status and career paths existed between men and women is often not taken into account. A closer look shakes the myth. The examination of individual women and their biographies within their professional field is therefore necessary for a differentiated gender history of the GDR. The research of Anna Lindemann's biography from archival documents is based on these considerations. Persecuted as a communist and "freethinker" in the Nazi-regime, she became a professor of contemporary history at the FSU in 1948. A detailed account of her biography is not yet available. This can provide answers to the question of the opening options for female academics in East German post-war society and the re-consolidating patriarchal structures in the emerging GDR - in particular in education and higher education policy.

Contact:
Lisa-marie.oelmayer@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Art History (M.A.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Johannes Grave

Romantic Art in Scotland
My research project is focused on Scottish art around 1800 and its relationship to the works and culture of Romanticism in Europe. The study is based on the work of Henry Raeburn (1756-1823), a Romantic painter who spent most of his life in Edinburgh. The paintings of this leading portraitist of his time in Scotland are characterised by their extraordinary depiction of the sitters. Raeburn not only shows them as individuals by their outward appearance, but also visualises what is actually unrepresentable, their character and emotions. The formal composition of the paintings is of great importance, for the essence of the sitter is conveyed by impulsive brushstrokes, impasto application of paint and strong colouring. By systematically examining Raeburn's work, the aim is not only to position it within Romantic art in Scotland, but also to locate its specific characteristics within Romanticism as a European artistic and intellectual movement.

Course of Studies: History and Politics of the 20th Century (M.A.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Jens-Christian Wagner

Pluralization of the memory of the Nazi persecuted groups in the GDR? Investigation based on the National Buchenwald Memorial in the period 1980–1989/90
This research project deals with the handling of the National Socialist past in the GDR during the last decade of its existence. The specific object of research is the National Buchenwald Memorial (NMG), which was founded in 1958. It played a central role in legitimizing the GDR as the “better Germany” during the Cold War. In the NMG Buchenwald the struggle for survival of communist resistance fighters was strongly emphasized and mythized. In contrast, the stories of persecution of many other groups of victims of the camp were scarcely, if any, paid attention to in the GDR. This project examines, among other things, whether this changed in the last decade of the existence of state socialism and which actors advocated for the recognition of marginalized Nazi groups. Thus, the project borders on more general questions about the history of the GDR in the 1980s, including the question of to which extent it was possible to develop “self-will” within this society.

Contact:
anna.sophia.weichmann@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Physics (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Giancarlo Soavi

Optical and electronic properties of atomically thin materials
The discovery of graphene in 2004 has ignited an enormous interest in the scientific community leading to the discovery of more members of the family of two-dimensional (2D), e.g. atomically thin, materials including semiconductors, insulators, superconductors and ferromagnets. Among the semiconductors are transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) with exciting electronic and optical properties which are thus promising candidates for the future generation of optoelectronic devices such as light sensors, light emitting diodes and solar cells. The optical and electronic properties of 2D materials differ greatly from their bulk counterparts. I will focus on the study of the generation and especially recombination pathways of quasiparticles (excitons) in stacks of 2D materials (so-called heterostructures) that govern the optical and electronic properties and, subsequently, the efficiency of possible device applications in the nanoscale.

Contact:
theresa.kuechle@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Medicine (State Examination)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Ignacio Rubio

Intracellular mechanisms of endotoxin tolerance
The tolerance of human immune cells normally prevents excessive reactions to harmless bacteria and the attack on the body's own components. However, if a patient is affected by sepsis, a severe infection with a dysregulated host response, immune tolerance that is triggered at the wrong time or prevails for too long can contribute to seriously impaired pathogen elimination, a more severe disease progression and increased mortality. It is therefore clinically important and interesting to further investigate the intracellular mechanism of the induction of tolerance, also to identify potential targets for therapeutic strategies. The identification of mediators involved in tolerance initiation can be investigated by identifying and comparing the interacting proteins before and after tolerance induction. The detection is possible with a so-called proximity biotinylation screen. For this purpose, known signalling pathway proteins are genetically modified to label proteins in the immediate environment and to allow their identification via mass spectrometry. In my research, I use this approach in a human monocyte cell line.

Contact:
 florian.hickl@med.uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Psychology (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Dr. Jennifer Bellingtier

Age Stereotypes and Social Relationships in Late Adulthood.
We all have assumptions about how older people typically behave and what it will be like once we are old ourselves. According to Becca Levy's "Stereotype Embodiment Theory" age stereotypes and expectations about age and aging become internalized over the lifespan and have an impact on how individuals behave, think, and feel when they reach late adulthood.
Some of these stereotypes and expectations concern the interaction of older people with others, the social contexts they (should) seek out, and how their networks are formed.
As a student of the Honours Programme, I want to investigate whether older adults' social relationships differ depending on the extent to which they hold those stereotypical ageist beliefs. My goal is to work with a longitudinal research design to overcome limitations of previous correlational research findings and thus make assumptions about the directionality of the relationship.

Contact:
jenny.bauer@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Educational Science/Psychology (B.A.)

Supervision: Dr. Julia Dietrich

Course of Studies: double degree: 1. Sport, French (Teacher Training, State Examination), 2. Psychology (B.Sc.) 

Supervision: Dr. Florian Müller

How do personality traits of two persons influence the performance in motor tasks?
Playing tennis double, beach volleyball, or carrying a piece of furniture together: In many parts of everyday life and sports, we perform together with other individuals. But which personality traits can be decisive in, say, beach volleyball to be successful? In my Honours project, I investigate the impact of individuals’ motives and their combination on the performance in a motor joint action task. As previous research has shown, for example, high power motivated individuals perform better in a 1 vs. 1 solo competition than in team situations. In my project, I want to expand the research by setting up an experiment in which two individuals perform a joint action task in which they navigate a ball through a maze using a joystick. Motive interactions and the final performance outcome are explorative investigated, too.

Contact:
norman.huettner@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Psychology (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Dr. David Urschler

Biased decisions in groups
The focus of the social psychological project is the investigation of decision-making behavior. Numerous studies show that on the path to a decision, people preferentially select information that supports their own attitude. Following this, this phenomenon also gains importance when considered on a group level. Validation and disagreement of personal opinions as well as the range of interpretation of information have a central role in the decision-making process. How far this confirmation bias also comes into effect in group processes is the object of analysis of this replication project. Against this background, the experimental design of the primary study is implemented, in which young adults work on a realistic application case individually and as a group, so that differences in attitude and behavior emerge. Influencing factors related to the group structure are also considered in the study. The results offer applicability for research on opinion development and practical transfer at the societal sphere.

Contact:
laura.kuenzel@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Psychology (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Klaus Rothermund

Habits – Long-term learning or short-term retrieval?
Making a coffee, going to university, doing sports: A huge part of our everyday life consists of habits – fast, effortless and automatized behaviour. But how does behaviour become automatized exactly? When we get faster in making a coffee, our way to university takes less time and we perform better in sports – which cognitive mechanisms underly this process? At the first glance, we seemingly learn through repetition: We repeatedly perform the same behavior in the same situation, and therefore we get better over time. This view is challenged by recent studies that explain habits by temporal, transient bindings between stimuli and responses. According to this view, the human cognitive system forms stimulus-response episodes that are stored in memory and retrieved later once the stimulus is encountered again. Automatic action regulation might not depend on the entire learning history, but predominantly on the retrieval of the last episode. If that is the case, the human cognitive system may be more flexible than previously thought. Within my HONOURS-project, I want to investigate the cognitive processes that underly habit formation by analyzing existing empirical data and conducting a new experiment.  

Contact:
matthaeus.rudolph@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Psychology (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Gabriele Wilz

Change mechanisms of a psychotherapeutic intervention for family caregivers
Many family caregivers experience caregiving as a chronic stressor that affects mental and physical health. In the ongoing research project "ReDiCAre - Relieving distressed caregivers" headed by Prof. Dr. Gabriele Wilz (FSU Jena, Department of Counseling and Clinical Intervention) and Dr. Klaus Pfeiffer (Robert Bosch Hospital Stuttgart, Clinic for Geriatric Rehabilitation), family caregivers first receive a problem-solving-based brief intervention and, if needed, telephone-based psychotherapy. Although some psychotherapeutic interventions to relieve the stress of family caregivers have been shown to be effective, little is known about the change mechanisms through which these interventions exert their effects. One set of change mechanisms of psychotherapy are general change mechanisms. These are factors of the therapy processes that occur in the context of any psychotherapy independent of therapy schools (e.g., emotionally supportive therapeutic relationship or motivational clarification). The Honours Project will examine the importance of general change mechanisms for the effectiveness of the ReDiCare-intervention. Furthermore, patterns of convergence and divergence in the perception of these therapeutic processes between therapist and patient as well as the relation of these patterns to therapy outcome will be analyzed.

Course of Studies: Sociology/Educational Science (B.A.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Kathrin Leuze

1. Differences in Income among University Graduates according to Field of Study
The research project focuses on labour market outcomes of graduates from German universities. It aims to give causal explanations of inequality in income between different fields of study after obtaining a first professional university degree. Based on economic labour market theories (Human Capital Theory and task-based approach), the project’s main interest lies in the interrelation between the accumulation of competences relevant to the labour market and wage disparity across subject areas. The quantitative analysis is grounded in data from the DZHW Graduate Panel of 2009.

2. Origin Related Educational Inequality in the Categorical System of Secondary Schools
Subject of the second research project are the predictors which influence the transition behaviour of children with different social backgrounds from primary to secondary school. The focus is placed on the institutional framework of the educational system – more specifically, regulations within the categorical system of secondary schools – and its impact on decisions concerning the level of education. For this purpose, a mixed methods design will be applied in order to collect quantitative and qualitative data from pupils, parents and teachers. For my membership in the Honours Programme, I’m planning to investigate the state of research in this area and also to develop a synopsis of my project which will be continued as my doctoral research paper after graduation next year.

Contact:
 carolin.zink@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Chemistry (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Ivan Vilotijevic 

Development of enantioselective Mitsunobu reaction
Chemical structures that behave like image and mirror image are called enantiomers. These molecules share the same order of atoms and physical properties. They differ in their spatial alignment which often leads to different biological properties. For the development of new pharmaceuticals it is important to have access to every single enantiomer. The whole challenge often begins with the synthesis of the molecules. In my project I want to develop an enantioselective Mitsunobu reaction. This reaction can be used to transform alcohols into different compounds. I want to create molecules that can influence the course of this reaction to produce only one desired product enantiomer. The reaction with a racemic alcohol that consists of two enantiomers would then lead to the consumption of just one enantiomer. The other one can be reisolated afterwards. The whole reaction would then yield two enantiomeric pure products.

Contact:
michael.duong@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Geoinformatics (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Dr. -Ing. Clémence Dubois

Deriving soil moisture under dense vegetation using satellite-based radar data
Spatiotemporal mapping of soil moisture is essential for monitoring the global water, energy and carbon cycle. With the help of radar remote sensing, it is possible to derive soil moisture even under dense vegetation to a limited extent. Within the framework of my research project, I investigate the potential to derive soil moisture under deciduous and coniferous forests in Thuringia using a long-term Sentinel-1 time series. For this purpose, I will apply and compare different proven methods such as change detection, neural networks and polarimetry. Further satellites and in-situ data will extend the analysis. It is also important to me to conduct my analysis with open and freely available software and to share the results. Overall, the findings from this research could provide a better understanding of the forests in Thuringia, which have been extremely stressed in recent years. This work is supervised by Dr.-Ing. Clémence Dubois.

Contact:
florian.marcus.hellwig@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Chemical Biology (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Georg Pohnert

Functional Analysis of bacterial signalling molecules
Bacteria are communicating over chemical signals. These chemicals carry information about who is around and how many bacteria are there. This molecular recognition is sometimes crucial to induce the production of specialized compounds. It was shown that in the plant pathogenic bacterium Pseudomonas syringae, which can infect wooden trees like mangos, such a signalling compound induces the production of the virulence factor mangotoxin. This toxin leads to the formation of necrosis of infected plant tissue which ultimately leads to the killing of the tree. Since plant pathogenic bacteria place a huge economical threat, understanding these signalling pathways is of great interest to find new strategies to treat the disease. My project focusses on the identification and isolation of the signalling molecules of P.s syringae and on understanding the function of these molecules in nature.

Contact:
Philippe.meisinger@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Geography, Mathematics (teacher training, State Examination)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Mirka Dickel

Social Hyped Locations – An Analysis by means of an extended idea of augmented reality
In everyday interactions people construct the meanings of places and spaces. Special constructions of this kind take place in the context of "socially hyped locations". These locations are characterized by the fact that they generate a prominent attention in social media. Significant for the phenomenon of "socially hyped locations" is that people who visit these places imitate the poses of people who have already been there before them. Thus, photographs of individuals at the locations are repeatedly created, which strongly resemble each other and ascribe a special meaning to the locations. The aim of my project is to find out which individual and social processes lead to the similar stagings, what relevance digital exchange has in this process, and how the specific meanings of the locations are generated. To achieve these research goals, the analysis makes use of different ideas of spaces and the investigation of mimetic processes.

Contact:
josephine.paul@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Chemical Biology (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Christian Hertweck

Investigation of a novel γ-butyrolactone-forming polyketide synthase domain
With the initial discovery of β-lactams, most notably penicillin, treatment of bacterial infections was fundamentally revolutionized. Thus, further sparking an interest in other natural products, including polyketides. Synthesized by polyketide synthase enzymes (PKSs) these molecules are formed through combination of acetate and/or propionate units. Modules containing discrete catalytic centres, known as domains, are typical for type I PKS megasynthase enzyme complexes. Prediction of synthesis and products by these enzymes is possible through genomic analysis.
Consecutive domain-catalysed reactions generate the product in an assembly line-like fashion. Changes to domains allow for predictable structural changes, however, modifications are limited by the natural diversity of domains.
Chain release from the synthase is typically mediated by thioesterase domains, yet, while investigating the gladiofungin-biosynthesis a PKS with a C-terminal A factor synthase-like (AfsA) domain was discovered instead. My project will focus on mechanistical and structural characterisation of glaAfsA as a novel PKS domain.

Course of Studies: Business Administration (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Dr. Daniel Pastuh

Micro-Level Processes of Stigmatization in the Gig Economy: An Empirical Investigation of the Emotional Response to Stigmatization
The aim of the research project is to contribute to the understanding of emotionally experienced organizational stigma through specific stakeholder groups (= audiences). To date, audiences have often been portrayed as aggregated, homogeneous groups. Research is lacking to show how stigma is perceived by those specific audience groups. By referring to research on emotions and stigmatization as well as empirical evidence generated from interviews, I aim to derive a better understanding of the feelings the core audience shows towards its stigmatization.
The focus of this empirical investigation will be on companies of the so-called gig economy. This new work model allows companies to provide jobs to self-employed workers via the internet. It can be considered a stigmatized industry because of its disruptive character. Interviewing drivers of the well-known ridesharing company Uber, I will analyze the individual experiences of stigmatization and the driver’s emotional response to that.

Contact:
sarah.buetzler@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Economics (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Dr. Martin Kalthaus

Innovation and industry dynamics in the Danish wind power industry
Renewable energy sources are an important component in fulfilling the Paris Climate Agreement. However, the promotion of renewable energies proves not to be straight forward, studies e.g., showing that political measures aiming at furthering the use of renewable energy sources may in fact decrease the firms’ survival rates. A deeper understanding of the underlying economic mechanisms may allow for more effective political support. The industry life cycle (ILC) theory describes the development of an industry’s population of firms which usually grows after the industry’s emergence, followed by a phase of decline and a subsequent stabilisation of the firm number. In my research project, I will empirically examine whether the Danish wind power industry follows the typical ILC pattern, and to what extent the industry’s competition is shaped by innovation. The Danish wind power industry is ideal for this analysis, as Denmark is considered a pioneer of this industry. Furthermore, the Danish energy agency publishes a data set containing information on all wind turbines installed since 1977.

Course of Studies: Economics (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Dr. Olexandr Nikolaychuk

Funding Potential Information in Coordinating and Individual fundraising
My research project deals with the question: ‘Is coordinated fundraising more efficient than individual fundraising when information about funding potential provided by charities?’ I aim to conduct a “real donation” lab experiment to compare independent fundraising with coordinating fundraising when the information about the funding potential of the charity is provided. In Individual fundraising setting donation requests from different charities arrive sequentially to potential donors, while in coordinating fundraising, donation requests from different charities arrive simultaneously. Funding potential is something which is calculated in the funding projects as part of fundraising strategy by charities. This research will help charities to decide the best fundraising setting according to their funding potential to reach their goal efficiently.

Contact:
awanish.saraf@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Economics (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Silke Übelmesser

Self-Assessment in the Income Distribution
In recent years there were extensive public discussions regarding the topics of inequality, income and education. The COVID-19 pandemic fuelled these discussions even further. Many politicians, experts and political parties agree that economic inequality can have real consequences for the societal and economic development of Germany and want to draw attention to this topic.
However, what do Germans know about their position in the income distribution? Studies have shown that individuals with relatively low incomes estimate their position higher than it actually is while individuals with relatively high incomes predict their position lower than it truly is.
For my Honours project I want to investigate which other characteristics are correlated with the accuracy of peoples’ self-assessments of their position in the income distribution. My focus will be on educational attainment, individuals’ political opinions and a comparison between Eastern and Western Germany.

Course of Studies: Economics (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Silke Übelmesser

Income losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic and possible correlations
Due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, the world has changed significantly. In addition to the health sector, the labor sector has been particularly affected. The focus here is often on the impact of the pandemic on employment and income.
Studies have shown that the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a reduction in income. In my research project, I want to investigate which population groups were and are affected by income losses and to what extent. In doing so, I would like to further investigate possible correlations of income losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic with political attitudes and trust in media.
The goal of the project is to gain new insights into the change in voting behavior and trust in media, in correlation with income change caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Especially with regard to the upcoming federal election in 2021, this investigation may lead to interesting findings.

Course of Studies: Business Information Systems (B.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Nils Boysen

Intelligent algorithms for cargo-tunnels
Delivery vehicles contribute a lot to inner-city traffic. One possibility to reduce their amount is to dig cargo tunnels, through which parcels can be delivered below grade. For the transportation autonomous vehicles are used to deliver the parcels to small delivery stations spread all over the town. From there the distance to the customers is small enough to use cargo bikes, electric vans, etc. for the distribution. The necessary infrastructure (tunnels, delivery stations, …) is expensive so that a cost-utility-analysis is reasonable beforehand. For this it is important to know a realistic occupancy rate of the cargo tunnels.
In my project, I plan to determine this by conducting a computational study in which multiple problem settings are tested. The generation of realistic data and efficient solution-algorithms are of crucial importance here.

Contact:
christian.leimbach@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Evolution, Ecology and Systematics (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Dr. Markus Bernhardt-Römermann

Influence of former forest management on current biodiversity and stand structure in Thuringian forests
Especially in Europe, there has long been a high anthropogenic pressure on all forest areas, which in turn has led to changes in the biodiversity of typical forest species. However, there is still a lack of clarity about the specific influence of forest use on biodiversity. In particular, it is unclear which differences occur at different intensities of use.
Therefore, I will assess historical forest maps in cooperation with the Forestry Research and Competence Centre (FFK Gotha). These maps, dating from about 1850 to 1950, show the former use of the individual forest parcels in Thuringian forests in detail. Initially, the maps will be digitalized using GIS and are then intersected with the current forestry uses and geological information from the forestry office GIS. Then the current biodiversity and stand structure will be recorded using vegetation surveys in the forest plots.
With the data collected, it will then be possible to identify the effects of different historical forest uses on the current vegetation - biodiversity and rare species will play a special role.

Contact:
daniel.harnisch@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Evolution, Ecology and Systematics (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Dr. Markus Bernhardt-Römermann

The impact of light and nutrients on selected plant species in the Jenaer Forst
Because of climate change the conditions for our forests are shifting. The goal of my project is to investigate the reaction of herbal plants in the Jenaer Forst. I am interested in the impact of light and nutrient conditions on plant growth. I will research the following plants: Carex digitata, Hepatica nobilis, Viola reichenbachiana and Hordelymus europaeus. The individuals are growing in areas with various light conditions. Some plants were fertilized with phosphor, nitrogen or a mixture of both. Throughout the year, I am going to assess the plant growth as well as eco-physiological and functional traits. The leaf growth is going to be measured and I will examine the light conditions and the temperatures. The location is going to be characterized through soil samples and vegetation surveys. I hope that I can get a deeper understanding of our forests.

Contact:
justine.kaden@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Biochemistry (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Carsten Hoffmann

Regulation of Desensitization of G-Protein Coupled Receptors
G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) are transmembrane proteins that sense extracellular signals and in response trigger a specific response within the cell. The receptors mediate not only sensory perceptions, such as sight, taste, and smell, but also the cellular response to various hormones and neurotransmitters, making them targets of more than one-third of FDA-approved drugs. When GPCRs are activated by their specific stimulus, they interact with proteins inside the cell to trigger and regulate various signaling pathways.
As part of a project to study receptor desensitization, the stopping of signaling, I will be looking at one GPCR in particular. Here I will study the processes of regulation by kinases that label the receptor with phosphate residues. This labeling allows interaction with the adaptor molecule arrestin, which acts as a mediator, helping to remove the receptors from the cell surface and move them inside the cell to stop the response to the extracellular stimulus.

Contact:
lucaelise.kletzin@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Microbiology (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Miriam Agler-Rosenbaum

Temporal silencing of terminal oxidases and its effect on the electron transport of Pseudomonas putida
Pseudomonas putida is a model organism in bioelectrochemical systems (BES). In BES, bacteria either donate metabolic electrons to or utilize electrons for metabolic reactions from an electrode. This electron exchange leads to a change in physiological reactions and can potentially be used to enable new biotechnological production pathways. To use P. putida, a change in the respiratory metabolism is necessary, namely the electrons must not be donated to oxygen as the terminal electron acceptor, but to an anode instead. The hypothesis of my research is that transient inhibition of single terminal oxidase genes would create an imbalance between cellular electron production and electron discharge, resulting in a metabolic electron overload. This would lead to increased electron donation to the anode, resulting in a higher measurable electric current.

Contact:
carina.meiners@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Molecular Nutrition (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Michael Glei

Influence of zinc oxide nanoparticles on differentiated THP-1-macrophages and establishment of a Transwell co-culture-model mimicking the intestine
The interest in nanotoxicology is steadily increasing in almost every scientific fields. Especially Nanoparticles (NP), which are smaller than 100 nm in at least one dimension, are increasingly used due to their beneficial properties. These properties offer opportunities for both, science and industry, but can also lead to toxic effects. One of the commonly used NP in the food sector are zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NP). This is accompanied by an increase in oral exposure, whilst only little is known about the toxicological effects of ZnO-NP on the gut-associated immune system.
Therefore, the aim of the project is to investigate the impact of ZnO-NP on a model cell line of intestinal macrophages as part of the research of M. Sc. Anna Mittags doctorat “Assessment of the toxic potential of nanoparticles with nutritional relevance” as a contribution for toxicological risk assessment.

Contact:
nora.carolin.mindermann@uni-jena.de 

Course of Studies: Molecular Life Sciences (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Jan Schirawski

Protein pull-down and proteomic analysis of the SAD1 smut effector and its interacting proteins from Arabidopsis thaliana and Zea mays for improved cob productivity in maize.
Corn is the most highly produced crop in the world, used for food, feed, bioenergy and generation of valuable goods. To increase harvesting efficiency, it is desirable to have plants that produce only one very big cob rather than several small cobs per plant. The number of cobs produced by a maize plant is regulated in part by apical dominance, a mechanism still poorly understood. Studying the function of fungal effector protein SAD1 (Suppressor of Apical Dominance1) affecting apical dominance will lead to a better understanding of the process of apical dominance in plants, and can lead to the development of means to strategically influence apical dominance to generate plants carrying a lower or higher number of inflorescences. Generation of plants with higher number of inflorescences is interesting in the horticultural industry, while generating plants with a lower number of larger inflorescences is a trait highly desired for industrially-harvested crop plants. In addition, SAD1 indirectly interacts with abiotic stress response factors thereby leading to improved stress tolerance in plants. This could be exploited to develop stress tolerant varieties of crop plants, better equipped to survive the challenges of climate change.

Contact:
Kishore.ramesh.kumar@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Biochemistry (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Dr. Esther Klaile

The influence of CEACAM6 on the immune response of monocytes and macrophages to Candida albicans
The human pathogenic yeast Candida albicans is the most frequent cause of invasive fungal infection in immunocompromised patients, posing a life-threatening situation for them. Therefore, current research aims at improving therapeutic success in invasive candidiasis.
Previously, the interaction of C. albicans with four human CEACAM-receptors (carcinoembryonic antigen-related cellular adhesion molecule) could be shown, including CEACAM6 which is found on cells of the innate immune system.
Transgenic mice that express human CEACAM6 were more susceptible to Candida infection than control mice and showed an even more severe, overshooting immune response when additionally treated with a specific CEACAM6-antibody.
After one cell type of the innate immune system (neutrophil granulocytes) could be ruled out as cause of the septic shock, this project aims at analyzing the response of monocytes and macrophages to Candida albicans stimulation in conjunction with anti-CEACAM6-antibody treatment, mainly via mass spectrometry and flow cytometry.

Contact:
johannes.sonnberger@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Evolution, Ecology and Systematics (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Martin Fischer

The Batanga Expedition in Cameroon (1887): The Role of the First Colonial Zoologist - Bernhard Weissenborn
Natural history collections and archived reports are indispensable resources for studies on Earth’s biodiversity. Areas of study related to species decline and biodiversity loss depend heavily on information that archived reports and museum collections offer in order to develop strategies for better management of biological resources. Thus, to better conserve our biome we need to know our natural history. Germany has jealously preserved its natural history records and that of its former colonies in its natural history museums and archives. Cameroon is a former German protected territory and like most African countries is yet to fully understand its natural history. This research thrives to search through the rich zoological collections and archived records in the German natural history museums and archives to establish a baseline information for better understanding of the zoological history of Cameroon. This history began with the first “Kolonialzoologe” to Cameroon – Dr. Bernhard Weissenborn and his role in the ‘Batanga’ expedition.

Contact:
paul.taku.bisong@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Biochemistry (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Dr. Aishwarya Iyer-Bierhoff

Impact of the ligand-induced acetylation of the glucocorticoid receptor
The endocrine system generates a variety of hormones that enable the body to perform physiological processes and maintain homeostasis. Upon experiencing stressors such as food deprivation or psychological distress, the steroid hormone, cortisol, is released into the bloodstream. Cortisol enters the target cells, binds to, and activates the glucocorticoid receptor (GR).
Glucocorticoid derivatives are commonly used as anti-inflammatory drugs to treat conditions such as asthma. However, glucocorticoid therapy can cause adverse effects such as diabetes. In order to design potent drugs with less side effects, it is necessary to gain better understanding of glucocorticoid biology.
My project aims to unravel how other protein partners of the GR impact its function. To this end, I want to establish a proximity labeling method to identify GR interactors in liver cells subjected to metabolic stress.

Contact:
sandra.lea.katharina.weber@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Evolution, Ecology and Systematics (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Dr. Hans Pohl

The head anatomy of psocids (Insecta: Psocodea)
The Psocodea, bark- and true lice, are a species rich and ecologically diverse (including parasitism in Phthiraptera) order of insects with more than 11,000 described species. Due to a possible sister group relationship with the megadiverse Holometabola, they have gained enormous phylogenetic significance (Misof et al., 2014). Despite their key position in the evolutionary tree of insects, only few studies exist on the anatomy of this group, especially of the free-living forms (“Psocoptera”). The high significance of the head anatomy is already evident from the fact that all apomorphies concern the head (Beutel et al., 2014). I will study the head anatomy of Loensia sp., a member of the suborder Psocomorpha, using micro-computed tomography, scanning electron microscopy, histology and computer-based 3D-reconstruction. My goal is to create a standardized terminology and an overview of the individual head structures. The data will be finally compared in a phylogenetic context.

Contact:
michael.weingardt@uni-jena.de

Course of Studies: Microbiology (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Dr. Muriel C. F. van Teeseling

What determines bacterial shapes?
Many people think of bacteria as tiny simple organisms. But there is nothing simple about them, especially regarding their cell biology, as they can reach all kinds of exotic shapes.
Comprising an amazing variability of cell shapes that ranges from precisely geometrical to completely asymmetric cells, bacteria cover almost every conceivable form.
Intriguingly, some bacteria can also alter their shape relatively rapidly, which seems to contradict some commonly accepted bacterial hallmark traits, as their shape was originally believed to be rather stable.
Therefore, this project aims to contribute to the understanding of bacterial cell shape determinants by employing exceptionally shaped bacteria as model organisms. These bacteria enable us to address the mechanisms that are responsible for shaping bacteria, but also those that alter bacterial shapes as our model organisms respond with shape modifications to environmental stimuli.

Course of Studies: Microbiology (M.Sc.)

Supervision: Prof. Dr. Maria Mittag

Wide is the Ocean, small is the alga: Interaction effect between marine microorganisms and algae
Everybody knows algae, either as part of sushi or as growth in the aquarium. Algae vary widely, ranging from large seaweeds to small single celled algae. Chlamydomonas species are an unicellular green microalga. They have an oval shape and are equipped with two flagella which they use to swim through the ocean or in freshwater. Some Chlamydomonas species are established as model organisms^1,2. However, in nature organisms live never alone and free from the influence of others.
Whenever freshwater Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and bacterium Pseudomonas protegens meet, the algae lose their flagella due to molecules secreted by the bacterium³. Such interactions are not known from the saltwater species of these genus. My goal will be to see how marine species of the genus Chlamydomonas, and Pseudomonas interact and if the bacteria also can secrete toxic natural products. As marine Chlamydomonas have been recently found in algal blooms in Antarctica⁴, these data will be relevant for marine ecosystems.

References:
¹Sasso et al. (2018) eLife 7: e39233. 
²Carrasco F et al. (2021) J Phycol. 57: 54–69.
³Aiyar et al. (2017) Nat. Commun. 8: 1756
⁴Saggiomo et al. (2021) J. Phycol. 57: 541-550

Contact:
teresa.boehme@uni-jena.de