Projects
working group Geobiochemistry

Projects:

FATE - consortium, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ - Caglar Akay

Anoxic transformation of antibiotics

Fellowship University Santiago de Compostela - Clara Reino-Sanchez

Physiology of niche differentiation in anammox bacteria

CSC Fellowship - Jixing Wan

Effect of electron mediators on PCB dehalogenation in soil

DAAD/PTDF Fellowship - Emea Okarofor Ude

Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) Nigeria www.ptdf.gov.ng

Interplay between anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) and hydrocarbon transformation

CSC Fellowship - Ouyang Weiying

In cooperation with Dr. JianQiang Su (Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen) we study the microbial transformation of antibiotics in soil. The core method is protein-SIP in which we identify labeled proteins and correlate them with metagenome data.

DFG SPP1927 - Rohit Budhraja

Metalloproteomics of anaerobically respiring microorganisms...

BMBF ZIM - Dr. Ding Chang

Development of a second stage for Anammox

UFZ Kolleg STROMER - Vu Anh Nguyen

Influence of electric current on the metabolism of microorganisms...

Topic Chemicals in the Environment, Integrated project Controlling Chemicals' Fate - Shangwei Zhang

joint project with G. Schüürmann, R. Kühne, D. Wondrousch (UFZ, Dept of Ecological Chemistry), and M. Cooper

Modelling and biochemical evaluation of microbial transformation of halogenated aromatics in anaerobic ecosystems. This project is embedded in a larger Integrated Project at UFZ dealing with the Control of Chemicals' Fate. We particularily focus on the molecular determinants of reductive dehalogenation reactions and will develop models to describe such reactions on a molecular level (QSAR).

Completed Projects:

DFG Research Unit 1530 - Katja Seidel

Biochemistry of organohalide respiration

Here we investigate together with several other research groups the biochemistry of anaerobic dehalogenation reactions. OUr group focuses on the respiratory pathway in Dehalococcoides mccartyi strain CBDB1 with its many hydrogenase and reductive dehalogenase protein complexes encoded in the genome. We biochemically analyze reductive dehalogenase complexes by gel-bound, chromatographic and mass spectrometric methods and also study the membrane-bound electron transport.

WTT project - development of commercial SandTraps - Jan Birkigt

Optimization of SandTaps for the mild, anoxic and efficient harvest of microorganisms

Humboldt Fellowship - Ding Chang

Microbial transformation of trihalomethyl groups. Such groups occur e.g. in chloroform or 1,1,1-trichloroethene, but also in a wide range of pesticides. The reaction is different from reductive dehalogenation on double bonds and also different from dihaloelimination reactions. In the project we investigate the the microbiology and biochemistry behind this reaction.

CSC Fellowship - Chao Yang - finalized

In cooperation with the Chinese Science Council and Tongji University, Shanghai, we investigate the microbial transformation of brominated flame retardants. We use pure microbial strains and mixed cultures to detect microbial activities and to describe these activities biochemically. One goal of the project is the evaluation of conditions under which brominated flame retardants can be used as an electron acceptor for anaerobic dehalogenation by microorganims.

In this project we were following links between Dehalococcoides species and other bacteria of the subphylum Chloroflexi living in marine and terrestrial sediments all over the world.
The different aspects investigated in the project were cultivation, analysis of microbial populations, biochemistry, chemical analyses including isotope techniques and mass spectrometry, genome/metagenome sequencing and annotation. Most of the results have now been published and the contributors work on other institutes.

Vietnam VIED - MOED fellowship Duan Hoa Tran

In this project we investigated new reductive transformation reactions of chlorinated aromatic compounds by anaerobic microorganisms. To goal was to identify new pathways of hexachlorobenzene and dioxin dechlorination preventing the accumulation of toxic end products. Also bacteria were identified that catalyzed these improved pathways. The results have been published in two scientific publications and Duan Hoa Tran now continues his work as a scientist at the University in Hue, Vietnam.