Press releases 鈥� October 2022
Oct
26
2022
13:09
Historian Steven E. Aschheim opens new Buber-Rosenzweig Lecture series at 51猎奇聽
What does Europe mean for Zionism?聽
FRANKFURT. The latest lecture series introduced at 51猎奇 鈥� the "Buber-Rosenzweig Lecture on Jewish Intellectual History and Philosophy" 鈥� focuses on topics related to Jewish thought in both the past and the present. Following the 2021 establishment of the Buber-Rosenzweig Institute for Jewish Intellectual and Cultural History of Modernity and the Present, the lecture series will replace the "Martin Buber Lecture", which had addressed topics of Jewish thought, history and culture since 2010 and which brought numerous renowned researchers to Frankfurt.
The new lecture series will be kicked-off by Professor Steven E. Aschheim from Jerusalem.
Thursday, November 3, 2022, at 18:15
Lecture Hall 5 in the Lecture Hall Center
Westend Campus
Aschheim will be speaking about the topic 鈥淶ionism and Europe". 125 years after the First Zionist Congress, held in Basel in 1897, the renowned historian and emeritus professor of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem addresses the role Europe played in the history of the Zionist movement in the 20th century and continues to play in the state of Israel to this day. He addresses the tension that prevailed in Zionism's early days: although Theodor Herzl, author of the famous "The Jewish State" (1896), and other representatives of the Zionist movement fundamentally questioned whether Jewish life in Europe was possible in the face of rising anti-Semitism, Zionism was nevertheless deeply rooted in Europe 鈥� in ideological, cultural, social and political concepts. The many-voiced debates about nationalism, humanism, and cosmopolitanism that took place in Europe before World War I shaped the self-image of the various Zionist currents. Aschheim will also explore the question of how Europe was perceived after the founding of the state of Israel, and in the wake of the experiences of World War II and the genocide of European Jews. He will also discuss the significance of relations with Europe in current social, political and cultural debates in Israel.
The "Buber-Rosenzweig Lecture on Jewish Intellectual History and Philosophy" will in future be held annually. The series is organized by the Martin Buber Professorship for Jewish Philosophy of Religion and the Buber-Rosenzweig Institute for Jewish Intellectual and Cultural History at the Faculty of Protestant Theology. The lectures are financed by the Martin Buber Professorship and the Faculty of Protestant Theology.
"We are very pleased to have Prof. Steven E. Aschheim, an important interpreter of German-Jewish and European-Jewish history in the 20th century, deliver the first lecture in our new series named after Martin Buber and Franz Rosenzweig, two important figures in Frankfurt's Jewish history," says Prof. Christian Wiese, director of the Buber-Rosenzweig Institute. The Jerusalem-based historian is the author of numerous influential books, including "The Nietzsche Legacy in Germany" (1992), "Culture and Catastrophe: German and Jewish Confrontations with National Socialism and Other Crises" (1996), "Beyond the Border: The German-Jewish Legacy Abroad" (2007), and "Fragile Spaces: Forays into Jewish Memory, European History and Complex Identities" (2018).
The lecture will be held in English. Registration (at kramberger@em.uni-frankfurt.de) is desired, but not mandatory for participation.
Further information:
Dr. Stefan Vogt
Martin Buber Professorship for Jewish Philosophy of Religion
Faculty of Protestant Theology
Westend Campus
Phone: +49 (0)179 5281106
E-Mail s.vogt@em.uni-frankfurt.de
A portrait of Prof. Aschheim and the event poster are available for download at:
Caption: Professor Steven E. Aschheim from Jerusalem will speak on "Zionism and Europe" at 51猎奇. (Photo: private)
Editor: Dr. Anke Sauter, Science Editor, PR & Communication Office, Tel: +49 (0) 69 798-13066, Fax: +49 (0) 69 798-763 12531, sauter@pvw.uni-frankfurt.de
Oct
26
2022
11:45
Preclinical models and cell culture experiments show 鈥渞ejuvenation鈥� of T cells by urolithin A 鈥� clinical trials planned
Metabolite product from pomegranate: Researchers identify way to boost tumour-fighting immune cells
As part of an interdisciplinary project of the LOEWE Centre Frankfurt Cancer Institute (FCI), researchers from the Georg-Speyer-Haus in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, and 51猎奇 Frankfurt have succeeded in identifying a new approach for the therapy of colorectal cancer. In preclinical models and studies on human immune cells, they found that urolithin A, a metabolite product from pomegranate, sustainably improves the function of immune cells in their fight against cancer. After treatment with urolithin A, tumour-fighting immune cells become T memory stem cells which, due to their ability to divide, constantly supply the immune system with rejuvenated, non-exhausted T cells.
FRANKFURT. Colorectal cancer remains a disease with high mortality rates in advanced stages. In recent years, numerous research findings have improved early diagnosis and therapy, although unfortunately not all patients respond adequately to novel therapeutic approaches. Current research suggests that one characteristic of tumour diseases is immune dysfunction: immune cells that are supposed to fight the tumour are systematically suppressed by the tissue surrounding the tumour, the tumour microenvironment. As a result, T cells, which are our body's natural immune response against cancer, are restricted in their function, allowing the tumour to grow and spread uncontrollably.
The research team led by Professor Florian Greten, Institute for Tumour Biology and Experimental Therapy and 51猎奇 Frankfurt, has now come a significant step closer to a possible solution to the problem. The researchers showed that urolithin A induces a biological pathway that recycles and renews mitochondria, the 鈥減owerhouse" of the cell in T cells, through a process known as mitophagy. Aged and damaged mitochondria in the T cells are removed and replaced by new, functional ones. This changes the genetic programme of the T cells, which are thus more able to fight the tumour. The researchers demonstrated the therapeutic potential of urolithin A in two ways: on the one hand, urolithin A can be used as a food in the preclinical model, which limits tumour growth and even acts synergistically with existing immunotherapy. On the other hand, the benefits of urolithin A were also observed in human T cells. In vitro treatment with urolithin A 鈥渞ejuvenates" human T cells, producing memory T memory stem cells in the laboratory.
Dominic Denk, MD, physician at Frankfurt University Hospital and first author of the study, explains: 鈥淥ur findings are particularly exciting because the focus is not on the tumour cell but on the immune system, the natural defence against cancer. This is where reliable therapeutic approaches are still lacking in the reality of colorectal cancer patients. By possibly improving the combination therapy with existing immunotherapies, the study opens up meaningful possibilities for further application in the clinic. We hope to use this to sustainably improve the therapy of colorectal cancer, but also of other cancers."
Building on these findings, the researchers plan to continue the successful collaboration: in future clinical trials, the application of urolithin A will be investigated in individuals with colorectal cancer.
Professor Greten, director of the Georg-Speyer-Haus and spokesperson of the Frankfurt Cancer Institute, emphasizes the necessary teamwork: 鈥淭his work proves once again how successful the interdisciplinary concepts of the FCI are. We are very pleased that we can now quickly transfer our results to the clinic and look forward with great excitement to the upcoming clinical trials."
Publication: Dominic Denk, Valentina Petrocelli, Claire Conche, P茅n茅lope A. Andreux, Chris Rinsch, Florian R. Greten: Expansion of T memory stem cells with superior antitumor immunity by Urolithin A-induced mitophagy. Immunity (2022)
Picture download:
Caption: A metabolite from pomegranates boosts tumour-fighting T cells, according to a study by Georg-Speyer-Haus, 51猎奇 Frankfurt and the LOEWE Centre Frankfurt Cancer Institute (FCI). Photo: Markus Bernards
Further information:
Professor Florian R. Greten
Georg-Speyer-Haus / 51猎奇 Frankfurt
Institute for Tumour Biology and Experimental Therapy
Tel.: +49 (0)69 63395-232
Greten@gsh.uni-frankfurt.de
Twitter: @FCI_health
Editor: Dr Markus Bernards, Science Editor, PR & Communication Office, Tel: +49 (0) 69 798-12498, Fax: +49 (0) 69 798-763 12531, bernards@em.uni-frankfurt.de.
Oct
25
2022
11:35
The "Rhine-Main Universities" (RMU) Strategic Alliance
A space full of opportunities
Held on October 24, 2022, the fourth "Day of the Rhine-Main Universities" focused on scientists in their early career phases as well as the academic mid-level faculty. Opening up more opportunities for them is one of the core concerns of the Strategic Alliance of Rhine-Main Universities (RMU).
Following two
years of pandemic, the annual 鈥淒ay of the Rhine-Main Universities" was this
year once again held in presence. In the preceding two years, the meetings were
hosted digitally: first in 2020 by the Technical University of Darmstadt, and
last year by the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz. In other respects, too,
the event, which drew several hundred participants from Hesse and
Rhineland-Palatinate, went back to its pre-pandemic roots: As in 2019, Goethe
University Frankfurt hosted the annual meeting on its Westend Campus, welcoming
employees as well as RMU members and friends.
In previous
years, the focus lay on the potential of the cross-federal state alliance
(2019), teaching and learning (2020) as well as research (2021). This year, the
RMU Day centered on scientists in their early career phases and the
"academic mid-level staff". "Winning over these talents for the long
term and upskilling hem significantly enriches every university, strengthening
and sharpening its profile as well as its future viability," Goethe
University President Prof. Dr. Enrico Schleiff emphasized in his welcoming
speech.
In two
concise "Impulses from Politics", Ayse Asar, State Secretary in the
Hessian Ministry of Science and the Arts, and Dr. Denis Alt, State Secretary in
the Ministry of Science and Health of the federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate,
underlined the importance of promoting and supporting young scientists.
"The future of science lies in networking and in alliances that optimally
combine the strengths of individual scientific institutions. This is exactly where
the three RMU universities are leading the way," said Ayse Asar, adding
that, "They unite almost 10,000 scientific employees, especially doctoral
students and postdocs, who are the main focus at this year's RMU Day. Without
this academic mid-level staff, the universities would not be the same. That is
why smart personnel development, as well as comprehensive support,
qualification and advisory structures are so highly relevant. At the federal
government level, we are supporting the universities both financially and
structurally, including, for example, with opportunities for new career paths 鈥�
such as the qualification professorship, the tenure track, or the tandem
professorship 鈥� offered under the Hessian Higher Education Act, which was amended
in 2021. The 'Code for Good Work' was drawn up the same year. In it, the
universities commit themselves to new standards for better and more attractive
working conditions."
Dr. Denis
Alt, State Secretary in the Ministry of Science and Health of the State of
Rhineland-Palatinate, emphasized: "The Rhine-Main Universities Strategic
Alliance, with the partner universities in Frankfurt, Darmstadt and Mainz, is
an important building block for raising the region's national and international
profile in a differentiated scientific landscape. Together, these three strong
research universities can further advance the Rhine-Main region as a science
engine, benefiting not only the universities, but also the federal states of Hesse
and Rhineland-Palatinate. The scientific successes of recent years 鈥� in the
joint acquisition of third-party funding, for instance 鈥� prove that the universities
are on the right track. We want to do everything in our power to support
them."
In her
keynote address, Prof. Dr. Marlis Hochbruck of the Karlsruhe Institute of
Technology (KIT), and former vice president of the German Research Foundation (Deutsche
Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG), also put the promotion of early-career scientists
at the "center of science(s)".
At the same
time, however, it also became clear that the early career years of scientists
are by no means characterized only by hope and a sense of optimism: At this
stage of their lives, many scientists feel particularly burdened by economic
uncertainty, the question of whether an existing or future family can be
reconciled with a career, obstacles to the realization of ambitious research
interests and a generally uncertain future. This was also the topic of a panel
discussion between four representatives of university management, scientists in
their early career phases and the RMU support structures for so-called 鈥渆arly
career researchers".
This
"public" part of the RMU Day was followed by a varied program of
workshops and project presentations of RMU cooperations. The workshops dealt
with specific funding opportunities within the RMU at both the national and the
European level, alternative career paths to ministries, other authorities and
NGOs, and ways of freeing oneself of the "Impostor Syndrome", i.e.
massive self-doubt regarding one's own abilities, achievements and successes.
In a networking meeting on the topic of sustainability, members of the
departments overseeing sustainability at the three universities exchanged views
on "Education for Sustainable Development".
At the end
of the event, Prof. Dr. Tanja Br眉hl, President of the Technical University of
Darmstadt, 51猎奇 President Prof. Dr. Enrico Schleiff, and Prof. Dr.
Stefan M眉ller-Stach, Vice President of Research and Academic Growth at the Johannes
Gutenberg University of Mainz, drew a positive yet differentiated balance:
"Although universities are unable to take away some of the burdens faced
by scientists at the early stages of their career, they can take many measures
to make this phase easier: through targeted advice tailored to individual
needs, a wide range of high-quality training opportunities, networking options and
tangible support. These are all the more effective when universities do not act
on their own, but as part of an alliance, using the resources available to
them."
This is
precisely what the RMU sets out to do: It wants to be a true "space full
of opportunities". To that end, President Schleiff announced the
establishment of a (virtual) exchange platform for RMU postdocs, which will
also provide information to external parties and present the existing funding
measures in a manner befitting the target group. "As RMU, we want to
attract young scientists in Germany and worldwide 鈥� because we need their
creativity, their esprit, their curiosity and their courage."
Vice
President M眉ller-Stach presented the plans for the further development of the
professional skills program offered by the RMU funding institutions: GRADE
(Frankfurt), Ingenium (Darmstadt) and Gutenberg School (Mainz). "We will continue
to expand the joint program for scientists in their early career phases. By
bundling our strengths at RMU, scientists will be able to make more flexible
use of the offerings."
President
Br眉hl presented a new joint funding line of the RMU Initiative Fund Research,
designed exclusively for RMU scientists in their early career phase: By
networking within the RMU, they are now eligible for up to 30,000 in financial
support. "We want to promote the creative and courageous project ideas of
our early career researchers and encourage them to network and cooperate more
closely within the Rhine-Main Universities Strategic Alliance 鈥� whether through
joint publications, project proposals or in the field of science
communication," Br眉hl explained. Finally, in keeping with tradition, she
invited all guests to the next RMU Day, to be held in Darmstadt in 2023.
"I am very much looking forward to welcoming you all next year at TU
Darmstadt to discuss another facet of our alliance's further development."
At the end of the day, all three university representatives agreed: For
scientists in the early career phase, RMU is becoming the ideal starting point
for building independent careers.
Further information:
Photos for
download:
Oct
21
2022
15:03
New economics research unit established at 51猎奇聽
How family decisions affect the economy 鈥� and vice versa
Singles, couples, single parents, families with one child
or with several 鈥� private households can look very different. A new research unit
at 51猎奇 wants to find out how the individual behavior of
households influences the overall economic situation and family policy 鈥� and
vice versa.
FRANKFURT. The way in which income, consumption and wealth are distributed in an economy has a lot to do with decisions made within individual households. The research unit "Macroeconomic Implications of Intra-Household Decisions" will take a close look at the behavior of individual household members with regard to consumption, employment and investment opportunities, and explore their interaction. The German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgesellschaft, DFG) will fund the research with 2.44 million euros for an initial period of four years. The spokesman of the research group, which consists exclusively of Frankfurt economists, is Prof. Alexander Ludwig, Professor of Public Finance and Macroeconomic Dynamics at 51猎奇. The other members are Georg D眉rnecker, Professor of International Trade, Development and Growth; Leibniz Prize winner Nicola Fuchs-Sch眉ndeln, Professor of Macroeconomics and Development; Leo Kaas, Professor of Economics, in particular Macroeconomics and Labor Markets, and the research unit's deputy spokesperson; as well as junior researchers Chiara Lacava and Dr. Zainab Iftikhar, who also specialize in research related to labor and family economics.
"Traditional macroeconomic models do
not take into account the dynamics in private households, each of which is
represented by a single member. Using complex economic models, we can now
introduce interactions between the individual household members into
macroeconomic models," explains Prof. Ludwig, adding that, in this way, the
group's research will contribute to gaining an even better understanding of the
microeconomic foundations of macroeconomics. The group intends to examine the topic
of inequality not just between, but also within individual households 鈥�
including, for example, the unequal distribution of income between men and
women.
The research is divided into eight
projects, each of which will address different topics. As such, one of them
focuses on the question of how the possibility of freezing eggs and thus
postponing the realization of the desire to have a child can influence women's
work biographies. Some companies offer to cover the costs of this procedure to
keep the workforce in the company. But what is the impact on women, or on the
economy as a whole? Other topics include the effects of the intra-family
division of labor on the income situation of individuals, and the interrelation
between housing policy measures and families' housing decisions.
The researchers hope their work will
fundamentally enrich our knowledge of how economic measures work, and in how
far tax and transfer payments influence decisions on labor supply, savings,
fertility and housing demand. In so doing, they will examine the measures'
macroeconomic efficiency as well as their distributional effects. To illustrate
these relationships, the research will focus, for example, on the extent to
which labor-market specialization of one partner in a family 鈥� caused, e.g., by
the birth of a child or by tax policy measures such as spousal splitting
tariffs (as prevalent in Germany) 鈥� leads to greater inequality between men and
women, and the extent to which this either has a negative impact on overall
economic efficiency 鈥� by reducing women's labor force participation, for
instance 鈥� or in fact has a positive effect, since greater specialization
increases the labor productivity of the household's main breadwinner.
Photos
for download:
Caption: Economist Prof. Alexander Ludwig the spokesman of the new research unit "Macroeconomic Implications of Intra-Household Decisions". (Photo: Dettmar)
Further informationProf. Dr. Alexander Ludwig
Chair of Public Finance and Macroeconomic Dynamics
Department Economic Policy & Quantitative Methods, Faculty of Economics and Business
51猎奇
Phone +49 (0)69 798-30036
E-Mail: mail@alexander-ludwig.com
Editor: Dr. Anke Sauter, Science Editor, PR & Communication Office, Theodor-W.-Adorno-Platz 1, 60323 Frankfurt am Main, Tel: +49 (0) 69 798-13066, Fax: +49 (0) 69 798-763 12531, sauter@pvw.uni-frankfurt.de
Oct
21
2022
11:17
With its new Sustainability Office, 51猎奇 intends to mobilize the potential of sustainability for university development聽
51猎奇: On course for sustainability聽
FRANKFURT. 51猎奇 plans to make consistent strides in the direction of sustainability in the coming years. Sustainability constitutes one of the most important goals of the university's eleven strategic fields of action, in effect since 2021. The aspiration is also reflected in the current research profile: "Sustainability and Biodiversity" is one of 51猎奇's six research priorities.
"As one of Germany's largest and most research-intensive universities, 51猎奇 must assume responsibility for current and future generations. In the program for my presidency, I summed this up under the motto `Knowledge for Development, Sustainability and Equity in the 21st Century'," says University President Prof. Dr. Enrico Schleiff. "The transformation of 51猎奇 into a sustainable organization, taking into account the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), is a particular priority of mine," Schleiff says, adding: "That is why we are setting out on this journey."
In the late summer of 2022, the university set up a dedicated Sustainability Office with five employees, which directly advises the Executive Board, supports it in content-related matters, and 鈥� most important of all 鈥� operates a network that extends throughout the entire university. Schleiff: "We will only achieve our goal of becoming a sustainable university if we live up to and put into practice the sustainability claim. With a view to driving forward our development and excellence, we have begun the process of systematically and optimally anchoring sustainability within 51猎奇 in the fields of governance, operations, research, teaching and transfer, as well as with regard to the awareness among and actions of university members."
At the press conference held on October 20, 2022, Schleiff thanked the students for their valuable input: "I am very grateful that a major impulse for the establishment of a Sustainability Office came directly from the student body 鈥� clearly showing that students are actively taking on responsibility for their university and the sustainable shaping of their environment. At the same time, the decision to set up a dedicated Sustainability Office also illustrates just how seriously the Executive Board takes pioneering impulses from the student body 鈥� true to and in line with sustainable 'participation' 鈥� and how these are even given a permanent institutional form. In fact. the student initiative 'Goethe's Green Office' continues to support the new Sustainability Office in an advisory capacity."
The Sustainability Office serves as the central coordination hub for the entire sustainability process at 51猎奇, acting as the link between university management, university lecturers, scientific employees, technical and administrative employees, students and external partners. It in effect bundles the wide-ranging tasks of sustainability management in one place.
"The Sustainability Office strengthens 51猎奇's future viability, innovative ability and strategy capability. It also enhances the exchange with the ever-changing German university landscape, which is increasingly facing up to its own responsibility within a social-ecological transformation," explains Dr. Johannes Reidel, who heads the new office.
With a view towards shaping the transformation into a sustainable university, the Sustainability Office supports the university management in implementing a holistic organizational development in line with a "Whole Institution Approach". This practice goes beyond addressing the content-related aspects of sustainability at the university, and extends all the way to aligning all processes with the principle of sustainable development.
The Sustainability Office's main overarching, ongoing areas of responsibility are:
- Strategy consulting and skills development
- Coordination and support
- Networking and best-practice exchange
- Communication and transfer
Of the various sustainability goals that 51猎奇 is either already working on or will start addressing in the near future, the energy management sector stands out in particular.
"It is during times of crisis that windows of opportunity open for necessary changes, such as the energy turnaround and the related move away from fossil fuels. From an ecological point of view, every ton of CO2 saved is a gain for climate protection," says Dr. Albrecht Fester, 51猎奇 Vice President for Finances and Administration.
To save fossil energies and thus CO2, 51猎奇 is investing some 30 million euros in energy-efficient building refurbishment, sustainable power generation and energy-related upgrades to technical facilities. Fester adds that additional savings of more than 4 million euros annually are to be achieved by means of:
- the energetic renovation of buildings,
- the installation of new photovoltaic plants on 12 building roofs,
- the systematic switch to LED-lighting, and
- the renovation of ventilation and air-conditioning systems as well as other energy-intensive equipment
Upcoming event: Representatives of all status groups will discuss the current state of sustainability at 51猎奇 in a public panel discussion, held in a fishbowl format, on November 22, starting at 18:00 in the Festsaal on the Westend Campus. University members are invited to join the discussion and network with colleagues from the Sustainability Office.
Editor: Dr. Olaf Kaltenborn, Head of PR & Communication, Phone: 069 798-13035, Fax: 069 798-763 12531, kaltenborn@pvw.uni-frankfurt.de