Research Activities at the Faculty
Institute of Biochemistry
The Institute of Biochemistry still has two vacant
positions; accordingly only 60% of the professorships are filled.
As this is now the second year, this is very hard for everybody.
Fortunately Dr. Michael Cross took over the responsibilities of
the professorship of molecular biology/biochemistry. The re-opening
was started immediately after the leave of U. Hahn and finally in
December the list was accepted by the senators of the University.
Furthermore the re-opening of the professorship for metabolism biochemistry/enzymology
was accepted by the faculty. Hopefully, the institute of biochemistry
will be complete soon. Movements were the second highly important
novelties this year. The group of Robitzki moved to the recently
opened Biotechnological-Biomedical Centre in June. The groups of
Beck-Sickinger, Asperger, Schön and Greiner-Stöffele moved
in March in the reconstructed Brüderstraße 34. In August
the group of Hofmann went to their intermediate rooms in Liebigstraße
18 until Talstraße 33 will be reconstructed.
The group of Beck-Sickinger was very successful
in the development of novel selective ligands, both for the NPY
Y1 and the orexin receptors. In 2003 the Y5 selective ligands that
have been developed in the year before have become the gold standard
for Y5 receptor mediated activities and led to a number of international
cooperations. Furthermore the group identified homodimerisation
of Y-receptors by fluorescence resonance energy transfer. This has
become a very important topic in the field of G-protein coupled
receptors. The second focus of the group deals with protein modification.
The group could publish a highly recognized paper (VIP paper, Angew.
Chemie) on expressed enzymatic ligation that turned out to be a
more general method for protein modification. Furthermore, the group
managed to modify prohormones and chemokines like interleukin 8.
Within the EU-project of peptide carriers, calcitonin based peptide
carriers could be used to translocate chemotherapeutics for the
first time. This is a further demonstration on the importance of
this novel class of carrier peptides.
The group of Robitzki has established successfully
the research and developmental focal points in the area of molecular
tissue engineering as well as in the field of drug discovery using
cell and tissue based multi-electrode arrays at the Biotechnological-Biomedical
Centre. The main topic of the projects was for the first time the
discovery and characterisation of the spatial and temporal gene
expression pattern of the GDNF family receptor a4 in the embryonic
retina. These results were important and represented the precondition
for the establishment of a novel ligand-receptor test system in
3D in vitro retina models combinated with a bioelectronic reading
out system. A further trend-setting clinical diagnostic module for
preeclampsia and transplant rejection could be developed by a novel
cardiomyocyte-based biosensor for a sensitive, ultra fast monitoring
of angiotensin receptor 1 (AT1)-autoimmune-antibodies in human sera.
The research group Hofmann continued the investigations
on the formation of secondary structures in foldamers of unnatural
amino acids. The investigation of the helix formation in ?-peptides
was of particular interest. Besides, a novel type of secondary structure
formation in peptides was described. The formation of these so-called
"mixed" helices should be possible in all homologous peptides.
In collaboration with the research group Berger, Faculty of Chemistry,
molecular dynamics simulations on the hydration of biomolecules
were performed, which provided reasonable correlations between the
estimated water densities around specific groups of the molecules
and the data from NOE difference spectroscopy.
The therapeutic value of adult stem cells is currently limited by
poor amplification and inefficient differentiation in vitro. By
NMR metabolic profiling the group of Dr. Cross has found evidence
of unusual metabolic features that may serve to restrict stem cell
amplification to nutrient-poor conditions. In parallel, we have
found that a stem cell-specific gene product which is induced by
glucose can inhibit both proliferation and differentiation.
The projects of the group of PD Schön
are aimed at the understanding of structure and function of the
complex RNA enzyme RNase P from different organisms, and thus of
the natural evolution of catalytic principles. The correlation of
diverse functions to the recombinant protein and RNA components
is achieved by mutational analysis, functional assays and interaction
studies. We were able to identify and structurally characterize
a novel class of substrate binding pocket in cyanobacterial-type
RNase P RNAs. Furthermore, permutation analysis led to the first
detection of catalytic activity in an organellar RNA subunit. A
specific screening procedure was developed for the detection of
organellar RNase P proteins. A bioinformatics approach led to the
identification of several new RNase P proteins from A. thaliana;
their functional verification by interaction studies is currently
in progress.
P450non from Acinetobacter sp. EB104,
investigated by the group of PD Asperger as a model of alkane
monooxygenases could be shown to function also in vivo as
initial enzyme of alkane assimilation by introducing its gene into
alkane negative mutants of Pseudomonas strains (Cowork with
the Institute of Biotechnology, ETH Zürich. Sequence analysis
of the plasmid pAC450 from A. species EB104 revealed that
the P450 system is transposon-encoded and should have been acquired
by horizontal gene transfer. Elaboration of protocols for the production
of P450non, a ferredoxin-P450-fusion protein and corresponding
his-tagged forms of them by means of heterologous expression will
allow future investigations on structure activity relationships
and on the cell-free establishment of alkane monooxygenases as biocatalyst.
A new procedure for the screening of large libraries
of enzyme variants could be established in the protein engineering
research group of Dr. Greiner-Stöffele. A national patent
application was filled. Using this method the specificity of the
RNA cleaving enzyme Ribonuclease T1 could be changes by a factor
of 106. To increase the thermostability
of exonuclease III of E. coli various chimerical proteins
from exonuclease III and homologous proteins from A. fulgidus and
M. thermautotrophicus were generated. X-ray structure analysis
of these proteins was started.
Institute of Botany
In the Department of General and Applied Botany
(Prof. Dr. W. Reisser) main research activities centered on the
taxonomy and ecophysiology of aeroterrestrial algae with main focus
on applied aspects such as the application of aeroterrestrial algae
to biomonitoring tasks. Projects are:
- Screening of aeroterrestrial algae for the excretion of substances
with antiviral, antibacterial and/or antifungal activities,
- Study of the role of aeroterrestrial green and bluegreen algae
in the formation of soil crusts in arid aereas of Southern Africa
(BIOLOG: BIOTA-South),
- Collection of data on green and bluegreen aeroterrestrial algae
to build up a databank on aeroterrestrial algae (BIOLOG: AlgaTerra).
A project in cooperation with the Umweltforschungszentrum
Leipzig-Halle (UFZ) was continued and finished which studies uptake,
metabolisation and excretion of arsenic compounds by plants growing
on contaminated tailings.
The Department of Plant Physiology (Prof. Dr.
Chr. Wilhelm) The department in plant physiology (Prof. Wilhelm)
runs a DFG-project whose aim is the development of single cell techniques
in plant biology. This opens the perspective to detect the physiological
state of single cells not only in suspension but also in tissues.
The studies of the molecular interaction between photosynthetic
pigments with proteins and lipids to regulate the photosynthetic
efficiency in plants have been continued. The genes of the involved
enzymes from plants of different taxonomic positions will be cloned
and sequenced.
A second DFG project on the efficiency of primary
production under the conditions of dynamic light regimes has been
started. A project entitled "in-situ hybridisation as a new
tool in water quality control" has been started in the frame
of the EU Marie-Curie Host Mobility Programme. The aim of this project
is to identify cells and to characterise specific gene expression
in single cells.
The BMBF-network "thermoluminescence as a new
tool for plant screening" has been continued a new instrument
has been designed. In a cooperation project with the Umweltforschungszentrum
Leipzig/Halle Section Water ecology new methods of phytoplankton
analysis and primary production assessment were test to increase
the potential of water quality control technologies. In this context
a water quality programme is running for lake Auensee in Leipzig
in cooperation with the local administration.
A joint project with the Bundesanstalt für Gewässerkunde
was started to develop a new photosynthesis module for the water
quality assessment modelling software released by the ATV/DVWK.
In cooperation with the Alfred Wegener Institute (Bremerhaven) FT-IR
microscopy is tested to be used to measure carbon/silica ratios
in diatoms. PhD research with shared supervision has been started
with the UFZ departments of water ecology and chemical toxicology.
In the Department of Systematic Botany and Botanical
Garden (Prof. Dr. W. Morawetz) the research was mainly focused
on tropical ecology in South America and Australia and on systematics
of tropical woody plants and primitive angiosperms (especially genus
Guatteria, Annonaceae). The so-called "Surumoni project"
(canopy crane site in a lowland rainforest of southern Venezuela)
was continued and the analysis of the data is still going on. The
basic question of the project is: How does the rainforest function?
The studies comprise among others phenology, reproductive ecology
and animal-plant interactions. The field studies were accompanied
by computer simulation models and phytogeographic analyses as theoretical
background.
The regional research in the northwest of Saxony concentrated
on biodiversity, ecology, phytosociological studies and distribution
of seed plants and fungi. In this respect the greatest significance
has the ecological research on woody plants and fungi in the canopy
of the flood-plain forest in Leipzig ("LAK - Leipzig Canopy
Crane Project").
The associated Botanical Garden was recently reconstructed
and the plant collections have been enlarged systematically. Particular
noteworthy and of importance for the research are the collections
of tropical woody plants, ant plants, palms (Arecaceae) and Berberidaceae.
In the Department of Terrestrial Ecology (Prof.
Dr. F. Buscot) research is focused on the analysis of mycorrhizal
fungi as well as other soil fungi with molecular biological and
physiological methods. Six research projects were continued.
In two projects supported by the DFG and one BMBF
project in the frame of the BIOLOG program "Influence of biodiversity
on ecosystem functions" (DIVA), studies to determine the species
composition and diversity of mycorrhizal communities with molecular
methods were continued.
In a DFG project investigating the influence of fungal
laccase production on formation and stability of organic matter
in agricultural and forest soils, a method to detect laccase mRNA
directly from soil was optimized.
In cooperation with the University of Jena, a DFG
project to elucidate the molecular basis of interactions between
the ectomycorrhizal fungus Piloderma croceum and oak was continued.
In a further cooperation with the Museum for Natural
Sciences Görlitz, a DFG project analysing the species diversity
within the fungal genera Hebeloma and Alnicola was successfully
finished.
The Department of Didactics of Biology (Prof.
Dr. K.-H. Gehlhaar) developed a special questionnaire, devised to
get information about the choice of course and development of interest
in biology for 11th and 12th grade students, basing its work on
the results of a three-year study of the universities of Gießen
and Leipzig about the ontogenesis of biology interest among 9th-10th
grade students (DFG-project). In an initial investigation at six
high schools (N = 192) the instrument for measurement for 11th and
12th grades was tested for item choice and validity with the help
of various statistical methods and first tendencies relating to
content, sex and age were determined.
Institute of Pharmacy
Pharmaceutical Chemistry at the Institute of
Pharmacy focuses on syntheses in connection with structure-activity
relationships (Eger, Briel) as well as on the quality control of
pharmaceutical substances.
Two projects by Prof. Eger were conducted within the
centre of excellence Chemical Signal and Biological Answer, which
started in 1996 and ended in 2001, but were continued in the following
years. They included the search for non-toxic and easily available
inhibitors of protein phosphatases, as well as adenosine receptor
antago-nists. The latter project included the preparative transormation
of in vitro active an-tagonists into those with improved bioavailability.
We have now succeeded in synthe-sising A1 and A3 antagonists of
adenosinreceptors with high affinity.
Another project conducted as part of the research
training group Mechanisms and Applications of Non-conventional Oxidation
Reactions addresses reactions of the oxidative metabolism, the synthesis
of plant components (e. g. hypericine, fagopyrine and emodine) using
oxidative reactions, as well as the isolation and structural eluci-daton
of such natural products. Drug metabolites are being prepared to
be used as reference compounds for analytical purposes and haptenes.
The project with talidomide and metabolites was continued,
focusing on derivatives with stable heterocycles instead of the
glutarimide ring (Eger).
Analytical investigations target the quality assurance
of drugs, such as identifying impurities which result from preparative
procedures. Several drugs were investigated and impurities separated,
characterised spectroscopically, as well as synthesised by independent
routes (by Professor Eger´s group).
Work was additionally funded by the pharmaceutical
industry, as well as the German Institute of Drugs an Medical Products.
In the area of Pharmaceutical Technology (Prof.
Süß´s research group), the opti-mization of solid
oral dosage forms with controlled or modified drug release as well
as the development and structural investigation of the required
excipients and inter-mediate products (particularly by applying
the sol-gel technique) are of special inter-est.
Research work concerning the curing of coated dosage forms as well
as the devel-opment of multiparticulate systems for oral use was
continued. Additional research focused on the stability, incompatibilities
and quality management of drug dosage forms.
Research projects conducted by Prof. Leopold´s
research group focus on technologi-cal as well as biopharmaceutical
issues. One major goal is the quantification and op-timisation of
percutaneous drug penetration (collaboration with Prof. Howard Mai-bach,
UCSF, San Francisco). Different ointment bases and penetration enhancers
are investigated with regard to their effect on the penetration
rate of selected model drugs. Pentetration measurements are done
noninvasively by determination of the pharmacodynamic response in
vivo and selection of suitable response parameters (funding by DAAD).
The optimization of transdermal patches involves the develop-ment
and characterization of novel silicon-based adhesives as drug matrix
(collabora-tion with Jenapharm, Jena).
Moreover, physiochemical interactions between coating
polymers and core compo-nents are investigated for development of
modified release dosage forms. Aim is a delayed or pulsatile drug
delivery as required for colon-specific drug delivery. Under certain
conditions even sustained drug release may be observed, which can
be use-ful for the design of dosage forms for once daily administration
(collaboration with Apogepha, Dresden).
A BMBF project deals with the investigation of alternative
sterilization processes based on a pressure change technolgy.
Further projects involve the development of dosage
forms for loess (healing earth), which acts as an adsorptive material
for internal as well as external use. Dosage forms are tablets as
well as dry and wet face-masks (collaboration with Heilerdege-sellschaft
Luvos Just, Friedrichsdorf).
The Pharmacology for Natural Sciences (Prof.
Karen Nieber´s research group) specialises in electrophysiological
investigations (intracellular recordings, patch-clamp-setup, Ca2+-imaging)
on cortical pyramidal cells. Research topics include new signalling
pathways of the adenosine-A3-receptor and the mode of action of
ampaki-nes ion cortical neurons. Nieber´s group is further
intrested in the role of adenosine A3-receptor during hypoxia. These
studies (in cooperation with K. Eger´s group) are supported
by the DFG; project "Presynaptic adenosine A3-receptors
on cortical neu-rons: Neuroprotective targets during hypoxia".
A second area of investigation deals with the effect
of adenosine receptor ligands on the inflammatory processes on the
rat ileum. It is succeeded to establish on in vitro model to test
adenosine A2A-recepto-mediated antiinflammatory effects (collaboration
with Prof. C. Müller, University of Bonn). In cooperation with
the Department of Im-munbiology (Prof. S. Hauschildt), signalling
pathways are being studied on human monocytes / macrophages. These
studies include the development of a cell culture test system as
an alternative to animal experiments.
One major goal of further projects in cooperation
with the IZKF Neuroimmunological Cell Biology unit (PD Dr. G. Müch),
is the identification of binding proteins and recep-tors for advanced
glycation endproducts (AGEs). Additionally, there role was studied
in a hyperclycemia model.
Numerous cooperation agreements exist with other national
and international re-search laboratories.
Institute of Zoology
The research at the Zoological Institute covers a
wide range of topics including cell biology, immunobiology, neurobiology,
systematics, and ecology.
The Department of Immunbiology (S. Hauschildt)
aim at the production of monoclonal antibodies against a variety
of antigens (vitellin-antibodies in chicken; moenomycin in mice).
Additionally the research deals with basic questions in cell biology,
e.g. mechanisms of apoptosis, activation of human macrophages, and
signal transduction in human monocytes.
The Department of Molecular Evolution and Animal
Systematics (M. Schlegel) uses advanced methods from molecular
biology to investigate the genealogical relation between groups
of animals (e.g. Myxozoa, Hemichrodata, Isopoda). Another line of
research is the geneflux analysis in natural populations of molluscs
and coleoptera. Various methods are used depending on the scope
of the projects, i.e. cloning and sequencing of different genomic
regions with the LICOR equipment, microsatellite and RAPD fingerprinting
and allozyme electrophoreses.
The research in the Department of General Zoology
and Neurobiology (R. Rübsamen) and in the Department Animal
Physiology (K. Schildberger) focuses on mechanisms of information
processing in the central nervous system. By applying a broad variety
of neurobiological methods, the central nervous processing of temporal
information on different time scales is investigated. The systems
studied are the central auditory system of insects and mammals,
and the circadian system of molluscs.
Prof. Naumann's group (Developmental Neurobiology)
investigates the development and function of radial glia cells in
the nervous systems of various vertebrates and invertebrates.
All Departments of the Zoological Institute are actively
engaged in many regional, national, and international scientific
cooperations, among which are the Umweltforschungszentrum Leipzig-Halle,
the Sächsische Institut für angewandte Biotechnologie
(SIAB), the DFG Schwerpunktprogramm "Funktionelle und adaptive
Mechanismen circadianer Systeme" and "Zeitgebundene Informationsverarbeitung
im zentralen auditorischen System (ZIZAS)".
Department of Microbiology and Genetics
There is a striking and fundamental difference in
research activities of the departments of microbiology and genetics.
The Department of Microbiology produces low-rank research
and is in a bad condition.In spite of a few attractions of a permanent
professorial position there is since a decade a urgent need to recruit
a innovative person to develop a programme of high-rank research
(and teaching) and to repair the intolerable microbiology condition
of the faculty.
The research programme of the Department of Genetics
(Prof. H. Sass) addresses specific questions of chromatin structure,
gene regulation, gene trapping and developmental neurobiology. Most
of its work utilises the fruit fly Drosophila as a model
organism.
- One long-term goal of our laboratory is to understand the molecular
basis of the structural and functional conservation of chromatin
genes in arthropods. The expression state of a gene is influenced
by its chromosomal position. Genes normally existing in a euchromatic
habitat are (transcriptional) silenced when packaged in heterochromatin,
as observed in Drosophila melanogaster by position effect
variegation (PEV). In a recent study it was shown that the genes
encoding heterochromatin protein SU(VAR)3-9 histone H3 methyltransferase
and eukaryotic translation initiation factor subunit eIF-2γ
are fused to a dicistronic unit (Krauss and Reuter, 2000; Genetics
156, 1157). At Leipzig we surveyed (during 2000-2003) and survey
the genomes of many species for their content of this extraordinary
gene arrangement. The questions of interest are: (i) How much
of this gene fusion is fixed in arthropod genomes long-term? (ii)
Does the distribution of this gene fusion in different spezies
allow to generate molecular phylogeny and to group organisms into
taxa? (iii) What do we learn here about gene acquisition and loss?
(Dr. V. Krauss and Prof. H. Sass).
- In addition, the function of the Drosophila klett chromatin
gene is to be deciphered. The KLETT-protein seems to participate
in the inclusion of RNA molecules in chromatin domains (Dr. V.
Krauss and Prof. H. Sass).
- A third area of investigation is to express human genes linked
to Alzheimers disease in transgenic Drosophila. Work focuses
on the speculative question whether the human protein folding
enzyme peptidyl-prolyl cis/trans-isomerase Pin1 (hPin1)
is connected to this neurodegenerative disease (Dr. B. Klagges
and Prof. H. Sass).
- Gene trapping is a significant strategy to identify new genes
involved in cellular and organismal functions of Drosophila.
Our gene trap vector pHS155 allows for genome-wide exploration
based on the random insertion of a promoterless hsp82-neo reporter
gene that can respond to cis-acting transcriptional signals
when inserted into chromosomal DNA. pHS155 has a hsp82-splice
acceptor site fused to the bacterial neomycin phosphotransferase
(neo )gene, so that transgenic Drosophila can be
selected for G418 antibiotic resistance when hsp82-neo
integrates within an intron of a transcribed gene, creating a
transcriptional fusion. Thus, hsp82-neo will be under the
transcriptional control of the trapped gene's promoter. We use
the gene trap insertion into a novel gene to analyse if the hsp82-neo
reporter is activated by splicing, accurately reflects endogenous
gene expression, and mutates the endogenous / trapped gene at
the site of integration in Drosophila. In 2003 several
transgenic lines of Drosophila melanogaster were generated
via gene trapping with pHS155 (Dipl.-Biol. B. Droese, Dr. B. Klagges
and Prof. H. Sass).
- The arrival of Wolfgang Paul Award winner Prof. Dr. Barry Smith
(systematic philosophy) at the Universität Leipzig sponsered
by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation is an important event.
In 2003 Prof. B. Smith encouraged a collaboration between the
Institute of Formal Ontology and the Foundations of Medical Information
Science (IFOMIS)* and the Department of Genetics regarding philosophical
dimensions of temporary biomedical research.
Scientific advances presuppose a clear understanding of the fundamental
categories used in different scientific fields, and philosophical
reflection can contribute to such an understanding. In particular
the new information technologies used in biomedical research,
and the necessity to master the continuously growing flood of
data is associated therewith, demand a profound and systematic
reflection on the systematization and classification of biological
data.
Biologists, philosophers and medical informaticians involved in
this interdisciplinary collaboration are developing a theory of
basic biological terms such as kind, species, function, process,
sequence, system, with the goal of producing a unified, synoptic
and philosophically grounded theory of the most important foundational
concepts of biomedical research. Explicitly formulated definitions
and theories will be created as a contribution to meeting the
requirements of integrated digital data processing (Dr. B. Klagges,
Dipl.-Biol. B. Droese, Dr. K. Munn*, Prof. H. Sass and Prof. Barry
Smith*).
Research at the Department of Microbiology
(Dr. Eva-Maria Andreas) focuses on cyanobacteria and their phages.
Studies deal with the structure of the cell envelope and genetic
elements of cyanobacteria.
Institute of General (Experimental) Psychology
In cognitive including biological psychology
(Prof. Dr. E. Schröger), studies were carried out into auditory
and audio-visual information processing concerned with interlinked
issues in the areas of perception, memory and attention.
In General Psychology and Methods of Psychology
(Prof. Dr. M. M. Müller) research was mainly focussed on attentional
processes and the role of gamma-band activity in the electroencephalogram.
In the psychology of cognition, higher cognitive
functions (Prof. Dr. J. D. Jescheniak) work on language production
was carried out.
In the history of psychology (Dr. A. Meischner-Metge),
work continued on evaluating the unpublished writings by Gustav
Theodor Fechner. In preparation for the 125th anniversary of the
first Institute of Experimental Psychology, an electronic documentation
was created.
In cognitive social psychology (Prof. Dr. G. von Collani), research
was carried out into the measurement and validation of socio-psychological
personality constructs, the biasing of eye witness testimonies,
hindsight bias, models of attitude-behaviour relationship, measuring
implicit attitudes using reaction-time procedures, and measuring
stereotypes and prejudice (constructs of 'Social Dominance Orientation',
'Ambivalent Sexism').
Research at the Institute was supported by a number
of DFG project grants. Several of these projects were carried out
within the frameworks of the DFG Research Unit "Working Memory
Processes" and in the DFG Priority Program "Temporal Information
Processing in the Central Auditory System". The Institute is
equipped with modern laboratories for EEG recording as well as other
special laboratories. The research activities of the various work
groups are closely interconnected. Numerous co-operation agreements
with other national and international research laboratories exist,
especially with the MPI of Cognitive Neuroscience in Leipzig.
Institute of Developmental Psychology, Psychology
of Personality and Psychodiagnostics
At the Department of Developmental Psychology
(Prof. K.U. Ettrich), the following research projects were undertaken
in 2003:
- Expert opinions-III for selected questions of gerontology at
the basis of the ILSE-study (sponsored by SMS Saxony)
- Interdisciplinary Long-Term Study of Adulthood and Aging - ILSE
(sponsored by a grant from the Ministry of Science, Research and
Arts of Baden-Württenberg)
- Attachment development in adolescence - BIJU
- Individuation and social change (sponsored by DFG: "Childhood
and Youth in Germany Before and After Unification")
At the Department of Personality Psychology and
Psychological Intervention (Prof. H. Petermann), the following
research project was undertaken in 2003:
- Evaluation of a drug prevention program of Lions-Quest in Germany
(sponsored by SMK Saxony, SMS Saxony, Leipzig Public Health Department,
Leipzig Regional Schools Department, German Lions relief organisation)
At the Department of Differential Psychology and
Psychodiagnostics (Prof. J. Guthke), the following research
projects were undertaken in 2003:
- Working memory and reasoning (sponsored by DFG)
- Testing the validity of new diagnostic procedures by slum children
in Brazil (sponsored by DAAD)
- Intelligence, learning ability, and neural efficiency (sponsored
by FWF)
- Individual differences in the ability to profit from feedback
(sponsored by Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes, University
of Sunderland, School of Education - Great Britain)
Institute of Applied Psychology
Research by the Department of Work- and Organizational
Psychology (Prof. Dr. G. Mohr) addressed various research topics
in 2003: leadership and gender context, leadership and emotion,
perception of leadership by followers etc. The Department is also
involved in establishing an instrument for the assessment of irritation
at the workplace. As a member of an international research group
in cooperation with Stockholm (Sweden), Gent (Belgium), Tel Aviv
(Israel), London (United Kingdom), Tilburg (Netherlands) and Valencia
(Spain) a study about contract at the workplace was started (PSYCONES
- Psychological Contracts across Employment situations). Also a
study was conducted among alumni of the Institutes of Psychology
of the University of Leipzig.
The main attention of the Educational Psychology
unit (Prof. Dr. Witruk) was again concentrated on the experimental
exploration of basic functions of reading and developmental reading
disability. Supported by two research grants, a study on etiological
subgroups in dyslexia (in collaboration with the University of Helsinki)
was completed successfully, and an experimental series on perceptual
strategies in letter recognition (in collaboration with the Brain
Science Institute, Tokyo) was effectively preceded. With support
of further grants, research projects on cross-cultural effects in
perception, working memory and on violence in school contexts were
conducted. The interest on media psychology was further heightened.
A helpdesk for developmental disorders was established.
In the Clinical and Health Psychology Department
(Prof. Dr. H. Schröder) specific stages of research dealing
with drug prevention, coping with stress, health analysis and health
promotion in organisations, medical rehabilitation and Adjustment
Disorders were completed. We also completed health-psychological
projects with orchestral musicians as well as nurses, who work in
hospices, palliativ-medicine hospitals and nursing homes. We evaluated
and improved our programs in psychosocial intervention of stage-fright,
stress regulation, and psychotherapy with trauma patients. We are
presently involved in international projects are dealing with the
relationship between coping with demands and health status in the
context of macrosocial transition (EU-extension).
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