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2021 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize
Bacteria
act in groups to accomplish feats that are impossible to achieve if a single
bacterium acts alone. For example, pathogenic bacteria act collectively to synthesize
toxins to attack the host and to encase themselves in a shield that protects
them from the host immune system and allows them to resist antibiotic treatment.
To do this, bacteria communicate with each other with chemical “words", count
their numbers, and act in synchrony when they have sufficient cell numbers for
success. The award winners have discovered the dictionary and syntax underlying
bacterial communication, opening up new and unprecedented opportunities to
fight bacterial infections.
FRANKFURT am MAIN. Two American scientists,
Bonnie L. Bassler and Michael R. Silverman, receive the 2021 Paul Ehrlich
and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize, which is endowed with 120,000 €. Bassler is
Professor at Princeton University and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator,
Michael R. Silverman is Emeritus Professor of the Agouron Institute in La
Jolla. The two researchers are honoured for their ground-breaking discoveries concerning
bacterial "quorum sensing", which refers to sophisticated systems of
cell-to-cell communication that bacteria use to coordinate group behaviours.
The award ceremony in St. Paul's Church, which is traditionally held on March
14, Paul Ehrlich's birthday, has been postponed due to the Coronavirus
pandemic. Instead, Bassler and Silverman will receive the award at the ceremony
in 2022.
"Silverman and Bassler have shown that, as
for multicellular organisms, collective behaviour is the rule among bacteria, rather
than the exception," wrote the Scientific Council in substantiating its
decision. "Bacteria talk to each other, they eavesdrop on other bacteria, and
they may even join forces. But: This ubiquitous chitchat, whose molecular
underpinnings were discovered by Bassler and Silverman, also represents a
previously unappreciated Achilles' heel in combating harmful microbes. Instead
of killing bacteria with antibiotics, substances may be developed that
interfere with bacterial communication effectively reducing their collective fitness.
The prize-winners' research thus has considerable relevance for medicine".
Bacteria are extremely communicative. They send
and receive chemical messages to find out whether they are alone or if additional
members of their or other species are present in the vicinal community. To take
a census of cell numbers, bacteria produce and release chemical signal
molecules that accumulate in step with increasing cell numbers. When a
threshold level of the chemical signal is achieved, the bacteria detect its
presence. In response to it, in unison, bacteria undertake behaviours that are
only productive when carried out in synchrony by the group, but not when
enacted by a single bacterium acting in isolation. This chemical
communication process is called quorum sensing and it controls hundreds of
collective activities across the bacterial kingdom.
In the 1980s, Silverman discovered the first quorum-sensing
circuit in the bioluminescent marine bacterium Vibrio fischeri. He identified
the genes and proteins enabling production and detection of the extracellular
signal molecule. He defined how the components functioned to promote collective
behaviour. In the case of Vibrio fischeri, group-wide behaviour
is the production of blue-green bioluminescence. Today, we know that quorum
sensing is the norm in the bacterial world. Indeed, there are thousands of
bacterial species that possess genes nearly identical to those discovered by
Silverman. In all of these cases, these components allow bacteria to engage in
group behaviours.
In the early 1990s, Bonnie
Bassler proved that bacteria were “multilingual" and that they conversed with
multiple chemical signal molecules. One communication molecule that Bassler
discovered and named autoinducer- 2 enables bacteria to communicate across species
boundaries. She went on to demonstrate that bacteria use
quorum-sensing-mediated communication to differentiate self from
other, showing that a sophisticated trait thought to be the purview of higher
organisms, in fact, evolved in bacteria billions of years ago. In recent years,
Bassler has shown that quorum sensing transcends kingdom boundaries as viruses
and host cells, including human cells, engage in this ubiquitous chit-chat. She
and other researchers also demonstrated that pathogenic bacteria rely on quorum
sensing to be virulent. Bassler developed anti-quorum-sensing strategies that,
in animal models, halt infection from bacterial pathogens of global
significance.
“The full significance of the discoveries of
the two laureates for microbiology and medicine has only recently been
recognized," says Professor Thomas Boehm, Director at the Max Planck
Institute for Immunobiology and Epigenetic and Chairman of the Scientific
Council. "Decades of meticulous and painstaking work, showed that essentially
all bacteria master the art of cell-to-cell communication," says Boehm.
"What began with work on Vibrio fischeri and Vibro harveyi led
to a fundamental change in perspective in bacteriology, and now opens up new and
unprecedented opportunities in dealing with antibiotic resistance".
Short biography Professor Dr.
Bonnie L. Bassler Ph.D. (58).
Bonnie Bassler is a microbiologist. She studied
biochemistry at the University of California at Davis and received her Ph.D.
from the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. She joined the laboratory of
Michael Silverman at the Agouron Institute in La Jolla as a postdoctoral fellow
in 1990. She has been at Princeton University since 1994. Bonnie Bassler is a
member of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Medicine,
and the Royal Society. She is a researcher at the Howard Hughes Medical
Institute and Squibb Professor and Chair of the Department of Molecular Biology
at Princeton University. President Obama appointed her to a six-year term on
the United States National Science Board. She has received more than twenty prestigious
national and international awards.
Short biography Professor
Michael R. Silverman, Ph.D. (77).
Michael Silverman is a microbiologist. He
studied chemistry and bacteriology at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln and
received his Ph.D. in 1972 from the University of California at San Diego.
During the period from 1972-1982, Silverman made seminal contributions to the
understanding of bacterial motility and chemotaxis. From 1982 until his
retirement, he worked at the Agouron Institute in La Jolla, of which he is a
co-founder.
The Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig
Darmstaedter Prize
The Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize
is traditionally awarded on Paul Ehrlich's birthday, March 14, in the
Paulskirche, Frankfurt. It honors scientists who have made significant
contributions in Paul Ehrlich's field of research, in particular immunology,
cancer research, microbiology, and chemotherapy. The Prize, which has been
awarded since 1952, is financed by the German Federal Ministry of Health, the
State of Hesse, the German association of research-based pharmaceutical company
vfa e.V. and specially earmarked donations from the following companies,
foundations and organizations: Else Kröner-Fresenius-Stiftung, Sanofi-Aventis
Deutschland GmbH, C.H. Boehringer Pharma GmbH & Co. KG, Biotest AG, Hans und Wolfgang
Schleussner-Stiftung, Fresenius SE & Co. KGaA, F. Hoffmann-LaRoche Ltd.,
Grünenthal GmbH, Janssen-Cilag GmbH, Merck KGaA, Bayer AG, Holtzbrinck
Publishing Group, AbbVie Deutschland GmbH & Co. KG, die
Baden-Württembergische Bank, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. and
Goethe-Universität. The prizewinners
are selected by the Scientific Council of the Paul Ehrlich Foundation.
The
Paul Ehrlich Foundation
The
Paul Ehrlich Foundation is a legally dependent foundation which is managed in a
fiduciary capacity by the Association of Friends and Sponsors of the Goethe
University, Frankfurt. The Honorary Chairman of the Foundation, which was
established by Hedwig Ehrlich in 1929, is Professor Dr. Katja Becker, president
of the German Research Foundation, who also appoints the elected members of the
Scientific Council and the Board of Trustees. The Chairman of the Scientific
Council is Professor Thomas Boehm, Director at the Max Planck Institute of
Immunobiology and Epigenetics in Freiburg, the Chair of the Board of Trustees
is Professor Dr. Jochen Maas, Head of Research and Development and Member of
the Management Board, Sanofi-Aventis Deutschland GmbH. Professor Wilhelm
Bender, in his function as Chair of the Association of Friends and Sponsors of the
Goethe University, is Member of the Scientific Council. The President of the Goethe University is at the same time a member of
the Board of Trustees.
Further
information:
You can obtain selected
publications, the list of publications and a photograph of the laureate from
Dr. Hildegard Kaulen, phone: +49 (0)6122/52718, email: h.k@kaulen-wissenschaft.de and at www.paul-ehrlich-stiftung.de
Background on the
award of the 2021 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize to Professor
Bonnie L. Bassler, Ph.D. and Professor Michael R. Silverman, Ph.D.
The 2021 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize for Young Researchers
The course for organ health is set in the
early embryo. This year's laureate has shown that
specialized immune cells from the yolk sac accompany organ development and
contribute to maintaining their health throughout life. For Elvira Mass, impaired
function of these immune cells might cause many diseases.
Frankfurt am Main. Developmental biologist
Professor Elvira Mass, Ph.D. from the Life and Medical Sciences Institute
(LIMES) at the University of Bonn, receives the 2021 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig
Darmstaedter Prize for Young Researchers, which is endowed with €60,000. The award ceremony in
Paulskirche, which is traditionally held on March 14th, Paul Ehrlich's
birthday, has been canceled this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. Elvira Mass will be
honored next year together with the award winners of 2022.
For organs to stay healthy and functional, they must
be constantly surveilled for abnormalities. Until a few years ago, it was believed that
this task is performed by immune cells originating from the bone marrow. In a series of elegant genetic
labelling experiments, Mass has shown that these cells are mainly yolk sac-derived
progenitor cells that migrate to the developing organs, where they immediately differentiate
and self-maintain for a lifetime. The reason for their longevity is still a mystery. These immune cells are referred to as tissue-resident
macrophages and belong to our innate immune system. Their primary job is to
scavenge anything that does not belong to a healthy organ. However, they also
produce a broad range of bioactive molecules and growth factors, ensuring that tissues
are not only 'tidy' but grow, develop, and function.
"The special achievement of Elvira Mass is to
have contributed to an important change in perspective when looking at the
function of organs," writes the Scientific Council, chaired by Professor
Thomas Boehm, Director at the Max Planck Institute for Immunobiology and
Epigenetics in Freiburg, in substantiating its decision. “In order to understand
how organs develop and what keeps them healthy, one no longer only looks at the
bone marrow, but also at the yolk sac and thus at a completely different
population of macrophages. This observation has important implications for medicine,
because organ-specific defects might be associated with malfunctioning tissue-resident
macrophages originally derived from the yolk sac".
Mass has provided evidence for the
health-promoting function of resident macrophages in the mouse brain. Her attempt to
manipulate microglia, as the brain-specific macrophages are called, were stimulated
by the findings in patients suffering from a rare form of cancer called histiocytosis. This
cancer arises from mutated macrophages, which multiply out of control. Many patients
suffering from histiocytoses eventually develop neurodegenerative symptoms or behavioural
deficits. Mass introduced the mutation typical for histiocytosis specifically into yolk
sac-derived tissue-resident macrophages of mice and followed the development of
the animals. She found that the mutated microglia cells no longer carried out their
traditional tasks but instead attacked and eliminated neurons in their
vicinity. Eventually, this led to paralysis demonstrating that mutated microglia can cause
neurodegeneration in mice.
With funding recently awarded by the European
Research Council, Mass will investigate which environmental factors change the
epigenetic imprinting of the yolk sac-derived tissue-resident macrophages and
how these changes affect the health of organs. To this end, she will, among
other things, examine the influence of nanoplastics on macrophages. Particles that are
smaller than 500 nanometers enter the embryo's blood via the placenta and could
potentially damage the supporting function of the tissue-resident macrophages.
Short biography of Professor Dr. Elvira Mass
Elvira Mass (34) studied biology at the University
of Bonn and did her Ph.D thesis at the Life and Medical Sciences Institute
(LIMES) in Bonn. In 2014, she moved to Frederic Geissmann's laboratory at King's College in
London and followed him a few months later to the Memorial Sloan-Kettering
Cancer Center in New York. From there she returned to the LIMES Institute in
2017 as a group leader. In 2019, she became W2 Professor for
"Integrated Immunology" at the University of Erlangen-Nuernberg. In 2020, she switched
to a W2 / W3 professorship at the LIMES Institute. Mass has received
several awards, including the Heinz Maier Leibnitz Prize in 2020, which is considered
the most important award for young scientists in Germany.
Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig
Darmstaedter Prize for Young Researchers
The Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize
for Young Researchers, awarded for the first time in 2006, is conferred once a
year by the Paul Ehrlich Foundation on a young investigator working in Germany
for his or her outstanding achievements in the field of biomedical research.
The prize money must be used for research purposes. University faculty members
and leading scientists at German research institutions are eligible for
nomination. The selection of the prizewinner is made by the Scientific Council
on a proposal by the eight-person selection committee.
The Paul Ehrlich Foundation
The
Paul Ehrlich Foundation is a legally dependent foundation which is managed in a
fiduciary capacity by the Association of Friends and Sponsors of the Goethe
University, Frankfurt. The Honorary Chairman of the Foundation, which was
established by Hedwig Ehrlich in 1929, is Professor Dr. Katja Becker, president
of the German Research Foundation, who also appoints the elected members of the
Scientific Council and the Board of Trustees. The Chairman of the Scientific
Council is Professor Thomas Boehm, Director at the Max Planck Institute of
Immunobiology and Epigenetics in Freiburg, the Chair of the Board of Trustees
is Professor Dr. Jochen Maas, Head of Research and Development and Member of
the Management Board, Sanofi-Aventis Deutschland GmbH. Professor Wilhelm
Bender, in his function as Chair of the Association of Friends and Sponsors of
the Goethe University, is Member of the Scientific Council. The President of
the Goethe University is at the same time a member of the Board of Trustees.
Further
information:
You can obtain selected
publications, the list of publications and a photograph of the prizewinner from
Dr. Hildegard Kaulen, phone: +49 (0) 6122/52718, e-mail:
h.k@kaulen-wissenschaft.de and at www.paul-ehrlich-stiftung.de.
Background on the award of the 2021 Paul Ehrlich
and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize for Young Researchers to Professor Elvira Mass,
Ph.D (PDF)
Collaboration between Goethe University and the University of Oklahoma
For the first time, an international team of
scientists from Goethe University and the University of Oklahoma has succeeded
in filming quantum physical effects on a helium dimer as it breaks apart. The
film shows the superposition of matter waves from two simultaneous events that
occur with different probability: The survival and the disintegration of the
helium dimer. This method might in future make it possible to track
experimentally the formation and decay of quantum Efimov systems (Nature
Physics, DOI 10.1038/s41567-020-01081-3).
FRANKFURT. Anyone
entering the world of quantum physics must prepare themself for quite a few
things unknown in the everyday world: Noble gases form compounds, atoms behave
like particles and waves at the same time and events that in the macroscopic
world exclude each other occur simultaneously.
In the world of quantum physics, Reinhard
Dörner and his team are working with molecules which – in the sense of most
textbooks – ought not to exist: Helium compounds with two atoms, known as helium
dimers. Helium is called a noble gase precisely because it does not form any
compounds. However, if the gas is cooled down to just 10 degrees above absolute
zero (minus 273 °C) and then pumped through a small nozzle into a vacuum
chamber, which makes it even colder, then – very rarely – such helium dimers
form. These are unrivaledly the weakest bound stable molecules in the Universe,
and the two atoms in the molecule are correspondingly extremely far apart from
each other. While a chemical compound of two atoms commonly measures about 1
angstrom (0.1 nanometres), helium dimers on average measure 50 times as much,
i.e. 52 angstrom.
The scientists in Frankfurt irradiated
such helium dimers with an extremely powerful laser flash, which slightly
twisted the bond between the two helium atoms. This was enough to make the two
atoms fly apart. They then saw – for the very first time – the helium atom
flying away as a wave and record it on film.
According to quantum physics, objects
behave like a particle and a wave at the same time, something that is best
known from light particles (photons), which on the one hand superimpose like
waves where they can pile upor extinguish each other (interference), but on the
other hand as “solar wind” can propel spacecraft via their solar sails, for
example.
That the researchers were able to observe
and film the helium atom flying away as a wave at all in their laser experiment
was due to the fact that the helium atom only flew away with a certain
probability: With 98 per cent probability it was still bound to its second
helium partner, with 2 per cent probability it flew away. These two helium atom waves – Here it comes! Quantum
physics! – superimpose and their interference could be measured.
The measurement of such “quantum waves”
can be extended to quantum systems with several partners, such as the helium
trimer composed of three helium atoms. The helium trimer is interesting because
it can form what is referred to as an “exotic Efimov state”, says Maksim
Kunitski, first author of the study: “Such three-particle systems were
predicted by Russian theorist Vitaly Efimov in 1970 and first corroborated on
caesium atoms. Five years ago, we discovered the Efimov state in the helium
trimer. The laser pulse irradiation method we’ve now developed might allow us
in future to observe the formation and decay of Efimov systems and thus better
understand quantum physical systems that are difficult to access
experimentally.”
Publication:
Maksim Kunitski, Qingze Guan, Holger
Maschkiwitz, Jörg Hahnenbruch, Sebastian Eckart, Stefan Zeller, Anton Kalinin,
Markus Schöffler, Lothar Ph. H. Schmidt, Till Jahnke, Dörte Blume, Reinhard
Dörner: Ultrafast manipulation of the
weakly bound helium dimer. In: Nature Physics, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41567-020-01081-3
Pictures
to download:
http://www.uni-frankfurt.de/95834340
Caption:
Dr Maksim Kunitski next to the COLTRIMS
reaction microscope at Goethe University, which was used to observe the
“quantum wave”. (Photo: Uwe Dettmar for Goethe University)
http://www.uni-frankfurt.de/95834284
Caption: Professor Reinhard Dörner (left) and Dr Maksim Kunitzki in front of the
COLTRIMS reaction microscope at Goethe University, which was used to observe
the quantum wave. (Photo: Goethe University Frankfurt)
Researchers
at Goethe University Frankfurt had recently reported in an article and a press
release on the influence of the active substance loperamide on cell death in
brain tumour cells. As a result, the German Brain Tumour Centres have received numerous
enquiries about the therapeutic use of loperamide in patients with brain tumour
diseases.
It should
be noted, however, that the underlying research is based solely on cell culture
models. Under no circumstances can recommendations for the treatment of humans
be derived from the results. In addition to intestinal sluggishness, loperamide
can cause severe and life-threatening side effects, especially when used in
higher doses or not as intended.
The authors
of the research article and the focus of neuro-oncology at the University Cancer
Center (UCT) therefore strongly advise against the use of loperamide in brain
tumour patients (beyond the indication of diarrhoea).
Professor
Christian Brandts
Director University Cancer Center Frankfurt (UCT),
University Hospital Frankfurt
Professor
Joachim Steinbach
Director of the Dr. Senckenbergischen Institute for Neuro-Oncology, UCT, University Hospital Frankfurt
Sjoerd J. L. van Wijk, Ph.D.
Institute of Experimental Cancer Research in
Paediatrics , UCT, University Hospital Frankfurt
FRANKFURT. The
research group led by Dr Sjoerd van Wijk from the Institute of Experimental Cancer
Research in Paediatrics at Goethe University already two years ago found evidence
indicating that the anti-diarrhoea drug loperamide could be used to induce cell
death in glioblastoma cell lines. They have now deciphered its mechanism of
action and, in doing so, are opening new avenues for the development of novel
treatment strategies.
When cells digest themselves
In certain types of tumour cells, administration
of loperamide leads to a stress response in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), the
cell organelle responsible for key steps in protein synthesis in the body. The
stress in the ER triggers its degradation, followed by self-destruction of the
cells. This mechanism, known as autophagy-dependent cell death occurs when
cells undergo hyperactivated autophagy. Normally, autophagy regulates normal
metabolic processes and breaks down and recycles the valuable parts of damaged
or superfluous cell components thus ensuring the cell’s survival, for example
in the case of nutrient deficiency. In certain tumour cells, however, hyperactivation
of autophagy destroys so much cell material that they are no longer capable of
surviving.
“Our experiments with cell lines show that
autophagy could support the treatment of glioblastoma brain tumours,” says van
Wijk. Glioblastoma is a very aggressive and lethal type of cancer in children
and adults that shows only a poor response to chemotherapy. New therapeutic
approaches are therefore urgently required. The research group led by van Wijk
has now identified an important factor that links the ER stress response with
the degradation of the ER (reticulophagy):
The “Activating Transcription Factor” ATF4 is
produced in increased amounts both during ER stress and under the influence of
loperamide. It triggers the destruction of the ER membranes and thus of the ER.
Anti-diarrhoea drug
triggers cell death in glioblastoma cells
“Conversely, if we block ATF4, far fewer
cells in a tumour cell culture die after adding loperamide,” says van Wijk,
describing the control results. In addition, the research group was able to detect
ER debris in loperamide-treated cells under the electron microscope. “ER
degradation, that is, reticulophagy, visibly contributes to the demise of
glioblastoma cells,” says van Wijk. The team also showed that loperamide triggers
only autophagy but not cell death in other cells, such as embryonic mouse
fibroblasts. “Normally, loperamide, when taken as a remedy against diarrhoea,
binds to particular binding sites in the intestine and is not taken up by the
bowel and is therefore harmless”.
Mechanism of action
also applicable to other diseases
The loperamide-induced death of
glioblastoma cells could help in the development of new therapeutic approaches
for the treatment of this severe form of cancer. “However, our findings also
open up exciting new possibilities for the treatment of other diseases where ER
degradation is disrupted, such as neurological disorders or dementia as well as
other types of tumour,” says van Wijk. However, further studies are necessary before
loperamide can actually be used in the treatment of glioblastoma or other
diseases. In future studies it has to be explored, for example, how loperamide
can be transported into the brain and cross the blood-brain barrier.
Nanoparticles might be a feasible option. The research team in Frankfurt now wants
to identify other substances that trigger reticulophagy and examine how the
effect of loperamide can be increased and better understood.
The research group led by Sjoerd van Wijk
is funded by the Frankfurt Foundation for Children with Cancer (Frankfurter
Stiftung für krebskranke Kinder) and the Collaborative Research Centre 1177
“Molecular and Functional Characterisation of Selective Autophagy” funded by
the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft). The work is
the result of collaboration with Dr Muriel Mari and Professor Fulvio Reggiori
(University of Groningen, The Netherlands) and Professor Donat Kögel
(Experimental Neurosurgery, Goethe University).
Publication:
Svenja Zielke, Simon Kardo, Laura Zein,
Muriel Mari, Adriana Covarrubias-Pinto, Maximilian N. Kinzler, Nina Meyer,
Alexandra Stolz, Simone Fulda, Fulvio Reggiori, Donat Kögel and Sjoerd van
Wijk: ATF4 links ER stress with
reticulophagy in glioblastoma cells. Taylor & Francis Online https://doi.org/10.1080/15548627.2020.1827780
Picture
download:
http://www.uni-frankfurt.de/95797718
Caption:
In glioblastoma cells, the antidiarrheal drug
loperamide triggers the degradation of the endoplasmic reticulum. In the normal
state, it is coloured yellow in these microscopic images. In the degradation
state, it glows as a red signal (marked with arrows). Left scale bar: 20 µm,
right scale bar (inset): 5 µm (Photos: Svenja Zielke et. al.)
Further
information:
Dr. Sjoerd J. L. van Wijk
Institute of Experimental Cancer Research
in Paediatrics
Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany
Tel.: +49 69 67866574
s.wijk@kinderkrebsstiftung-frankfurt.de
https://www.kinderkrebsstiftung-frankfurt.de/
Researchers at universities in Frankfurt and Tübingen have developed and empirically evaluated a new teaching concept for teaching secondary physics.
The topic of electricity often poses
difficulties for many secondary school students in physics lessons. Physics
Education Researchers at the Goethe University and the University of Tübingen
have developed and empirically evaluated a new, intuitive curriculum as part of
a major comparative study. The result: not only do secondary school students
gain a better conceptual understanding of electric circuits, but teachers also perceive
the curriculum as a significant improvement in their teaching.
FRANKFURT /
TÜBINGEN. Life without electricity is something that is no longer imaginable.
Whether it be a smartphone, hair-dryer or a ceiling lamp – the technical
accomplishments we hold dear all require electricity.
Although every child at school learns that electricity can only flow in a
closed electric circuit, what is actually the difference between current and
voltage? Why is a plug socket a potential death-trap but a simple battery is
not? And why does a lamp connected to a power strip not become dimmer when a
second lamp is plugged in?
Research into physics education has
revealed that even after the tenth grade many secondary school students are not
capable of answering such fundamental questions about simple electric circuits
despite their teachers' best efforts. Against this backdrop, Jan-Philipp Burde,
who recently became a junior professor at the University of Tübingen, in the
framework of his doctoral thesis supervised by Prof. Thomas Wilhelm at Goethe University,
developed an innovative curriculum for simple electric circuits, which
specifically builds upon the everyday experiences of the students. In contrast
to the approaches taken to date, from the very outset the new curriculum aims
to help students develop an intuitive understanding of voltage. In analogy to air
pressure differences that cause an air stream (e.g. at an inflated air
mattress), voltage is introduced as an “electric pressure difference" that causes
an electric current. A comparative study with 790 school pupils at secondary
schools in Frankfurt showed that the new curriculum led to a significantly
improved understanding of electric circuits compared to traditional physics
tuition. Moreover, the participating teachers also stated that using the new
curriculum fundamentally improved their teaching.
The two researchers from Frankfurt and
Tübingen have now published a detailed description of the theoretical
considerations underlying the teaching concept in the renowned international
journal “Physical Review Physics Education Research"
in the framework of the “Focused Collection: Theory into Design". The German
Society for Chemistry and Physics Education (GDCP) awarded its
“GDCP-Nachwuchspreis", a prize presented each year for the best dissertation or
post-doctoral thesis in chemistry and physics education in the German-speaking
region, to Burde for his dissertation. As of the winter semester 2019/20 Burde
was appointed to a junior professorship for Physics Education Research supported
by the Vector Foundation at the University of
Tübingen. On the basis of his work a cross-border consortium encompassing the Universities
Tübingen, Frankfurt, Darmstadt, Dresden, Graz and Vienna has been constituted
with the objective of making the subject of “simple electric circuits" more
interesting and more comprehensible by embedding the topic in contexts from daily
life.
Publications:
Jan-Philipp Burde
and Thomas Wilhelm (2020). Teaching electric circuits with a focus on
potential differences. In: Phys. Rev. Phys. Educ. Res. 16,
020153, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevPhysEducRes.16.020153
Jan-Philipp Burde (2018): Konzeption
und Evaluation eines Unterrichtskonzepts zu einfachen Stromkreisen auf Basis
des Elektronengasmodells. Studien zum Physik- und Chemielernen, Band 259,
Logos-Verlag, Berlin, ISBN: 978-3-8325-4726-4, http://doi.org/10.30819/4726
Picture
download:
http://www.uni-frankfurt.de/95652319
Caption:
Jun.-Prof. Dr. Jan-Philipp Burde, University of Tübingen. Photo: Friedhelm
Albrecht for University of Tübingen
http://www.uni-frankfurt.de/95652342
Caption:
Prof. Dr. Thomas Wilhelm, Goethe University
Frankfurt. Photo: Felix Richter
Further
Information:
Prof. Dr. Thomas Wilhelm
Executive Director
Department of Physics Education Research
Goethe University Frankfurt
Phone: +49 69 798-47845
wilhelm@physik.uni-frankfurt.de
Jun.-Prof. Dr. Jan-Philipp Burde
Physics Education Research Group
University of Tübingen
Phone: +49 7071 29 78651
jan-philipp.burde@uni-tuebingen.de