DFG to Fund Three New Research Units
Topics ranging from skin diseases through to the role of intra-household decisions on the economy / A total of around €10.4 million for the first funding period
Topics ranging from skin diseases through to the role of intra-household decisions on the economy / A total of around €10.4 million for the first funding period
The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) is establishing three new Research Units. The DFG Joint Committee decided this on the recommendation of the Senate. The new Research Units will receive total funding of approximately €10.4 million, including a 22-percent programme allowance for indirect project-related costs. The new networks will be funded for a maximum of two four-year periods. In addition to the three newly created networks, the extension of eight Research Units and one Clinical Research Unit was approved for a second funding period.
Research Units enable researchers to pursue current and pressing issues in their areas of research and take innovative directions in their work. With these new additions, the DFG is currently funding 186 Research Units, 13 Clinical Research Units and 15 Centres for Advanced Studies. Clinical Research Units are additionally characterised by their close link between research and clinical work, while Centres for Advanced Studies are specifically tailored to work in the humanities and social sciences.
The new research networks in detail
(in alphabetical order of the spokespersons’ HEIs)
The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) that is also present in skin cells has an important function for the immune system. However, it can also be utilised by sources of illness such as tumours. No research has been conducted to date on when AHR is beneficial and when harmful to health. This is where the Research Unit “Understanding aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) signalling in skin disorders” comes into play. Its starting point is the hypothesis that the consequences of AHR activation in healthy, inflamed or xenobiotically stressed skin depend on factors related to the corresponding micro-environment. (Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Jean Krutmann, University of Düsseldorf)
The distribution of income, consumption and wealth in an economy is based on decisions made in individual households. The objective of the Research Unit “Macroeconomic Implications of Intra-Household Decision Making” is to take greater account than has been the case to date of the different consumption, employment and investment opportunities of individual household members. In this context, the researchers are going to investigate how intra-household decisions interact with the key production factors – labour, capital and factor productivity – and their distribution. In addition, the consideration of intra-household decisions seeks to advance the analysis of the costs and benefits of economic policy reforms. (Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Alexander Ludwig, University of Frankfurt/Main)
She, mine, which: pronouns are quite literally on everyone’s lips. But how specific is their use in everyday speech? This is the question addressed by the Research Unit “Practices for referring to persons: usage-based approaches to personal, indefinite and demonstrative pronouns” through a systematic combination of grammar and common parlance. The methodological focus is on a linguistic study from a synchronic and diachronic perspective, aiming to identify links between pragmatic and socio-cultural aspects. (Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Wolfgang Imo, University of Hamburg)
The research networks extended for a second funding period
(in alphabetical order of the spokespersons’ HEIs and with references to the project descriptions in GEPRIS – the DFG internet database for current funding):
- KFO “Untangling and Targeting Mechanisms of Myelofibrosis in Myeloproliferative Neoplasms (MPN)” (Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Tim Henrik Brümmendorf, RWTH Aachen; Clinical Director: Professor Dr. Steffen Koschmieder, University Hospital Aachen), https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/41791153
- FOR “Metrology for THz Communications” (Spokesperson: Professor Dr.-Ing. Thomas Kürner, TU Braunschweig), https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/40357944
- FOR “Nanoscale Architecture and Heterogeneity of the Mitochondrial Inner Membrane“ (Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Stefan Jakobs, University of Göttingen), https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/40151069
- FOR “Proteogenomics of Marine Polysaccharide Utilization (POMPU)”
(Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Thomas Schweder, University of Greifswald),
https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/27724997 - FOR “Copper Iodide as Multifunctional Semiconductor”
(Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Marius Grundmann, University of Leipzig), https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/40315983 - FOR “Adaptive Polymer Gels with Controlled Network Structure”
(Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Sebastian Seiffert, University of Mainz),
https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/39738416 - FOR “Amorphous Molecular Materials with Extreme Non-Linear Optical Properties” (Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Stefanie Dehnen, University of Marburg),
https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/39814314 - FOR “ImmunoStroke: From immune cells to stroke recovery” (Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Arthur Liesz, LMU Munich), https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/40535880
- FOR “Next Generation Perturbative QCD for Hadron Structure: Preparing for the Electron-Ion Collider” (Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Vladimir Braun, University of Regensburg), https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/40965161
Further Information
Media contact:
- DFG Press and Public Relations
Tel. +49 228 885-2109
presse@dfg.d
Network spokespersons can also provide detailed information.
Contact at the DFG Head Office:
- Volker Kreutzer
Unit Head Quality and Programme Management
Tel. +49 228 885-2227
volker.kreutzer@dfg.d
Links to DFG Research Units: