Dr. rer. nat. habil. Christian Wegener

 

born 1971

in Villingen, Black Forest, Germany

Education

2000	Dr. rer. nat. (summa cum laude) at the Institute for General Zoology and Animal Physiology, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena
1998	Visiting PhD student at the Department of Zoology, Stockholm University (with grant of the German Academic Exchange Organisation DAAD)
1996 - 1999	PhD student at the Institute for General Zoology and Animal Physiology, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena
1996	Diploma (with honours) at the Institut für Ökologie, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena
1992 - 1996	Undergraduate student (Hauptstudium) of biology at the Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena
1992	Pre-diploma at the University of Konstanz
1990 - 1992	Undergraduate student (Grundstudium) of biology at the University of Konstanz
1990	Allgemeines Abitur (final) (Mark: 1.5. Best/worst possible mark: 1.0/6.0)
1980 - 1990	Rudolf-Steiner-School Villingen-Schwenningen
1977 - 1980	Elementary school Brigachtal-Klengen

 

Positions

April 2008 -	Junior research group leader/Scientific assistant with Prof. Uwe Homberg, Department of Biology, Animal Physiology, Philipps-University Marburg
September 2003 - March 2008	Junior research group leader within the Emmy Noether program of the German Science Foundation (DFG) at the Department of Biology, Animal Physiology, Philipps-University Marburg
September 2000 -  June 2003	Post-doc with Prof. Dr. Dick R. Nässel at the Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, within the Human Frontiers Science Project: " How the circadian clock sends signals to the rest of the brain".
January 2000 –  July 2000	Scientific staff member at the Institute of General Zoology and Animal Physiology, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena.

 

 

 

Theses

Habilitation (2010) at the Department of Biology, Philipps-University Marburg:

" On the architectur, peptidomics and regulation of neuropeptidergic systems in Drosophila"

with Prof. Dr. Uwe Homberg

 

Dissertation (2000) at the Institute of General Zoology and Animal Physiology, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena:

"Periviscerokinins, new neuropeptides from the perisympathetic organs of cockroaches: distribution and myotropic mode of action"

Supervisor: Univ.Doz. Dr. M. Eckert

 

Diploma-thesis (1996) at the Institute of Ecology, Friedrich-Schiller-University, Jena:

"Serological demonstration of predators of Notostira elongata (Geoffroy, 1785), a dominant true bug species in grassland ecosystems of the polluted Steudnitz area" (in German).

Supervisors: Prof. Dr. G. Schäller, Dr. W. Voigt.

 

 

Awards

2008	1. price for outstanding teaching, awarded by the Student’s Council at the  Department of Biology, Philipps-University Marburg
2005	3. price for outstanding teaching, awarded by the Student’s Council at the Department of Biology, Philipps-University Marburg
2001	Faculty award of the Biological-Pharmaceutical Faculty of the Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena for the best dissertation of the year.
1997	Faculty award of the Biological-Pharmaceutical Faculty of the Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena for the best diploma thesis of the year.
1989	2. price during the "Nature protection competition" of the Minister of Education, federal state of Baden-Württemberg (ranked best practical work). Subject: Bats of the Black Forest-Baar-district.

 

Grant awards

2006	European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) short-term fellowship to visit the laboratory of Prof. Dr. R. E. Isaac, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, UK.
2003 - 2008	Emmy Noether grant of the German Science Foundation (DFG) for a junior research group at the Department of Biology, Philipps-University Marburg.
1999	Graduate grant of the federal state Thüringen.
1998 - 1999	Pre-doctoral grant of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD; HSP III) for a 1-year-visit in the laboratory of Prof. Dr. D. Nässel, Department of Zoology, Stockholm University.
1997	Travel grant of the "Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft" (association of foundations to promote science in Germany) to participate in an international expedition to the Malkachan estuary/ Ochotsk Sea (Magadan district/Russian Far East).
1996-98	Graduate grant of the federal state Thüringen.
1996	Travel grant of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for  a 10week practical course in tropical forest ecology in La Esmeralda (Edo. Amazonas), Venezuela, Surumoni-project of the University Leipzig.

 

Visits to other laboratories

• • September 2006- February 2007: EMBO short-term fellow in the laboratory of Prof. Dr. Elwyn R. Isaac at the Department of Biology, Leeds University, U.K. 

• •Octobre 2002: Visit in the laboratory of Dr. Andreas Prokop at the Genetics Institute of the Gutenberg University Mainz, Germany, to learn primary cell cultures from Drosophila embryos. 

• •December  2001: Visit in the neurophysiological laboratory of Dr. Aram Megighian at the Institute of Human Anatomy and Physiology at Padova University, Italy, to learn and exchange experience about primary cell cultures of Drosophila CNS. 

• •February 2000: Visit in the laboratory of Prof. Dr. Gerhard Wegener at the Zoological Institute of the Gutenberg University Mainz, Germany, to test the effect of neuropeptides of the perisympathetic organs of Periplaneta americana on the fatbody. 

• •January 1999: Visit in the laboratory of Dr. Michael Axelsson at the Zoological Institute of Göteborg University, Sweden, for an introduction into the "LabView"-software. 

 

Courses

• •Summer term 2009: "Leadership and management for junior professors" organised by the Technical University Darmstadt and the Marburg University Research Academy (MARA). 

• •1.-2.10. 2007: Participation in the course “Safety in gene technology” at the University of  

Freiburg, Germany

• •17.-19.03.2006: "Project management and communication" organized by the DFG and the Center for Management in Science Speyer 

• •28.2-1.3.2005: "Teambuilding" organized by the Philipps-University Marburg 

• •7.-11. 10. 2002: Participation in the course "Advanced digital light microscopy" at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) at Heidelberg, Germany. 

 

 

Scientific host

• •28. 8. – 11.9. 2007: to Dr. Runa Hamid, Tata-Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbay, India. Boehringer-Ingelheim grant to visit my group to learn primary neuronal cell cultures from Drosophila. 

 

 

Referee activities

• •BMC Evolutionary Biology 

• •Cell and Tissue Research 

• •Genome Biology 

• •Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology 

• •International Journal of Peptide Research and Therapeutics 

• •Journal of Comparative Physiology B 

• •Journal of Comparative Neurology 

• •Journal of Morphology 

• •Journal of Proteome Research 

• •Neuroscience 

• •Progess in Neurobiology 

 

• •German Science Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)) 

 

Communal activities

• •Organisation of the 1. satellite symposium of the Arthropod Neuro-Network (with  Wolfgang Stein and Joachim Schachtner) 2010 in Hamburg. 

• •Co-organiser of the Neurofly 2010 meeting in Manchester/UK. 

• •Organisation and chair of the symposium “Evolution of peptide signalling”  at the Göttingen Neurobiology Conference 2009 (with Prof. Dr. Joachim Schachtner). 

• •Person in charge for the S1 laboratories of the Animal Physiology, Philipps-University. 

• •Organisation of workshops at the Emmy Noether meetings 2005 and 2006 

 

 

Memberships in scientific associations

• •German Society for General and Applied Entomology (DGaaE) (since 2007) 

• •German Neuroscience Society (NWG) (since 2004) 

• •American Physiological Society (APS) (since 2002) 

• •German Zoological Society (DZG) (since 1999) 

• •German Ornithologist's Society (DO-G) (since 1993) 

Languages

I speak German, Swedish, English, and French. I have basic knowledge in Russian and

Spanish.

Other skills

I play piano and clarinet. I have a profound knowledge in the determination of holarctic birds and European true bugs (Heteroptera).