I am a private lecturer at the Institute of Biology at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin currently teaching ecology and nematology in bachelor and master courses of study. As experienced expert in the fields of molecular biology, ecology, physiology, and toxicology using the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans as model organism, my research was/is focused on xenobiotic and natural product induced gene expression, the signal transduction networks and effectors of longevity as well as fat storage and the metabolism of C20 polyunsaturated fatty acids including derived signaling molecules, the eicosanoides. I am in particular interested in deciphering the diverse endogenous functions of different cytochrome P450 forms.

Moreover, I have long-standing experience in ecotoxicity evaluation, as biotests with a variety of organisms (e.g. nematodes and other invertebrates) including also non-traditional toxicity endpoints such as behavior, movement, feeding and life history trait analysis (life span and repro-duction). More recently, my research focuses on soil food web analyses using indirect biochemical methods, as dietary routing by following fatty acids in oligomeric trophic links, partly due to the involvement of stable isotopes.

Former and current projects include:

• Dietary routing: The significance and routing of nematode born n-3 C20 PUFA in the soil web chain.
• Cytochrome P450 driven metabolism of polyunsaturated fatty acids and the biological function of eicosanoids in C. elegans.
• The involvement of cytochrome P450 in the metabolism of PCBs and how do P450s effect the fat storage in C. elegans?
• Humic substances induced chemoattraction and gene expression pattern.
• Influence of polyphenolic substances on aging and other fitness parameters.
• Adverse effects of anthropogenic introduced chemical compounds (e.g. PCB) and induced global gene expression
  pattern measured by whole genomic DNA arrays.