Katja Becker
CURRICULUM VITAE
Katja Becker
Address | Chair of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Interdisciplinary Research Center, Justus Liebig University Giessen Heinrich-Buff-Ring 26-32, 35392 Giessen Tel.: +49-(0)641-9939120 |
Scientific Focus |
Cellular redox and energy metabolism, rational drug development against malaria and cancer cells |
Languages | German, English, Latin |
Parents | Ursula Becker, Teacher, Prof. Dr. Georg E. Becker, Professor of Pedagogics |
School | Karlsschule, Freiburg i. Br., and Kurpfalz Gymnasium Schriesheim/Heidelberg, Graduation 1984 |
1984-1991 | Medical education, Heidelberg University |
1986-1988 | MD thesis (PhD equivalent) at the Institute of Biochemistry, University of Heidelberg; title: "Glutathione reductase and its apoenzyme: contributions to malaria chemotherapy and to the diagnostics of FAD deficiency" (summa cum laude) |
08/1988-03/1989 | DFG scholar at the Institute of Pathology, Sydney University, Australia; clinical work with the Royal Flying Doctor Service, Katherine, NT, Australia; internal medicine at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney |
1990-1991 | Internship at the Kantonspital Basel (internal medicine), Heidelberg University (cardiac surgery), and at the John Radcliffe Hospital Oxford (pediatrics) |
25.11.1991 | Final medical examination |
01/1992-06/1993 | Medical assistant at the University Children's Hospital, Heidelberg. Clinical focus: tropical medicine, infectious diseases, oncology, neonatology. Three months clinical and research work in Nigeria |
12.08.1993 | Licensed to practice medicine |
07/1993-02/1999 | Assistant professor at the Center of Biochemistry, Heidelberg University |
07-12/1994 | Postdoctoral researcher, Institute of Pathology, Sydney University, Australia; scientific work on cerebral malaria |
5.09.1996 | Professor qualification for biochemistry, Ruprecht Karls University, Heidelberg |
11.11.1998 | Medical specialization in biochemistry |
03/1999-09/1999 | Assistant professor (C2) at the Center of Biochemistry, Heidelberg University |
10/1999-08/2000 | Independent junior group leader at the Research Center for Infectious Diseases, Würzburg University |
Since 09/2000 | C4/W3 professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (chair) at the Interdisciplinary Research Center, Giessen University |
11/2005-04/2006 | Research sabbatical at the Department of Cell Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA, USA, Prof. John Yates III, MudPIT (Proteome) analyses |
Awards |
|
1983 | Winner of the contest "Ancient Languages" (Baden Württemberg); scholar of the German National Academic Foundation |
1988 | Scholarship from the German Research Foundation for studies and scientific work abroad |
1989 | Ludolf Krehl Prize from the Southwest German Society for Internal Medicine |
1993 | Young Investigator Award from the Nutritional Science Foundation, Göttingen |
1994 | Boehringer Mannheim research scholarship |
1998 | Friedrich Fischer Estate, Heidelberg University |
Since 07/2000 | Member of the Young Academy at the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and the Leopoldina German Academy of Natural Scientists |
2003 | Funding for the symposium “Redox Metabolism in Malaria: From Genes to Drugs,” Bellagio, Italy, by the Rockefeller Foundation |
Autumn 2003 | Carus Medal from the German Academy of Natural Scientists Leopoldina |
Early 2004 | Carus Prize |
Since June 2009 | Member of the German National Academy of Scientists Leopoldina |
March 2010 | Rudolf Leuckart Medal from the German Society of Parasitology |
Since 2011 | Member of AcademiaNet |
Teaching activities | |
1991-1999 | Biochemistry at Heidelberg University (seminars and practicals; 1997-1999 lectures) |
Since 1993 | Supervision of MD and PhD theses (>50; biochemistry, biology, chemistry, medicine) |
1998/1999 | Guest lecturer at the Biomedical Institute of the Medical Faculty, Milano University, Italy |
1999/2000 | Contributions to the teaching activities of the Research Center for Infectious Diseases, Würzburg |
Since 2000 | C4/W3 professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Regular lectures, seminars, and practicals: Advanced Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Genetic Variation, Pathobiochemistry, Methods of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Infection and Immunity, and others |
2002-2005 | Lectures on Intermediary Metabolism, Academy for Advanced Training in Medicine |
2007 | Summer course, Molecular Parasitology, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, USA (invited lecturer) |
Management experience | |
Since 09/2000 | Full professor of Biochemistry |
10/2002-09/2004 | Chairman of the PhD committee, FB09, JLU |
10/2002-09/2004 | Executive Director of the Institute |
06/2004-05/2005 | Speaker of the Interdisciplinary Research Center, Giessen University |
Since 05/2005 | Design and implementation of the graduate course, Applied Life Sciences, at the Interdisciplinary Research Center, Giessen |
Since 04/2007 | Speaker of Section 7, Bioresources and Biotechnology, of the Giessen Graduate Center for the Life Sciences (GGL) |
11/2009-10/2012 | Vice President (Research) of the Justus Liebig University Giessen |
Since 03/2014 | Speaker of the DFG Priority Program SPP 1710, "Dynamics of Thiol-based Redox Switches in Cellular Physiology" |
Since 07/2014 | Vice President of the German Research Foundation |
Since 04/2015 | German Representative in the COST Scientific Committee, Brussels |
Scientific Activities | |
Publications | (Hirsch index: 54) |
226 publications, of those 155 original, peer-reviewed articles in international journals, 60 book articles, 5 books and special issues, 6 patents | |
Consulting activities | |
Since 1994 | Member of the editorial board of the journal Redox Report |
2002 | Consultant for the Volkswagen Foundation's Africa Program |
2003-2005 | Member of the scientific advisory board of the BlueCQ clinical trial (chloroquine-methylene blue combination therapy), Heidelberg University |
2006-2011 | Member of the scientific advisory board of the German Institute of Nutrition Research, Potsdam |
Since 2006 | Member of the scientific advisory board of the German Center of International Development and Environmenal Research |
Since 2010 | Mentor for female early career academics (Pro Professur and SciMento) |
Since 4/2011 | Panel reviewer, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Bonn |
Since 9/2013 | Member of the scientific advisory board of the Kerkhoff Cardiac Research Institute, Bad Nauheim |
Membership in academic societies | |
German Society of Parasitology, German Society of Tropical Medicine and International Health, Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, International Society for Free Radical Research | |
Organization of conferences | |
1991-1999 | Member of the organizing committee of different workshops and symposia for the Research Focus, Tropical Medicine, Heidelberg University |
10/2001 | "Ethics vs. Lack of Ethics. How Much Ethics Does Science Need?" Symposium of the Young Academy, Berlin |
7/2002 | Member of the organizing commitee, 14th International Congress on Flavins and Flavoproteins, Cambridge, UK |
2/2003 | "Redox Metabolism in Malaria: from Genes to Drugs." Joint organization with Prof. Hagai Ginsburg, Hebrew University, Israel in the conference center of the Rockefeller Foundation, Bellagio, Italy |
7/2004 | Member of the organizing and scientific committee of the international Leopoldina symposium, "Threat of Infection," Würzburg |
4/2005 | Member of the international scientific advisory board of the 15th International Congress on Flavins and Flavoproteins, Tokyo, Japan |
7/2008 | Member of the international scientific advisory board of the 16th International Congress on Flavins and Flavoproteins, Jaca, Spain |
3/2009 | Organizer of the 10th Antiparasitic Drug Design and Development Seminar at Rauischholzhausen Castle, Giessen, Germany |
2009/2010 | Member of the organizing committee of the international symposium on "Redox Metabolism in Microbes and Plants," Barcelona, 2011 |
7/2011 | Member of the international scientific advisory board of the 17th International Congress on Flavins and Flavoproteins, Berkeley, USA |
9/2011 | Member of the organizing committee of the ESF-EMBO symposium, "Glutathione and Related Thiols in Living Cells," Spain, 2011 |
Top 5 publications | |
1. | Becker K, Savvides S, Keese M, Schirmer RH, Karplus PA (1998). Enzyme inactivation through sulfhydryl oxidation by physiologic NO-carriers. Nat Struct Biol 5: 267-271. |
2. | Kanzok S, Fechner A, Bauer H, Ulschmid JK, Müller HM, Botella-Munez J, Schneuwly S, Schirmer RH, Becker K (2001). Substitution of the thioredoxin system for glutathione reductase in Drosophila melanogaster. Science 291: 643-646. |
3. | Fritz-Wolf K, Becker A, Rahlfs S, Harwaldt P, Schirmer RH, Kabsch W, Becker K (2003). X-ray structure of glutathione S-transferase from the malarial parasite Plasmodium falciparum. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 100: 13821-13826. |
4. | Perez-Jimenez R, Li J, Kosuri P, Sanchez-Romero I, Wiita AP, Rodriguez-Larrea D, Chueca A, Holmgren A, Miranda-Vizuete A, Becker K, Cho SH, Beckwith J, Gelhaye E, Jacquot JP, Gaucher E, Sanchez-Ruiz JM, Berne B, Fernandez JM (2009). Diversity of chemical mechanisms in thioredoxin catalysis. Nat Struct Mol Biol 16: 890-896. |
5. | Fritz-Wolf K, Kehr S, Stumpf M, Rahlfs S, Becker K (2011). Crystal structure of the human thioredoxin reductase - thioredoxin complex. Nat Commun 2:383. doi: 10.1038/ncomms1382. |