Research

Funding: Niedersächsisches Ministerium für Wissenschaft und Kultur, 50.000 EUR

Project Details:
Mit dem Innovation plus-Projekt wird ein Training klinisch-praktischer und kommunikativer Fertigkeiten mit anschließender formativer elektronischer eOSCE-Prüfung (Electronic Objective Structured Clinical Examination) für Studierende, die ihren Zyklus des Praktischen Jahres in der Klinik für Heimtiere, Reptilien, Zier- und Wildvögel der Stiftung Tierärztliche Hochschule Hannover absolvieren, konzipiert und umgesetzt werden. Das Training dient der Vorbereitung der Studierenden auf ihr Praktisches Jahr sowie der tierärztlichen Tätigkeit im Anschluss an das Studium. In dem Zusammenhang werden Modelle und Simulatoren sowie Lernstationen für den Heimtiersektor erstellt für die Vermittlung klinisch-praktischer und kommunikativer Fertigkeiten. Im Anschluss an das praktische Training erfolgt eine Überprüfung der erlernten Fertigkeiten mittels eOSCE-Prüfung.

Funding: Niedersächsisches Ministerium für Wissenschaft und Kultur, 119.900 EUR

Project Details:
Im Rahmen dieses Projektes werden Wissenschaftlerinnen und Wissenschaftler mit verschiedenen Interessensgruppen in den Diskurs treten, um die Akzeptanz potentieller Alternativen zu herkömmlichen Proteinquellen zu erfragen, da diese für den späteren Einsatz als Lebensmittel von entscheidender Bedeutung ist. Der Fokus wird hierbei auf Insekten liegen, da deren Verzehr wahrscheinlich eine größere Herausforderung darstellt als der pflanzlicher Proteine. Ziel des Projekts ist es, die Verbraucherwünsche und -erwartungen sowie die Einstellungen gegenüber neuartigen Lebensmitteln besser zu verstehen und einzuordnen.

Funding: BMBF, 114.582 EUR

Project Details:
Obwohl auf Genomebene in Fledertieren eine Vielzahl von Viren nachgewiesen wurden, gibt es nur eine geringe Zahl, die in Form infektiöser Virusisolate vorliegen. Da der Nachweis von Fledertierviren sehr häufig aus Kotproben erfolgt, sollten differenzierte Darmzellen die Zielzellen vieler dieser Viren sein, weshalb sie für die Isolierung von Fledertierviren aus Kotproben besonders geeignet erscheinen.
Ziel des Projektes ist die Etablierung eines Kultursystems bestehend aus intestinalen Organoiden von Fledermäusen, mit dem es ermöglicht werden soll, Fledermausviren zu isolieren und ihre Vermehrungseigenschaften sowie ihr zoonotisches Potential näher zu charakterisieren.

Results:

https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/spectrum.03098-22

Funding: QS-Wissenschaftsfonds, vertreten durch Qualität und Sicherheit GmbH, Bonn, 39.000 EUR

Project Details:
Tierwohl und Tiergesundheit haben in den letzten Jahren einen stetig wachsenden Stellenwert auf allen Stufen der Produktionskette von Nutztieren eingenommen. So wird in vielen Bereichen eine zentrale Tiergesundheitsdatenbank gefordert. Zwar ist in verschiedenen Bereichen der Tiergesundheit eine standardisierte Erfas-sung von Daten gesetzlich vorgeschrieben bzw. durch private Unternehmen abge-deckt, jedoch erfolgt bisher keine zentrale und vor allem keine gesamthafte Aus-wertung, die die Wechselwirkungen der Informationen berücksichtigt.
In diesem Projekt werden Daten von Mastschwein haltenden Mitgliedsbetrieben der Qualität und Sicherheit GmbH aus drei Jahren ausgewertet. Dabei werden verschiedene Gesundheitsvariablen aus den Bereichen Antibiotikaeinsatz, Salmo-nellenmonitoring, Schlachtbefunde und Biosicherheit miteinander verknüpft und sowohl deskriptiv als auch in statistischen Modellen ausgewertet, um strukturelle Zusammenhänge und Wechselwirkungen zu erkennen. Der Erkenntnisgewinn kann als Entscheidungsmatrix zur Identifikation von Betrieben genutzt werden, die bei rein kumulativer Betrachtung einzelner Merkmale nicht auffällig sind, aber den-noch eine spezifische Option zur Verbesserung der Tiergesundheit besitzen (z.B. Betriebe mit geringem Antibiotikaeinsatz bei gleichzeitiger gesundheitlicher Problematik).

Funding: Leibniz-Informationszentrum, Technik und Naturwissenschaften, Technische Universitätsbibliothek (TIB), Hannover, 3.560 EUR

Project Details:
In order to enable the students to think outside the box, the already existing offer at the TiHo is to
Instructional/learning videos are expanded. Film sequences are planned that contain basic information on the aquatic and terrestrial animal species researched at ITAW, with learning units on their anatomical and physiological aspects
Particularities. Film sequences on autopsies of the respective animal species are intended to further deepen the learning content and illustrate the fields of activity of the veterinarians at the ITAW. The approach is interdisciplinary
and can offer veterinary medicine and biology students as well as other interested parties insights into anatomical, physiological and pathological contexts. The basics are available and can be processed by a technically experienced assistant into an online module lasting about 90 minutes.

Funding: MELUND, 56.077 EUR

Project Details:
Research on marine mammals started in Büsum after the first seal mortality in 1988/89. The aim of the scientists is to study the biology and ecology of marine mammals and to assess the impact of humans on the animals, their health and their population. The scientific focus is on studies of health (exposure to pollutants, underwater noise, stress, immune system, infectious diseases, etc.) as well as behaviour, habitat use, population densities and impacts of anthropogenic interventions. Among other lines of research, the scientists are currently investigating the effects of underwater noise (e.g. from explosions, offshore wind turbines, shipping) on the behaviour and health of seals and harbour porpoises, chemical pollution and waste, disturbances and fishing on marine mammals. The stranding network ensures that whales and seals found on the coasts of Schleswig-Holstein can be reported, recovered and necropsied. The state of health is determined by means of further histological, microbiological and parasitological examinations. In this project, the tissues of porpoises found dead in the North Sea and the Baltic Sea will be examined for specific pollutants and the auditory apparatus will be analysed.
The following pollutants will be investigated in the liver and fat of harbour porpoises from waters in Schleswig-Holstein: polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and derivatives, dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and mercury (Hg). The results of the toxicological investigation will be combined with the data on health status from the autopsies and an ecotoxicological assessment will be made. The results will be used for the development of further investigations for the various agreements, such as HELCOM, OSPAR, MSRL, and development of indicators.
For investigations of the auditory apparatus, dead harbour porpoises recovered within the framework of the small cetacean monitoring programme of the Land of Schleswig-Holstein should be collected immediately after reporting in order to remove and preserve the ears as fresh as possible for the investigation. In particular, harbour porpoises found dead after blasting and other impulse sound events as well as by-catches and live strandings shall be included. High-resolution computed tomography scans of the ear bones will be performed as well as confocal microscopic and histological examinations.
The studies on the auditory apparatus of harbour porpoises carried out in this project will be considered in the context of ongoing or completed studies at ITAW with similar questions. The results of this project will be used to assess whether changes in various structures of the auditory pathways may have been caused by exposure of harbour porpoises to explosions or other impulsive sound events.

Results:

Bericht an das Ministerium für Energiewende, Klimaschutz, Umwelt und Natur des Landes Schleswig-Holstein

https://www.schleswig-holstein.de/DE/fachinhalte/A/artenschutz/Downloads/untersuchungSchweinswale2021.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=1

Funding: This work was supported by COVID-19 Research Network of the State of Lower Saxony (COFONI) with funding from the Ministry of Science and Culture of Lower Saxony, Germany (14-76403-184) and by PRACTIS?Clinician Scientist Program of Hannover Medical School, funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG-ME3696/3-1)., 50.000 EUR

Project Details:
Vaccination is an important measure in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic. However, there were pharmocovigilance concerns as a very rare but potentially disastrous complication was identified after application with the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine, i.e. cerebral sinus thrombosis, but also further thrombotic complications including ischemic stroke. Meanwhile, the most likely mechanism has been identified as platelet factor 4 (PF4) antibody mediated immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia, a mechanism which is already known from heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT). Interestingly NETs were suggested to be critical for thrombus formation in the HIT-pathophysiology as well. Markers of NETosis were observed in platelet-rich thrombi in the lungs of mice with HIT. Therefore, NETs might also be involved in vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT) mediated thrombotic complications and might therefore be a common trunk in the pathogenesis of COVID-19 and vaccine-induced complications. Moreover, biomarkers reflecting NETs burden in the circulation and within tissue specimens (e.g. cerebral thrombi) may be suitable as diagnostic, therapeutic or prognostic targets in thrombotic diseases. Most importantly, there is a tremendous need to identify patients at risk for cerebrovascular complications due to both COVID-19 and VITT. The proposed project ISI-VITT is intended to contribute to addressing this issue.

Cooperation Partners:

Cerebrovascular Research Group (Head: Prof. Dr. Karin Weissenborn), Deptartment of Neurology, Medical School Hannover: Dr. Ramona Schuppner & Dr. Gerrit M. Grosse

Prof. Dr. Christine Falk, Institute for Transplantation Immunology, Medical School Hannover

Funding: MWK über UMG Göttingen, 29.847 EUR

Project Details:
SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Type 2) is the causative agent of COVID-19. The course of the COVID-19 pandemic so far has emphatically shown that a coordinated bundling of interdisciplinary and complementary expertise is necessary in order to decode the diverse aspects of the biology, pathology and epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 and to use the knowledge gained clinically for the treatment of patients as well as for modeling the course of infection in the population. In order to be able to provide and implement such a holistic approach, the federal state of Lower Saxony offers ideal conditions with its internationally renowned science locations. We are therefore applying for financial support for collaborative research to set up a COVID-19 research network in the state of Lower Saxony (COFONI).

Funding: MWK über UMG Göttingen, 34.750 EUR

Project Details:
SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Type 2) is the causative agent of COVID-19. The course of the COVID-19 pandemic so far has emphatically shown that a coordinated bundling of interdisciplinary and complementary expertise is necessary in order to decode the diverse aspects of the biology, pathology and epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 and to use the knowledge gained clinically for the treatment of patients as well as for modeling the course of infection in the population. In order to be able to provide and implement such a holistic approach, the federal state of Lower Saxony offers ideal conditions with its internationally renowned science locations. We are therefore applying for financial support for collaborative research to set up a COVID-19 research network in the state of Lower Saxony (COFONI).

Funding: MWK über UMG Göttingen, 41.000 EUR

Project Details:
SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Type 2) is the causative agent of COVID-19. The course of the COVID-19 pandemic so far has emphatically shown that a coordinated bundling of interdisciplinary and complementary expertise is necessary in order to decode the diverse aspects of the biology, pathology and epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 and to use the knowledge gained clinically for the treatment of patients as well as for modeling the course of infection in the population. In order to be able to provide and implement such a holistic approach, the federal state of Lower Saxony offers ideal conditions with its internationally renowned science locations. We are therefore applying for financial support for collaborative research to set up a COVID-19 research network in the state of Lower Saxony (COFONI).