Research

Funding: QS-Wissenschaftsfonds, 34.980 EUR

Project Details:
As part of the project, a practical feeding concept will be developed that utilizes a protein-rich by-product stream from insect production and, while taking ecological and economic aspects into account, enhances food safety by reducing zoonotic pathogens in fresh poultry products.

Funding: Fritz-Ahrberg-Stiftung, 25.000 EUR

Project Details:
Alternative ingredients such as plants or insects as substitutes for meat in (vegetarian or vegan) meat products have been increasingly researched in recent years and are already being used in some commercial products. Algae are also an interesting alternative to meat, as they are also high in protein. A distinction is made between microalgae and macroalgae. Scientific studies with microalgae species such as Chlorella spp. or Spirulina spp. as meat substitutes in meat products have shown that their addition has an influence on physicochemical parameters, especially colour. Since the studies published to date have mostly used only one microalgae species in a few concentrations with one type of meat (mostly pork), the proposed project aims to produce cooked sausages from two different microalgae species, Chlorella spp. or Spirulina spp. in different concentrations to replace the meat content, varying the type of meat replaced (pork, beef, chicken). In addition to physicochemical parameters such as pH value or colour, microbiological parameters (after inoculation, if applicable) will also be examined during storage in a protective gas atmosphere in order to evaluate the influence of meat replacement by microalgae during storage in retail outlets.

Funding: Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) and German Aerospace Center (DLR), 130.000 EUR

Project Details:
The high-energy cosmic radiation has a decisive influence on all manned space missions. The effect of this radiation on the model organism Trichoplax adhaerens (Placozoa) will be investigated in this project. Placozoans are the most simply organized multicellular animals and can give us crucial clues about the effect of cosmic radiation on humans.

Cooperation Partners:

Patrick Humbert, La Trobe University, Australia

Jens Hauslage, DLR, Köln

Funding: Fritz Ahrberg-Stiftung, 15.000 EUR

Project Details:
The project aims to develop optimized phage formulations through encapsulation and freeze-drying in order to improve the distribution and effectiveness of the phages in minced meat. In addition, bacteriocins are to be integrated into the developed phage formulations as a second minimization strategy in order to exploit possible synergistic effects. Bacteriocins are proteins produced by bacteria that are used to defend against other bacterial strains. Currently, two bacteriocins are approved for use in food in Europe. Since 2017, bacteriocins have been isolated and studied at the Institute for Food Quality and Safety for use against Salmonella, Listeria, and Campylobacter. The effectiveness of the developed formulations will be tested in meat preparations.

Results:

Vorstellung der aktuellen Ergebnisse im Rahmen einer Posterpräsentation auf der 65. Arbeitstagung "Lebensmittelsicherheit und Verbraucherschutz" der DVG in Garmisch-Partenkirchen vom 23.-26.09.2025.

Fritsche, L.P., E. Peh, W.F. Wolkers, O. Berhilevych, M. Plötz, S. Kittler (2025). "Einfluss von Verpackungsmethoden auf die Wirksamkeit von Bakteriophagen in Hühnchen- und Schweinefleisc

Cooperation Partners:

Prof. Dr. Willem Wolk

Project Details:
The aim of this work is to develop a practical microfluidic chip sperm selection method for large-volume (10-20 ml) initial samples of diluted stallion semen. This method is intended to replace semen preparation by centrifugation and increase fertilisation rates after insemination.

Cooperation Partners:

Niedersächsisches Landgestüt Celle

Funding: Associations, 161.400 EUR

Funding: Gesellschaft für Kynologische Forschung (GFK), 10.000 EUR

Project Details:
Due to the frequent use of antibiotics, there are more and more diseases caused by resistant germs in both human and veterinary medicine. Unfortunately, more and more germs on our dogs' skin are showing this problem, so that skin infections that were previously easy to treat are now difficult to treat. Therefore, alternatives to antibiotics are increasingly being sought. A team led by Dr. Jessica Meißner from the Institute for Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmacy at the Hannover University of Veterinary Medicine Foundation is now checking whether products based on manuka honey or ozone oil can help in the fight against multi-resistant skin germs (especially Staphylococcus pseudintermedius) in dogs.

Funding: Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V., Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Energie, 635.500 EUR

Project Details:
The cHillYGIENE project will be carried out in three stages. First, the microbiological contamination of cooling fan units and their surroundings in meat processing plants will be investigated, while simultaneously recording various metadata (including design, materials, temperature range, operating zones, defrosting processes, and refrigerated goods). This will be done through a broad-based status quo survey and long-term monitoring in selected companies. This will provide comprehensive information on the usual microbial colonization, hygienically relevant areas, and the development of microflora in air coolers. Furthermore, the influence of various surface coatings on relevant cooling fan components on microbial contamination is being investigated. Preliminary laboratory-scale tests provide basic information on the extent to which coatings influence the adhesion, detachment, proliferation, and biofilm formation potential of selected microorganisms under practical conditions. Based on this, the previously identified hygienically relevant components of a standard cooling fan are coated, or coated pieces of material are installed in them as sentinels. The modified cooling fan is installed in a practical operation or in a room suitable for simulating practical conditions in order to generate information on the hygienic benefits of surface coatings on cooling fans. Finally, the results are evaluated jointly and discussed with the participating commercial enterprises. Based on the synthesis of all available data, the final report identifies problems and formulates recommendations for implementing the results in practice.

Cooperation Partners:

Externe Kooperationspartner: Technische Hochschule Ostwestfalen-Lippe, Institut für Life Science Technologies, Lemgo

Veterinärmedizinische Fakultät der Universität Leipzig, Institut für Lebensmittelhygiene

Project Details:
Aposematic warning coloration is primarily associated with deterring potential predators. However, only limited knowledge exists regarding the role of such visual signals in intraspecific communication. The aim of this study is to enhance the color intensity of a group of dorsally yellow Dendrobates tinctorius from the locality "Citronella" through dietary supplementation with carotenoids, such as β-carotene and lutein derivatives. The underlying assumption of this experiment is that coloration can be modified through carotenoid supplementation to a degree that allows supplemented individuals to be distinguished from unsupplemented ones by the naked eye, as well as through measurable shifts in reflectance spectra. Individuals exhibiting different levels of pigmentation (supplemented and supplemented = control) will be put together in a test arena for mate-choice experiments and the assessment of territorial behavior. There is reason to assume that particularly intense coloration confers selective advantages in terms of mate choice or dominance behavior, as has been suggested in previous studies on strawberry poison frogs. Such selective advantages, including increased attractiveness or greater competitive ability, are of particular interest in the context of the evolutionary mechanisms underlying warning coloration and the pronounced phenotypic variation observed among different local populations. The study will examine whether the color differences are perceptible to the frogs themselves and how individuals from the two experimental groups respond behaviorally to differently colored conspecifics. Previous studies further suggest that carotenoids may have a stimulatory effect on clutch production. To test this assumption, the reproductive performance of the separately housed experimental groups will be analyzed. The insights gained from this work may contribute to improved amphibian husbandry, provide new perspectives on intraspecific communication, and shed light on the mechanisms driving the evolution of aposematic coloration.

Funding: Fritz-Ahrberg-Stiftung, 100.000 EUR

Project Details:
The protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii is capable of being transmitted to humans via under-cooked meat or contaminated raw foods and has been identified as a potential health risk to the immunocompromised and pregnant population. In the absence of an efficient, rapid test method for foodstuffs that enables early identification of the source of contamination, work is underway on the development of a LAMP assay, with funding provided by the Fritz Ahrberg Foundation. This method should enable the rapid and sensitive detection of even small amounts of parasites in various, sometimes complex food matrices. In a subsequent phase of the project, the presence of pathogens along the food processing chain will be determined. Consequently, potential measures for risk minimisation can be evaluated.