Since 2016, the GDCh Division of Biochemistry has been awarding the Young Scientist Award Biochemistry to recognize outstanding research achievements in the field of biochemistry - proven either by a dissertation or an original publication in a scientific journal. The award comes with an award certificate and prize money of 2,000 euros. The award is decided by a panel of experts appointed by the Division Board . From 2024, up to two prizes will be awarded per year.
The price is currently not advertised.
For the first time in 2024, the Division of Biochemistry of the German Chemical Society awarded two fully endowed prizes. These were presented to Dr. Davide Tamborrini and Dr. Minh Nguyen Trung on October 1, 2024, at Biochemistry 2024 in Dortmund.
Dr. Davide Tamborrini: "Awarded in recognition of his dissertation entitled “Structural Investigation of the Relaxed Cardiac Sarcomere by Electron Cryo-Tomography” written in the working group of Prof. Dr. Stefan Raunser at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Physiology in Dortmund. Dr. Tamborrini determined high-resolution structures of native thick myosin filaments in mouse cardiac muscle, answering decades-old questions. The structures revealed the three-dimensional organization of myosin, titin, and myosin-binding protein C (MyBP-C), and showed that MyBP-C bridges thin and thick filaments. The arrangement of the proteins is completely different from predictions and explains important mechanistic features of muscle contraction and its regulation. The results of his valuable work are paradigmatic and open the door to a new world of muscle research, both to understand how muscles work and to find treatments for diseases."
Dr. Minh Nguyen Trung: "Awarded in recognition of his dissertation working group "Elucidation of Inositol Polyphosphate Dephosphorylation Pathways Using Stable-Isotope Labelling and NMR Spectroscopy" written in the research group of Prof. Dr. Dorothea Fiedler at the Leibniz Research Institute for Molecular Pharmacology in Berlin . Minh Nguyen Trung developed an innovative analytical method that combines targeted 13 C isotope labelling with NMR spectroscopy to decipher inositol phosphate metabolism both biochemically and in complex biological samples. His method closes a technical gap and opens up perspectives for future research in many areas, including research into inositol phosphate-dependent hereditary diseases and the metabolism of the human microbiome. "
The Young Scientist Award of the Division of Biochemistry of the German Chemical Society was split and presented to Dr. Jan Felber and Dr. Wout Oosterheert on September 5, 2023, on the occasion of the GDCh Science Forum on Chemistry in Leipzig.
"The prize is awarded to Dr. Jan Felber in recognition of his dissertation entitled "Rational development of stabilized cyclic disulfide redox probes and bioreductive prodrugs to target dithiol oxidoreductases," which he wrote in the working group of Dr. Oliver Thorn-Seshold at the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich. Jan Felber has made a significant contribution to a better understanding of enzyme cascades in redox biochemistry through the systematic development of complex disulfide structures and their use for the cellular activation of novel molecular probes by special oxidoreductases. Due to the modularity of the molecular system, his work also promises considerable potential for the use of such disulfide units for the targeted activation of drugs."
"The prize is awarded to Dr. Wout Oosterheert in recognition of his publication entitled “Structural basis of actin filament assembly and aging,” which he prepared in the working group of Prof. Dr. Stefan Raunser at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Physiology in Dortmund and published in the journal Nature .
In this work, Wout Oosterheert determined high-resolution cryo-EM structures of F-actin in all nucleotide states, which made it possible for the first time to visualize hundreds of water molecules in the filament. His resulting elucidation of the ATP hydrolysis mechanism of F-actin represents a milestone in more than a century of physiological and biochemical muscle and cytoskeleton research. His work also provides the valuable basis for the development of actin-binding molecules that can be tailored for imaging and therapeutic applications. "
The Young Scientist Award of the Division of Biochemistry of the German Chemical Society was split and presented on 30 June 2022 to Dr. Goran Kokic and Dr. Sabrina Pospich at the Division conference “Biochemistry 2022” in Münster.
"The prize is awarded to Dr. Goran Kokic in recognition of his publication entitled "Structural basis of human transcription - DNA repair coupling" Nature 2021, 598, 368, which was prepared in the working group of Prof. Dr. Patrick Cramer at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Göttingen and published in the journal Nature. This work is particularly notable for the fact that, for the first time, detailed structural insights into the molecular coupling of gene transcription with DNA repair in eukaryotic cells were obtained. In particular, biochemical and cryo-electronic investigations of large transient multiprotein nucleic acid complexes were combined in such a way that a multi-stage molecular model for transcription-repair coupling could be created. The work is also relevant for adjacent research fields. For example, initial insights into the structural basis of ubiquitination of a large multiprotein complex substrate were obtained, thus laying the foundation for further Investigation of the regulation of transcription-repair coupling."
"The prize is awarded to Dr. Sabrina Pospich in recognition of her dissertation entitled "Deciphering the structural effect of nucleotide hydrolysis and small molecule binding on actin and myosin" written in the working group of Prof. Dr. Stefan Raunser at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Physiology in Dortmund. In her doctoral thesis, Ms. Pospich used cryo-electron microscopy to investigate the proteins actin and myosin, two elementary components of the cytoskeleton and muscle. She skillfully determined a large number of high-resolution three-dimensional structures of actin filaments with various ligands or myosin and was thus able to gain important insights into biologically and medically relevant issues. Her work makes a decisive contribution to the molecular understanding of cardiomyopathies and other muscle diseases."
The 2020 Young Scientist Award of the Division of Biochemistry of the German Chemical Society was shared and presented to Dr. Mohammad Ghaem Maghami and Dr. Linlin Zhang as part of the GDCh Science Forum Chemistry 2021 awarded.
The prize is awarded to Dr. Mohammad Ghaem Maghami awarded in recognition of his dissertation on the topic: "Development, characterization, and application of RNA catalysts for in situ labeling of target RNA molecules". In his work, Mr. Ghaem Maghami was able to develop new ribozymes for the position-specific labeling and modification of RNA by in vitro selection. In doing so, he provides powerful tools for the bioorthogonal derivatization of RNA, which will be used in chemical and biological studies of functional RNAs. The dissertation was written in the working group of Prof. Dr. Claudia Höbartner at the Julius-Maximilians-University Würzburg.
The prize is awarded to Dr. Linlin Zhang in recognition of her publication entitled: “Crystal structure of SARS-CoV-2 main protease provides a basis for design of improved α-ketoamide inhibitors”. With this work, Dr. Zhang laid the foundation for the structure-based design of anti-coronavirus drugs, the first of which are already in clinical trials. The publication was prepared in the working group of Prof. Dr. Rolf Hilgenfeld at the University of Lübeck.
The 2020 Young Scientist Award of the Division of Biochemistry of the German Chemical Society was shared and presented to Maximilian Fottner and Dr. Marc-André Kasper at the “Advances in Chemical Biology” Conference on January 27, 2021 in Frankfurt.
The prize is awarded to Mr. Maximilian Fottner in recognition of his publication entitled: “Site-specific ubiquitylation and SUMOylation using genetic-code expansion and sortase”. In his doctoral thesis, Maximilian Fottner dealt with innovative and interdisciplinary strategies for the site-specific modification of proteins. In his award-winning work, Mr. Fottner developed a groundbreaking and promising method for the targeted and selective labeling of proteins – both in vitro and in living mammalian cells – with the small marker protein ubiquitin. In doing so, he succeeded in developing an extremely powerful tool for analyzing the biological functions and consequences of these extremely important post-translational modifications.
The prize is awarded to Dr. Marc-André Kasper in recognition of his dissertation on the subject of “Chemoselective synthesis of functional drug conjugates”. In his work, Dr. Kasper was able to develop a new cysteine-selective reaction for the modification of antibodies, known as P5 labeling. Using this process, he produced a new antibody-drug conjugate that has better efficacy and stability properties than an already approved drug.
The 2019 Young Scientist Award of the Division of Biochemistry of the German Chemical Society was shared and presented to Dr. Karolin Wellner, Dr. Andreas Blees and Dr. Dennis Quentin at the GDCh Science Forum 2019 in Aachen on September 16, 2019.
In her doctoral thesis "On the functional analysis of the 3' end of tRNAs and the importance of ribonucleases for quality control", Dr. Wellner investigated the interaction of opposing enzyme activities that are involved in the processing and degradation of tRNAs. The opposing activities of CCA-added enzyme and RNase T were previously described as a useless cycle. In very elegant experiments, Ms. Wellner was able to show that these activities provide an important interaction in tRNA quality control. She is an excellent experimenter and interprets her data extremely carefully and free of any "overselling" - an important quality for a serious scientist.
The prize is awarded to Dr. Quentin in recognition of his dissertation on the topic: "Structural studies on the Type VI secretion system and human CLN3p". Both his work on the human CLN3 protein and the newly gained insights into the bacterial type 6 secretion system, which Dr. Quentin provided using cryo-electron microscopy, make a decisive contribution to the molecular understanding of childhood dementia NCL and bacterial infections. The dissertation was written in the working group of Prof. Dr. Stefan Raunser at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Physiology in Dortmund.
Dr. Andreas Blees in recognition of his publication on the topic: "Structure of the human MHC-I peptide-loading complex". The adaptive immune system is responsible for recognizing malignant or infected cells. A malfunction can lead to chronic inflammation and autoimmune diseases. Using innovative strategies, Dr. Blees succeeded in preparing the antigen transport and loading complex responsible for immune recognition and thus elucidating its structure. These groundbreaking findings will find their way into textbooks, as they significantly enrich our understanding of cellular immune defense.
The 2018 Young Scientist Award from the Division of Biochemistry of the German Chemical Society was awarded to Dr. Doreen Könning and Dr. Schara Safarian at the international Conference "8th Peptide Engineering Meeting" (PEM 8) in Berlin on November 9, 2018.
Dr. In her doctorate ?Engineered shark antibody domains for biotechnological and biomedical applications?, Könning carried out pioneering research at the interface between biochemistry, pharmaceutical research and immunobiology. She developed processes for the production of tailor-made antibodies that open up new possibilities in drug production, medical diagnostics and cancer therapy. Her research approach, in particular, significantly simplifies the isolation of binding molecules for diagnostic applications and also creates the basis for new therapeutic approaches in personalized immunotherapy.
Dr. Safarian made in his promotion "Structure of a bd oxidase indicates similar mechanisms for membrane-integrated oxygen reductases" pioneering research at the interface between biochemistry and structural biology His work for crystallization and structure determination of microbial cytochrome bd oxidase provide new insights into the structure and function. This protein complex is of fundamental importance in bioenergetics and plays an important role in the pathogenicity of bacterial pathogens. With his work, Dr. Safarian created an essential knowledge base for the structure-based development of active ingredients for the treatment of bacterial infections.
The 2017 advancement Young Scientist Award of the Division of Biochemistry of the German Chemical Society was awarded to Dr. Josephin Marie Holstein and Dr. Jian Lei was awarded on the occasion of the GDCh Science Forum on September 13, 2017 in Berlin.
Dr. In her doctoral thesis ?The 5 'cap of eukaryotic mRNAs as a starting point for chemo-enzymatic markings?, Holstein did pioneering research at the interface between chemistry and biology . Ms. Holstein's new approach makes it possible to mark messenger RNA (mRNA) in a highly selective and sequence-independent manner in vitro and in cells or to specifically influence the function of mRNA. Ms. Holstein discovered a methyl transferase (Ecm1) with a pronounced substrate promiscuity and developed new S-adenosyl-L-methionine analogues, so that mRNA is now accessible for post-synthetic modification and intracellular bioorthogonal reactions.
With his publication on the topic: ?Crystal structure of Zika virus NS2B-NS3 protease in complex with a boronate inhibitor?, Jian Lei carried out pioneering research at the interface between biochemistry, structural biology and pharmaceutical chemistry. His work on the structure elucidation of viral proteases enables new insights into their structure and function. In particular, his research on the structure elucidation of the NS2B / NS3 protease from the Zika virus enables a detailed insight into the processing of the viral polyprotein and creates an essential knowledge base for the structure-based development of active ingredients for the treatment of viral infections.
The 2016 Young Scientist Award from the Division of Biochemistry of the German Chemical Society was awarded to Dr. Marie-Luise Winz in recognition of her doctorate on the subject of "Biological, chemical and computational investigations on RNA function and modification" at the "Shaping the Molecules of Life" Conference on July 7, 2016.
Marie-Luise Winz has done pioneering research at the interface between biology, chemistry and computer science . Her work on the isolation and sequence analysis of chemically modified ribonucleic acids from biological sources led to the discovery of coenzyme-capped regulatory RNAs in bacteria. In addition, Ms. Winz gained fundamental knowledge about the course of in vitro evolution experiments and developed new methods for labeling nucleic acids.
| Year | name | institute | Excellent work |
| 2024 | Dr. Davide Tamborrini | Max Planck Institute for Molecular Physiology, Dortmund | dissertation |
| Dr. Minh Nguyen Trung | Leibniz Research Institute for Molecular Pharmacology, Berlin | dissertation | |
| 2023 | Dr. Wout Oosterheert | Max Planck Institute for Molecular Physiology, Dortmund | publication |
| Dr. Jan Felber | Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich | dissertation | |
| 2022 | Dr. Goran Kokic | Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen | publication |
| Dr. Sabrina Pospich | Max Planck Institute for Molecular Physiology, Dortmund | dissertation | |
| 2021 | Dr. Linlin Zhang | University of Lübeck | publication |
| Dr. Mohammad Ghaem Maghami | Julius-Maximilians-University of Würzburg | dissertation | |
| 2020 | Maximilian Fottner | Technical University of Munich | publication |
| Dr. Marc-André Kasper | Leibniz Research Institute for Molecular Pharmacology, Berlin | dissertation | |
| 2019 | Dr. Andreas Blees | University of Frankfurt | publication |
| Dr. Dennis Quentin | MPI for Molecular Physiology, Dortmund | dissertation | |
| Dr. Karolin Wellner | University of Leipzig | dissertation | |
| 2018 | Dr. Doreen Könning | TU Darmstadt | dissertation |
| Dr. Schara Safarian | MPI Frankfurt | dissertation | |
| 2017 | Dr. Josephin Holstein | University of Münster | dissertation |
| Dr. Jian Lei | University of Lübeck | publication | |
| 2016 | Dr. Marie-Luise Winz | University of Heidelberg | dissertation |
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last modified: 05.05.2025 14:52 H from L.Pecher
