Katja Becker (born 7 March 1965, also known as ''Katja Becker-Brandenburg'' in some older publications) is a German

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

and

biochemist Biochemists are scientists who are trained in biochemistry. They study chemical processes and chemical transformations in living organisms. Biochemists study DNA, proteins and Cell (biology), cell parts. The word "biochemist" is a portmanteau of ...

who has been serving as the president of the

German Research Foundation The German Research Foundation ( ; DFG ) is a German research funding organization, which functions as a self-governing institution for the promotion of science and research in the Federal Republic of Germany. In 2019, the DFG had a funding bud ...

(DFG) since 2020. She had previously been the organization's vice president from 2014 to 2019. From 2009 to 2012 Becker was the vice president for research at

Justus Liebig University University of Giessen, official name Justus Liebig University Giessen (), is a large public research university in Giessen, Hesse, Germany. It is one of the oldest institutions of higher education in the German speaking world, German-speaking w ...

Giessen Giessen, spelled in German (), is a town in the Germany, German States of Germany, state () of Hesse, capital of both the Giessen (district), district of Giessen and the Giessen (region), administrative region of Giessen. The population is appro ...

, Germany. From 2015 to 2017 she was a German representative on the scientific committee of the

European Cooperation in Science and Technology The 'European Cooperation in Science and Technology'' (COST Association) is running an EU-funded programme which enables researchers and innovators to set-up their own research networks in a wide range of scientific topics, called COST Actions. ...

(COST).

Early life and education

Becker studied

medicine Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

at Ruprecht Karls University in Heidelberg, Germany, from 1984 to 1991. In 1988 she received her

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

(''summa cum laude'') under the tutelage of R. Heiner Schirmer. The topic of her dissertation was "Glutathione reductase and its apoenzyme: contributions to malaria chemotherapy and to diagnosing FAD deficiencies" (German: ''Glutathionreduktase und ihr Apoenzym: Beiträge zur Chemotherapie der Malaria und zur Diagnostik von FAD-Mangelzuständen''). She completed her university professor qualification (German: ''

Habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in Germany, France, Italy, Poland and some other European and non-English-speaking countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excelle ...

'') in 1996 in the field of

biochemistry Biochemistry, or biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology, a ...

at the medical faculty of the University of Heidelberg.

Career

After completing her

medical residency Residency or postgraduate training is a stage of graduate medical education. It refers to a qualified physician (one who holds the degree of MD, DO, MBBS/MBChB), veterinarian ( DVM/VMD, BVSc/BVMS), dentist ( DDS or DMD), podiatrist ( DPM), o ...

John Radcliffe Hospital John Radcliffe Hospital (informally known as the JR or the John Radcliffe) is a large tertiary teaching hospital in Oxford, England. It forms part of Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and is named after John Radcliffe (physician) ...

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

and the

University Hospital of Basel The University Hospital of Basel (German: ''Universitätsspital Basel'', USB), in Basel, is one of the five university hospitals of Switzerland. Since 1842 it is located in a former palace, the Markgräflerhof. Hospital Until 1865 it was calle ...

, Becker gained clinical and research experience in

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

and

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

and worked as a postdoctoral fellow at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

. She qualified as a medical specialist in biochemistry at Heidelberg University in 1998. Becker subsequently worked as a senior research fellow at the Biochemistry Center of Heidelberg University. In 1999 Julius Maximilians University in

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is, after Nuremberg and Fürth, the Franconia#Towns and cities, third-largest city in Franconia located in the north of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. It sp ...

appointed her to an associate professorship in the Research Center for Infectious Diseases (German: ''Zentrum für Infektionsforschung''). In 2000,

in Giessen appointed her to a full professorship in Biochemistry and

Molecular Biology Molecular biology is a branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecule, molecular basis of biological activity in and between Cell (biology), cells, including biomolecule, biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactio ...

at the Interdisciplinary Research Center (German: ''Interdisziplinäres Forschungszentrum für biowissenschaftliche Grundlagen der Umweltsicherung (IFZ)''). Most of her research focus is on the role of

oxidative stress Oxidative stress reflects an imbalance between the systemic manifestation of reactive oxygen species and a biological system's ability to readily detoxify the reactive intermediates or to repair the resulting damage. Disturbances in the normal ...

and antioxidative protective mechanisms during disease development and on developing new drugs to fight tumorous and

infectious diseases infection is the invasion of tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmissible disease or communicable dise ...

, especially

malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...

. In 2006 she spent six months at the

Scripps Research Institute Scripps Research is a nonprofit American medical research facility that focuses on research and education in the biomedical sciences. Headquartered in San Diego, California, the institute has over 170 laboratories employing 2,100 scientists, tec ...

for a research stay. From 2000 until 2005, Becker was a member of the ''

Junge Akademie The Junge Akademie at the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BBAW) and the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina is supported by the two oldest scientific academies in Germany, and represents an interdisciplinary platf ...

'', part of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and the Leopoldina Academy. Since June 2009 she has been a full member of the Leopoldina Academy, one of its youngest so far. On 21 October 2009 Becker became the first woman ever to be elected to the vice presidency of the University of Giessen, serving her three-year term from 1 November 2009 to 31 October 2012. Since 2014, Becker has been the coordinator of DFG Priority Program 1710, "Dynamics of Thiol-based Redox Switches in Cellular Physiology." Since 2018 she has been the coordinator of the LOEWE Center DRUID (Novel Drug Targets against Poverty-related and Neglected Tropical Infectious Diseases) as part of the Hessian State initiative to fund academic-economic excellence (''LandesOffensive zur Entwicklung Wissenschaftlich-ökonomischer Exzellenz - LOEWE''). On 3 July 2019 Becker was elected as president of the German Research Foundation, thereby becoming the first female to hold this post. In the year-long selection process, she won over Wolfgang Marquardt and

Dorothea Wagner Dorothea Wagner (born 1957) is a German computer scientist, known for her research in graph drawing, route planning, and social network analysis. She heads the Institute of Theoretical Informatics at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology.

. She had been vice president of the German Research Foundation since 2014.

Other activities

Becker is a member of several scientific and political advisory boards, works as an expert reviewer, and organizes academic conferences, including the following: * Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Member of the Board of Trustees (since 2020) *

German Future Prize The German Future Prize award is considered one of the most prestigious conferred for science and innovation within Germany. The award is worth 250,000 euros and is supported by numerous sponsors. This prize has been awarded to various exception ...

, Member of the Board of Trustees (since 2020) *

Fritz Thyssen Foundation The Fritz Thyssen Foundation () is a private nonprofit foundation in Germany, created on 7 July 1959 by Amélie Thyssen and Anita Gräfin Zichy-Thyssen and named in memory of prominent iron and steel manufacturer August Thyssen and his son Fritz, ...

, Member of the Scientific Advisory Board (since 2020) *

German National Academic Foundation The German Academic Scholarship Foundation (German: , or ''Studienstiftung'' for short) is Germany's largest and most prestigious scholarship foundation. According to its statutes, it supports "the university education of young people who, on ac ...

, Member of the Board of Trustees (since 2020) * Center for Infectious Diseases (ZINF),

University of Würzburg The Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg (also referred to as the University of Würzburg, in German ''Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg'') is a public research university in Würzburg, Germany. Founded in 1402, it is one of the ol ...

, Member of the Scientific Advisory Board (2016–2019)

Recognition

For her research and teaching activities, Becker has won multiple awards, including the following: * 1989 – Ludolf Krehl Prize, awarded by the Southwest German Society of Internal Medicine (for her dissertation) * 2003 – Carus Medal, awarded by the German

National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina The German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina (), in short Leopoldina, is the national academy of Germany, and is located in Halle (Saale). Founded on 1 January 1652, based on academic models in Italy, it was originally named the ''Academi ...

* 2010 –

Rudolf Leuckart Karl Georg Friedrich Rudolf Leuckart (7 October 1822 – 22 February 1898) was a German zoologist born in Helmstedt. He was a pioneer of parasitology research and was widely known for developing a series of illustrated wall charts for use in zo ...

Medal, awarded by the German Society for Parasitology (for her work on energy

metabolism Metabolism (, from ''metabolē'', "change") is the set of life-sustaining chemical reactions in organisms. The three main functions of metabolism are: the conversion of the energy in food to energy available to run cellular processes; the co ...

in pathogenic parasites such as the malaria pathogen)

Selected writings

Books

* *

Journal articles

* * * *Fritz-Wolf, Karin; Kehr, Sebastian; Stumpf, Michaela; Rahlfs, Stefan; Becker, Katja: Crystal structure of the human thioredoxin reductase–thioredoxin complex.

Nature Communications ''Nature Communications'' is a peer-reviewed, open access, scientific journal published by Nature Portfolio since 2010. It is a multidisciplinary journal that covers the natural sciences, including physics, chemistry, earth sciences, medic ...

2:383, 2011
doi: 10.1038/ncomms1382
*Krieg, Reimar; Jortzik, Esther; Goetz, Alice-Anne; Blandine, Stèphanie; Wittlin, Sergio; Elhabiri, Mourad; Rahbari, Mahsa; Nuryyeva, Selbi; Voigt, Kerstin; Dahse, Hans-Martin; Brakhage, Axel; Beckmann, Svenja; Quack, Thomas; Grevelding, Christoph G.; Pinkerton, Anthony B.; Schönecker, Bruno; Burrows, Jeremy; Davioud-Charvet, Elisabeth; Rahlfs, Stefan; Becker, Katja: Arylmethylamino steroids as antiparasitic agents.

8:14478, 2017
doi: 10.1038/ncomms14478

References

External links

*
''Curriculum vitae'' of Katja Becker
Chair of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology,

Katja Becker
in the database of renowned academics from

AcademiaNet AcademiaNet is an international database containing profiles of women scientists. It is a non-profit project with the goal to raise the share of women in leadership positions in academia. AcademiaNet was initiated in 2010 in Germany by the Robert B ...

List of Katja Becker's publications
from the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology group's website
Membership in the workgroup "Ethics in Science"
of the ''Jungen Akademie'' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Becker, Katja German biochemists German molecular biologists Living people German women biochemists 1965 births Physicians from Heidelberg