THESES AND OPEN POSITIONS
Bachelor- and Mastertheses
We are happy to welcome students who would like to write their thesis at the Institute of Breath Research. If you are interested, please contact the relevant supervisors directly.
Breath Landscapes in Parkinson’s Disease: Mapping VOC Signatures for Non‑Invasive Diagnosis
Start: October 2016
Contact:
Prof. Chris A. Mayhew, christopher.mayhew@uibk.ac.at
Dr. Lorenzo Petralia, DPhil, Lorenzo.Petralia@uibk.ac.at
Master's thesis to be awarded at the Institute of Breath Research at the University of Innsbruck on the topic:
Breath Landscapes in Parkinson’s Disease: Mapping VOC Signatures for Non‑Invasive Diagnosis
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that still lacks a routine laboratory test for early diagnosis and objective monitoring. Recent work suggests that specific patterns of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in exhaled breath and skin/sebum can distinguish PD patients from age‑matched controls, but these candidate biomarkers require validation in independent cohorts using standardized sampling and analysis protocols
The aim of this master’s thesis is to investigate VOC signatures in the exhaled breath of people with Parkinson’s disease and healthy control subjects, combining controlled laboratory measurements with sample collection in a clinical setting. The student will perform standardized breath measurements using state‑of‑the‑art analytical techniques (e.g. PTR‑TOF‑MS, GC‑IMS, or GC-MS) at the Institute of Breath Research, and will also support or conduct breath sampling at a collaborating neurology clinic in Innsbruck. Particular focus will be placed on harmonising sampling protocols between laboratory and clinic, assessing the influence of ventilatory pattern and environmental background air, and exploring whether selected VOC features reported in the literature can be reproduced in this local cohort.
The thesis combines practical work with breath sampling and operation of advanced analytical instruments with data processing and interpretation. The student will contribute to all stages from planning and performing breath measurements, through basic quality control and pre‑processing, to exploratory statistical analysis of the resulting VOC data, under close supervision by the team at the Institute of Breath Research.
Requirements
This master’s thesis is aimed at advanced, motivated master’s students in chemistry, pharmacy, biology, or related disciplines with an interest in interdisciplinary research. A willingness to work independently, reliability in contact with patients and clinical staff, as well as accuracy and diligence in experimental work and data handling, are required. Basic experience with laboratory work is expected; previous knowledge in mass spectrometry, statistics or programming (e.g. Python) is advantageous but not mandatory.
Investigation of the production of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) by the mycoparasitic fungus Trichoderma atroviride
Start: as soon as possible
Contact: Assistant-Prof. Dr. Veronika Ruzsanyi, 0512-507-55603, Veronika.Ruzsanyi@uibk.ac.at
Univ. Prof. Dr. Susanne Zeilinger-Migsich, 0512-507-51250, Susanne.Zeilinger@uibk.ac.at
Alexander Eschlböck, Alexander.Eschlboeck@uibk.ac.at
Dr. Arne Schiller, Arne.Schiller@uibk.ac.at
Master's thesis to be awarded at the Institute of Microbiology in collaboration with the Institute of Breath Research at the University of Innsbruck on the topic:
Investigation of the production of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) by the mycoparasitic fungus Trichoderma atroviride
Project description
Trichoderma atroviride is a filamentous fungus that is capable of parasitizing and killing pathogenic fungi on crops (mycoparasitism). T. atroviride can also interact with plants, promoting their growth and resistance to abiotic stress factors and activating the plant immune system. Due to these versatile abilities, T. atroviride is increasingly being used as a biological plant protection agent in agriculture.
In recent years, it has become increasingly clear that secondary metabolites in particular play a role in combating plant-pathogenic fungi and in plant strengthening by T. atroviride. Volatile organic compounds play an important role, especially at the beginning of this complex interspecies interaction. However, their mechanisms of action and composition have hardly been researched to date.
The aim of this master's thesis is to investigate the production of various volatile organic compounds by the mycoparasitic fungus T. atroviride and its mutants in pure culture, as well as in host-induced conditions in direct contact with various phytopathogenic fungi.
The thesis combines microbiological cultivation experiments with chemical analyses. The microbiological work, such as the cultivation of the fungi and the biological evaluation of the data, will be carried out at the Institute of Microbiology, while the analysis of the volatile substances by mass spectrometric analyses (PTR-TOF-MS = proton transfer reaction – time-of-flight mass spectrometry, GC-IMS = gas chromatography – ion mobility spectrometry) and the evaluation of the chemical data are carried out at the Institute for Respiratory Gas Analysis.
Requirements
This master's thesis is aimed at advanced, motivated master's students in microbiology or chemistry with an interest in interdisciplinary research. A willingness to work independently, as well as accuracy and diligence, are required.
Dissertation positions
Unfortunately there are currently no vacancies, but unsolicited applications are always welcome. Please contact Prof. Chris A. Mayhew or Assistenz-Prof. Dr. Veronika Ruzsanyi.