“Our new ERC projects highlight the high level of research at Goethe University on some of the most exciting topics of our time. The current geopolitical power structures and their impact on finance, as well as the rising share of neurodegenerative diseases due to an aging population, are pressing questions for the future,” says Prof. Bernhard Brüne, vice president for research at Goethe University.
Will the financial dominance of the United States continue? Is a more strongly bipolar system emerging? Or will the global financial system become increasingly fragmented and complex? These are the questions political scientist Dr. Johannes Petry is addressing in his ERC project “The Geopolitics of Global Finance” (GEOFINANCE). The global financial world is undergoing profound change: Geopolitical rivalries, financial sanctions, investment restrictions, and efforts to reduce dependence on the US dollar are once again placing states at the center of global financial markets. In the GEOFINANCE project, Johannes Petry examines how growing geopolitical competition is changing the relationship between states, markets, and power. GEOFINANCE compares key financial powers such as the US, China, the EU, and Japan, as well as leading international financial centers like Hong Kong, Dubai, and London. Drawing on extensive field research, new financial datasets, and network analyses, the project investigates who holds power in the global financial system and how cross-border financial networks, infrastructures, and investment flows are changing. Petry is a research associate in the field of political science with a focus on international relations and international political economy.
A second ERC Starting Grant goes to the faculty of medicine for a project exploring the mechanisms underlying aging and the causes of neurodegenerative diseases such as the hereditary disorder Huntington’s disease and the neuromuscular disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). In her project UbiAge (“Ubiquitin Signaling as a Key Regulator of Aging and Neurodegeneration”), Dr. Seda Koyuncu will investigate how imbalances in the cell’s protein balance reflect aging processes and contribute to the onset of neurodegenerative diseases. Koyuncu focuses on the small protein ubiquitin, which helps cells ensure that proteins are present in the right amount at the right place and that defective proteins are sent to the cell’s own recycling system. Previous studies in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans—including work by Koyuncu—have already shown that age-related changes in the ubiquitin system influence both lifespan and neurodegenerative processes. Now, the molecular biologist will shed light on the underlying mechanisms and examine how they contribute to the development of age-related diseases. Koyuncu has worked for seven years as a postdoctoral researcher in the Cologne Cluster of Excellence on Aging and Age-Associated Diseases (CECAD). With her UbiAge project, she will now establish an independent research program to investigate the molecular foundations of aging and neurodegeneration.
ERC Starting Grants support outstanding researchers who, in the first years after their doctorate, are building their own research teams and seeking to establish themselves academically with a promising research project. The projects receive up to 1.5 million euros in funding over a period of up to five years.
The European Research Council (ERC) is an institution established by the European Commission to fund research focused on fundamental principles.