Potential topics for Bachelor/Master theses and internships

Exploration and description of „new“ and poorly known organisms (Sampling in nature, light microscopy, video microscopy, molecular genetics, taxonomy):

• Terrestrial, freshwater and marine vampyrellid Amoebae (Vampyrellida, Rhizaria)

• Predatory and parasitoid flagellates (Viridiraptoridae, Rhizaria)

• Osmotrophic parasites of microalgae (z.B. Fungi)

• Conjugating green algae (Zygnematophyceae)

• Mycophaguous Ciliates (Grossglockneriidae)

Experimental ecology of microbial eukaryotes (Cultivation of microbes, light microscopy, laboratory experiments, statistic analysis, ecological interpretation):

• Prey range specificity of predatory flagellates

• Avoidance strategies of metabolic euglenophytes against predators

• Sun screen mechanisms in terrestrial green algae

Cell biological questions (Immunocytochemistry, fluorescence microscopy, electron microscopy, molecular genetics):

• Cytoskeleton architecture of flagellate Amoebozoa during locomotion and feeding

• Identification of bacterial endosymbionts of microeukarotes

• Infection experiments with intracellular bacteria of the Rickettsiales and Holosporales (Alphaproteobacteria)

Technical projects (Cultivation of microalgae and protozoa, design and analysis of experimental setups, establishment of methods):

• Cryopreservation of unicellular microeukaryotes

• Development and evaluation of a low-cost cryopreparation method for transmission electron microscopy

• Quantitative methods for the determination of flagellar length in various flagellates