Markus Winterberg new professor of analytical chemistry

Vaccination with a plaster instead of a syringe - Dr Markus Winterberg is currently still researching this at a company in the region. In simple terms, it works like this: 300 microscopically small needles in an active ingredient patch prick the upper layer of skin painlessly and release the vaccine. The patch then detaches from the skin. Such microneedle patches are being developed for vaccinations against hepatitis B, for example, but could also be used for immunisation against malaria. "So far, there is only one vaccine against malaria, but it only works to a limited extent," explains Winterberg. By being applied to the skin, malaria vaccine patches can generate higher immunisation titres, and they also have the advantage that they do not need to be refrigerated, according to the scientist. He hopes that in this way, young children in the tropics in particular can be better immunised, as they are the most severely affected by this disease.

Research and teaching in Australia and Thailand

Winterberg studied biology and completed his doctorate at the University of Marburg. Even during this time, he was very interested in parasitology and tropical medicine. As a postdoc, he spent six years at the Australian National University in Canberra, where he focussed on precisely these topics. He then moved to the Oxford University branch in Thailand, where he was head of clinical pharmacology and also taught at Mahidol University in Bangkok. At the end of 2019, he returned to Germany with his his two children and his wife, who is also a biologist and had just founded a start-up.

Practically oriented education is important to the new professor

The family decided to move to Rheinbach by chance - because of the town's favourable transport links to company locations, short distances to other family members and the grammar school with its bilingual stream. Today, the quartet feels at home in the Rhein-Sieg district and Markus Winterberg will soon have a short commute to work as a professor at the Rheinbach campus. But something else is more important to him. "I'm drawn back to the university and I'm really looking forward to working with the students," he says. His focus on analytical chemistry and quality control is in line with what he last did at the company. As a scientist, he wants to focus on malaria research again and continue his work on microneedles. He also wants to involve the students in this work.

Professor Winterberg attaches particular importance to practical training. "I come from industry and know what industry wants," he says. "And I know how to train students so that they get a job later on."