Category: news

Work of the Senate Commission on Food Safety will be funded for three years

Jan 11, 2023

The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG – German Research Foundation) is funding the work of the Senate Commission on Food Safety (Senatskommission zur gesundheitlichen Bewertung von Lebensmitteln – SKLM) with around 800,000 euros over the next three years. The SKLM advises the DFG Senate as well as federal and state governments, parliaments and authorities on food safety issues. Since summer 2017, Prof. Dr. Jan Hengstler, Head of the Toxicology Research Department at IfADo, has been the Chair of the SKLM.

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What mechanisms are at work in paracetamol poisoning of the liver?

December 28, 2022

Acetaminophen poisoning (APAP) is the second most common cause of liver transplantation worldwide. However, not all the correlations that lead to liver damage from APAP are yet known. With the help of functional imaging, the Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environments and Human Factors in Dortmund (IfADo) is therefore investigating in a new research project, on the one hand, how temporary bile stasis after APAP poisoning contributes to liver damage. On the other hand, research is being conducted to find out whether this liver damage can be reduced by medication. The project is funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and will run for three years.

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Half-time in the FELICE project: Shaping the future of global manufacturing

Dec 20, 2022

In the EU research project “Flexible Assembly Manufacturing with Human-Robot Collaboration and Digital Twin Models” (FELICE), IfADo and numerous European partners are researching, among other things, collaboration between humans and robots in the context of production. One focus of the work is on the physical and cognitive ergonomics of employees in production. The next steps consist of defining prerequisites and requirements for human-machine collaboration. For this, application scenarios are created in cooperation with the needs and experiences of assembly workers.

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EU research project on sustainable work successfully completed

Dec 19, 2022

The EU-funded research project sustAGE (smart environments for person-centred sustainable work and well-being) was successfully completed in 2022. Together with international project partners, IfADo addressed the question of how the cognitive, emotional and physical performance of older workers can be analysed and increased in everyday working life. The sustAGE system developed in the project was integrated in a Greek port and in Italian production plants of the automotive industry.

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Working memory: Preparing for the unknown

Nov 28, 2022

Working memory, also called short-term memory, was long theorised to have the core task of actively storing information over a short period of time. Nowadays, working memory is considered more complex, because processes such as information selection and the planning of future actions run in parallel. In a recent study, a group of researchers at Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at TU Dortmund (IfADo) shed light on the prerequisites for the initiation of motor preparation processes in working memory. They come to the conclusion that the brain prepares options for action as early as possible to enable the best possible condition for the execution of an action.

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Simplified measurement method for determining immune age improves analysis of cardiorespiratory fitness

Nov 11, 2022

Both the functionality of the immune system and the so-called cardiorespiratory fitness, CRF in short, play an important role in a person’s health and work ability. Researchers at the Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors in Dortmund (IfADo) have analysed the influence of immune age on cardiorespiratory fitness in more detail. The immunology team has succeeded in developing a simplified procedure for determining an index of immune age and thus improving the determination of CRF.

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Michael Nitsche is one of the “Highly Cited Researchers 2022”

November 16, 2022

Prof. Dr. Michael Nitsche, Head of the Department Psychology & Neurosciences, is one of the most frequently cited scientists worldwide in his field. The neuroscientist is thus once again on the annual “Highly Cited Researchers” list of the US company Clarivate. The company defines “Highly Cited Researchers” as researchers who belong to the one percent of the most frequently cited scientists in their subject area.

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Gender-specific differences in the progression of rheumatoid arthritis discovered

Oct 21, 2022

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease characterised by chronic joint inflammation that leads to functional impairment in many sufferers. There are gender-specific differences in the emergence and development of this disease. Researchers at the Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors in Dortmund (IfADo) have therefore examined the role of the neurotransmitter dopamine in rheumatoid arthritis with particular reference to gender differences. The results point to gender-specific differences in the dopamine-regulated signalling pathway in B cells, whereby dopamine may even have a pro-inflammatory effect in women.

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Matthias Jäger receives NIOSH Bullard-Sherwood Research-to-Practice Award

September 19, 2022

Many people know that heavy objects such as crates of drinks should be lifted close to the body “from the legs” and if possible not “from the back”. Especially in occupations that involve a lot of repetitive lifting and carrying, correct posture is particularly important to reduce the risk of musculoskeletal disorders. In this context, Matthias Jäger from the Leibniz Institute for Occupational Research at TU Dortmund University (IfADo) and seven international colleagues have revised an international standard and interpreted the load limits that can be derived from it with regard to the risk of disease. For updating this standard, they received the NIOSH Bullard-Sherwood Research-to-Practice Award.

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