The University Hospital

PD Dr. rer. nat. Rolf Fendel

PD Dr. rer. nat. Rolf Fendel

Working group leader

Infection Immunology
Vaccine development
Diagnostics development for infectious diseases

Infection Immunology
Vaccine Development
Diagnostics development for infectious diseases

Contact

Phone number: Office: +49 7071 29-82947

Fax number: +49 7071 29-4684

E-mail address: rolf.fendel@uni-tuebingen.de

Clinic / Institute / Center

  • Infection Immunology Working Group
  • Rolf Fendel's research group investigates the innate and adaptive immune response to infections and vaccines. The main focus here is on malaria infection. Over 400,000 people worldwide still die from this parasitic disease every year, mostly children in sub-Saharan Africa. The special feature of this disease is that, despite multiple infections, there is no sterile immune response, but only so-called naturally acquired immunity. The parasite still infects humans, but the course of infection is far less severe. Innovative malaria vaccination strategies make it possible to build up sterile protection in which the parasite can no longer infect humans.
    The focus of the research group is on the investigation of pathogen- and vaccine-specific B- and T-cell responses using protein microarrays, flow cytometry, and other multiplex and monoplex immunoassays. Further projects focus on the development of innovative methods for malaria diagnostics and the pathophysiology of severe malaria.
    Equipment: Molecular Devices Genepix 4400A, Grace Bio-Labs ArraysCAM, BD FACSCanto II, Sony SP6800, Bioplex 200 HTF, Äktaprime plus
  • Research group Infection Immunology (English)
  • Rolf Fendel's research group studies the innate and adaptive immune response to infections and vaccines. The main focus lies on malaria infection. Worldwide, more than 400,000 people still die from this parasitic disease every year, mostly children in sub-Saharan Africa. The peculiarity of this disease is that despite multiple infections, there is no sterile immune response, only the so-called naturally acquired immunity. The parasite still infects humans, but severe infections occur much less frequently. Innovative malaria vaccination strategies make it possible to build up a sterile protection in which the parasite can no longer infect humans.
    The focus of the research group is on the investigation of disease and vaccine specific B- and T-cell responses using protein microarrays, flow cytometry, and other multiplex and monoplex immunoassays. Further projects deal with the development of innovative methods of malaria diagnostics and the pathophysiology of severe malaria.
    Equipment: Molecular Devices Genepix 4400A, Grace Bio-Labs ArraysCAM, BD FACSCanto II, Sony SP6800, Bioplex 200 HTF, Äktaprime plus
  • Since 2020
    Head of Infection Immunology Research Group, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Tübingen
  • 2017 - 2020
    Senior scientist (Mordmüller working group - Experimental Infectiology, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Tübingen)
  • 2016 - 2017
    Deputy Head of Department at Fraunhofer IME, Aachen - Department of Immunotherapy
  • 2010 - 2017
    Group leader at Fraunhofer IME, Aachen and RWTH, Aachen - antibody and vaccine development
  • 2010
    PostDoc at University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), USA
  • 2009 - 2010
    PostDoc at the Institute for Tropical Medicine, Tübingen
  • 2009
    Promotion
  • 2003 - 2009
    Dr. rer. nat. Microbiology at the Institute for Tropical Medicine, Tübingen
  • 2002
    Ti-national degree M.Sc. Biotechnology (D, F, CH) ESBS
  • 2002
    Master's thesis in biotechnology at the Institut Pasteur de la Guyane Francaise
  • 1999 - 2002
    Master's degree in Biotechnology at the Ecole Supérieure de Biotechnologie de Strasbourg, France
  • 1997 - 1999
    Vordiplom Chemical Engineering, University Fridericiana TH Karlsruhe
  • First price Parasitology lecture at University of Tübingen
  • DAAD-scholar
  • Erasmus-scholar
  • First Prize "National Mathematics Competition"
  • First prize for the Immunology Lecture at the Study Program Infection Biology and Control (Medical Faculty)
  • Sulyok, Zita, Rolf Fendel, Bianca Eder, Freia-Raphaella Lorenz, Natasha Kc, Matthias Karnahl, Albert Lalremruata, The T. Nguyen, Jana Held, Folashade Almeine Cyntiche Adjadi, Torsten Klockenbring, Judith Flügge, Tamirat Gebru Woldearegai, Carlos Lamsfus Calle, Javier Ibáñez, Miriam Rodi, Diane Egger-Adam, Andrea Kreidenweiss, Carsten Köhler, Meral Esen, Mihály Sulyok, Anita Manoj, Thomas L. Richie, B. Kim Lee Sim, Stephen L. Hoffman, Benjamin Mordmüller, and Peter G. Kremsner. "Heterologous Protection against Malaria by a Simple Chemoattenuated Pfspz Vaccine Regimen in a Randomized Trial." Nature Communications (2021) https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-22740-w.
  • De Jong, Sanne E., Vincent Van Unen, Mikhael D. Manurung, Koen A. Stam, Jelle J. Goeman, Simon P. Jochems, Thomas Höllt, Nicola Pezzotti, Yoanne D. Mouwenda, Madeleine Eunice Betouke Ongwe, Freia-Raphaella Lorenz, Yvonne C. M. Kruize, Shohreh Azimi, Marion H. König, Anna Vilanova, Elmar Eisemann, Boudewijn P. F. Lelieveldt, Meta Roestenberg, B. Kim Lee Sim, Marcel J. T. Reinders, Rolf Fendel, Stephen L. Hoffman, Peter G. Kremsner, Frits Koning, Benjamin Mordmüller, Bertrand Lell, and Maria Yazdanbakhsh. "Systems Analysis and Controlled Malaria Infection in Europeans and Africans Elucidate Naturally Acquired Immunity." Nature Immunology 22, no. 5: 654-65 (2021) https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41590-021-00911-7.
  • Schöllhorn, Anna, Juliane Schuhmacher, Luciana Besedovsky, Rolf Fendel, Anja T. R. Jensen, Stefan Stevanović, Tanja Lange, Hans-Georg Rammensee, Jan Born, Cécile Gouttefangeas, and Stoyan Dimitrov. "Integrin Activation Enables Sensitive Detection of Functional Cd4+ and Cd8+ T Cells: Application to Characterize Sars-Cov-2 Immunity." Frontiers in Immunology 12 (2021) https://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2021.626308.
  • Kapelski, S., T. Klockenbring, R. Fischer, S. Barth, and R. Fendel. "Assessment of the Neutrophilic Antibody-Dependent Respiratory Burst (ADRB) Response to Plasmodium Falciparum." J Leukoc Biol 96, no. 6: 1131-42. (2014) https://dx.doi.org/10.1189/jlb.4A0614-283RR.
  • Borrmann, Steffen, Zita Sulyok, Katja Müller, Mihaly Sulyok, Rolf Fendel, Johannes Friesen, Albert Lalremruata, Thaisa Lucas Sandri, The Trong Nguyen, Carlos Lamsfus Calle, Annette Knoblich, Javier Ibáñez, Freia-Raphaella Lorenz, Henri Lynn Heimann, David M. Weller, Regina Steuder, Selorme Adukpo, Patricia Granados Bayon, Zsófia Molnár, Meral Esen, Wolfram Metzger, Eric. R. James, Adam Ruben, Yonas Abebe, Sumana Chakravarty, Anita Manoj, KC Natasha, Tooba Murshedkar, Julius C.R. Hafalla, Tamirat Gebru Woldearegai, Fiona O'Rourke, Jana Held, Pete Billingsley, B. Kim Lee Sim, Thomas L. Richie, Peter G. Kremsner, Stephen L. Hoffman, Kai Matuschewski, and Benjamin Mordmüller. "Mapping of Safe and Early Chemo-Attenuated Live Plasmodium Falciparum Immunization Identifies Immune Signature of Vaccine Efficacy." bioRxiv (2020) https://dx.doi.org/10.1101/2020.09.14.296152.
  • Kreidenweiss, A., F. Trauner, M. Rodi, E. Koehne, J. Held, L. Wyndorps, G. P. Manouana, M. McCall, A. A. Adegnika, A. Lalremruata, P. G. Kremsner, R. Fendel, and T. L. Sandri. "Monitoring the Threatened Utility of Malaria Rapid Diagnostic Tests by Novel High-Throughput Detection of Plasmodium Falciparum Hrp2 and Hrp3 Deletions: A Cross-Sectional, Diagnostic Accuracy Study." EBioMedicine 50: 14-22. (2019) https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ebiom.2019.10.048.
  • Kremsner, Peter, Philipp Mann, Jacobus Bosch, Rolf Fendel, Julian J. Gabor, Andrea Kreidenweiss, Arne Kroidl, Isabel Leroux-Roels, Geert Leroux-Roels, Christoph Schindler, Mirjam Schunk, Thirumalaisamy P. Velavan, Mariola Fotin-Mleczek, Stefan Müller, Gianluca Quintini, Oliver Schönborn-Kellenberger, Dominik Vahrenhorst, Thomas Verstraeten, Lisa Walz, Olaf-Oliver Wolz, and Lidia Oostvogels. "Phase 1 Assessment of the Safety and Immunogenicity of an Mrna- Lipid Nanoparticle Vaccine Candidate against Sars-Cov-2 in Human Volunteers." medRxiv (2020) https://dx.doi.org/10.1101/2020.11.09.20228551.
  • Maskus, D. J., M. Królik, S. Bethke, H. Spiegel, S. Kapelski, M. Seidel, O. Addai-Mensah, A. Reimann, T. Klockenbring, S. Barth, R. Fischer, and R. Fendel. "Characterization of a Novel Inhibitory Human Monoclonal Antibody Directed against Plasmodium Falciparum Apical Membrane Antigen 1." Sci Rep 6: 39462. (2016) https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/srep39462.
  • Seidel-Greven, M., O. Addai-Mensah, H. Spiegel, G. N. Chiegoua Dipah, S. Schmitz, G. Breuer, M. Frempong, A. Reimann, T. Klockenbring, R. Fischer, S. Barth, and R. Fendel. "Isolation and Light Chain Shuffling of a Plasmodium Falciparum Ama1-Specific Human Monoclonal Antibody with Growth Inhibitory Activity." Malar J 20, no. 1: 37. (2021) https://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12936-020-03548-3.
  • Publications
  • Infectiology literature seminar
  • Module Parasitology IV: Laboratory Course Human Parasitology at the Institute of Tropical Medicine Tübingen (Part 2 of the Master Course Parasitology)
  • Molecular biological-immunological methods seminar
  • Practical Course Clinical Research in Infectious diseases PEX1114
  • Practical course in parasitology
  • Project module Parasitology for Bachelor students
  • Project module Parasitology for Master students
  • Parasitology I: Introduction to Parasitology (3055)
  • Parasitology II: Epidemiology, ecology and immunology of parasitoses (3056)
  • Students of the Faculties of Medicine and Mathematics and Natural Sciences Courses can be found in the Campus Portal of the University of Tübingen. Biostatistics for clinical studies with R (R in Clinical Research) Clinical studies are a focus of our work at the Institute of Tropical Medicine. In this context, large amounts of data are collected that need to be analyzed and presented. A course in biostatistics based on the software "R" is offered for students (Bachelor, Master, PhD) and employees of these studies. R is a free programming language that can be used to perform statistical calculations as well as their graphical representation. Contents of the course are: Basics of the programming language, handling vectors, matrices and tables, statistical methods, validation of large databases, graphical representation (ggplot), statistical modeling, creating reports. Theses in the context of the degree programs in pharmacy, biology and biochemistry, as well as medical doctoral theses Theses and internships are regularly offered in the context of these degree programs. Please contact Dr. Rolf Fendel directly