Prof. Dr. Sven-Erik Behrens
 
Date of birth:                           23. 02. 1961
Place of birth:                         Clausthal-Zellerfeld, Germany
Office address:                       Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Institute of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Section Microbial Biotechnology, CTP,
Kurt-Mothes-Str. 3a, 06120 Halle/Saale
Phone:                                    0345-5524960
e-mail:                                    sven.behrens@biochemtech.uni-halle.de
Homepage:                            https://www.biochemtech.uni-halle.de/mibitech/

Academic education
1988 – 1992   Doctoral studies (Dr. rer. nat), Free University Berlin, Philipps University Marburg, Germany. Ph.D. thesis studies at the Institute of Molecular Biology and Tumor Research (IMT), Philipps University Marburg, Germany (Prof. Lührmann). Grade (Dr. rer. nat.):  summa cum laude.
1980 – 1988   Diploma studies in Biology and Biochemistry, Free University Berlin, Germany. Diploma thesis studies in the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, Germany (Profs. Wagner, Wittmann). Grade (Diploma Biochemistry): very good.

Professional career
Since 2017     Co-founder and CSO of VEROVACCiNES GmbH
Since 2005     Professor and head of the section Microbial Biotechnology at the Institute of 
                         Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg
2002-2005      Member (Associate Professor) at the Institute for Cancer Research, Fox Chase Cancer
                         Center, Philadelphia, USA.
1999                Habilitation and Venia legend in ‛Medical Virology’, Justus Liebig University Gießen (JLU), 
                         Germany.
1995–2002      Principal Investigator at the Institute for Virology, JLU, Germany.
1993–1995      Postdoctoral fellow (with AIDS scholarship of the BMFT) at the Institute of Molecular 
                          Biology Research (IRBM), Rome, Italy (Profs. De Francesco, Cortese).
1992-1993       Postdoctoral fellow at the IMT, Philipps University Marburg (Prof. Lührmann)
 
Fellowship, awards
2018                Hugo Junkers Award (State of Saxony Anhalt) for project ‘esiRNAs’
2018                Metropolregion Mitteldeutschland Award, City of Halle for project ‘Novel adjuvants’
2014                Hugo Junkers Award (State of Saxony Anhalt) for project VEROVACCiNES
2014                SCIDEA Award for project VEROVACCiNES
2012                GO-Bio Award of the BMBF for project ‘Vakzinova B4’
1993-1998      AIDS Scholarship of the BMBF (BMFT) for project ‘HCV polymerase’
 
Research interests
Molecular determinants of the replication of different RNA viruses
Development of new types of vaccines and treatment procedures against viral diseases in animals and plants
 
Memberships
German Society of Virology (GfV)
American Society of Microbiology (ASM)
International Society for Vaccines (ISV)
 
Scientific coordination activities
2013-2018      Project manager of the BMBF project ‘VEROVACCiNES’ (2013-2018)
2015-2016      Deputy speaker of the Collaborative Research Center SFB 648 “Molecular mechanisms of information processing in plant” (2015-2016)
2010-2014      Deputy Speaker of the DFG Research Training Group GRK1591 “Posttranscriptional regulation of gene expression”

Academic administration (Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg)
Since 2017     Member of the academic Senate
2014-2018      Member of the Senate Commission for Structure and Finance (2014-2018)
2010-2014      Member of the Senate Commission for Research
2010-2017      Member of the extended academic Senate
2010-2014      Vice Dean of the Faculty of Natural Sciences I (Life Sciences)
2008-2014      Managing Director of the Institute of Biochemistry and Biotechnology