TY - JOUR A1 - Schleuning, Matthias A1 - Farwig, Nina A1 - Peters, Marcell K. A1 - Bergsdorf, Thomas A1 - Bleher, Bärbel A1 - Brandl, Roland A1 - Dalitz, Helmut A1 - Fischer, Georg A1 - Freund, Wolfram A1 - Gikungu, Mary W. A1 - Hagen, Melanie A1 - Garcia, Francisco Hita A1 - Kagezi, Godfrey H. A1 - Kaib, Manfred A1 - Kraemer, Manfred A1 - Lung, Tobias A1 - Naumann, Clas M. A1 - Schaab, Gertrud A1 - Templin, Mathias A1 - Uster, Dana A1 - Wägele, J. Wolfgang A1 - Böhning-Gaese, Katrin T1 - Forest Fragmentation and Selective Logging Have Inconsistent Effects on Multiple Animal-Mediated Ecosystem Processes in a Tropical Forest JF - PLoS ONE N2 - Forest fragmentation and selective logging are two main drivers of global environmental change and modify biodiversity and environmental conditions in many tropical forests. The consequences of these changes for the functioning of tropical forest ecosystems have rarely been explored in a comprehensive approach. In a Kenyan rainforest, we studied six animal-mediated ecosystem processes and recorded species richness and community composition of all animal taxa involved in these processes. We used linear models and a formal meta-analysis to test whether forest fragmentation and selective logging affected ecosystem processes and biodiversity and used structural equation models to disentangle direct from biodiversity-related indirect effects of human disturbance on multiple ecosystem processes. Fragmentation increased decomposition and reduced antbird predation, while selective logging consistently increased pollination, seed dispersal and army-ant raiding. Fragmentation modified species richness or community composition of five taxa, whereas selective logging did not affect any component of biodiversity. Changes in the abundance of functionally important species were related to lower predation by antbirds and higher decomposition rates in small forest fragments. The positive effects of selective logging on bee pollination, bird seed dispersal and army-ant raiding were direct, i.e. not related to changes in biodiversity, and were probably due to behavioural changes of these highly mobile animal taxa. We conclude that animal-mediated ecosystem processes respond in distinct ways to different types of human disturbance in Kakamega Forest. Our findings suggest that forest fragmentation affects ecosystem processes indirectly by changes in biodiversity, whereas selective logging influences processes directly by modifying local environmental conditions and resource distributions. The positive to neutral effects of selective logging on ecosystem processes show that the functionality of tropical forests can be maintained in moderately disturbed forest fragments. Conservation concepts for tropical forests should thus include not only remaining pristine forests but also functionally viable forest remnants. KW - Ant-following birds KW - Land-use change KW - Habitat fragmentation KW - Rain-forest KW - Functional diversity KW - Plantation forests KW - Amazonian forest KW - Prunus-africana KW - Seed dispersal KW - Logged forests Y1 - 2011 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-140093 VL - 6 IS - 11 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Beck, Katherina A1 - Ehmann, Nadine A1 - Andlauer, Till F. M. A1 - Ljaschenko, Dmitrij A1 - Strecker, Katrin A1 - Fischer, Matthias A1 - Kittel, Robert J. A1 - Raabe, Thomas T1 - Loss of the Coffin-Lowry syndrome-associated gene RSK2 alters ERK activity, synaptic function and axonal transport in Drosophila motoneurons JF - Disease Models & Mechanisms N2 - Plastic changes in synaptic properties are considered as fundamental for adaptive behaviors. Extracellular-signal-regulated kinase (ERK)-mediated signaling has been implicated in regulation of synaptic plasticity. Ribosomal S6 kinase 2 (RSK2) acts as a regulator and downstream effector of ERK. In the brain, RSK2 is predominantly expressed in regions required for learning and memory. Loss-of-function mutations in human RSK2 cause Coffin-Lowry syndrome, which is characterized by severe mental retardation and low IQ scores in affected males. Knockout of RSK2 in mice or the RSK ortholog in Drosophila results in a variety of learning and memory defects. However, overall brain structure in these animals is not affected, leaving open the question of the pathophysiological consequences. Using the fly neuromuscular system as a model for excitatory glutamatergic synapses, we show that removal of RSK function causes distinct defects in motoneurons and at the neuromuscular junction. Based on histochemical and electrophysiological analyses, we conclude that RSK is required for normal synaptic morphology and function. Furthermore, loss of RSK function interferes with ERK signaling at different levels. Elevated ERK activity was evident in the somata of motoneurons, whereas decreased ERK activity was observed in axons and the presynapse. In addition, we uncovered a novel function of RSK in anterograde axonal transport. Our results emphasize the importance of fine-tuning ERK activity in neuronal processes underlying higher brain functions. In this context, RSK acts as a modulator of ERK signaling. KW - mrsk2 KO mouse KW - S6KII RSK KW - transmission KW - neuromuscular junction KW - synapse KW - MAPK signaling KW - axonal transport KW - motoneuron KW - RSK KW - Drosophila KW - mechanisms KW - plasticity KW - protein kinase KW - signal transduction pathway KW - mitochondrial transport KW - glutamate receptor Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-145185 VL - 8 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Peters, Marcell K. A1 - Hemp, Andreas A1 - Appelhans, Tim A1 - Behler, Christina A1 - Classen, Alice A1 - Detsch, Florian A1 - Ensslin, Andreas A1 - Ferger, Stefan W. A1 - Frederiksen, Sara B. A1 - Gebert, Frederike A1 - Haas, Michael A1 - Helbig-Bonitz, Maria A1 - Hemp, Claudia A1 - Kindeketa, William J. A1 - Mwangomo, Ephraim A1 - Ngereza, Christine A1 - Otte, Insa A1 - Röder, Juliane A1 - Rutten, Gemma A1 - Costa, David Schellenberger A1 - Tardanico, Joseph A1 - Zancolli, Giulia A1 - Deckert, Jürgen A1 - Eardley, Connal D. A1 - Peters, Ralph S. A1 - Rödel, Mark-Oliver A1 - Schleuning, Matthias A1 - Ssymank, Axel A1 - Kakengi, Victor A1 - Zhang, Jie A1 - Böhning-Gaese, Katrin A1 - Brandl, Roland A1 - Kalko, Elisabeth K.V. A1 - Kleyer, Michael A1 - Nauss, Thomas A1 - Tschapka, Marco A1 - Fischer, Markus A1 - Steffan-Dewenter, Ingolf T1 - Predictors of elevational biodiversity gradients change from single taxa to the multi-taxa community level JF - Nature Communications N2 - The factors determining gradients of biodiversity are a fundamental yet unresolved topic in ecology. While diversity gradients have been analysed for numerous single taxa, progress towards general explanatory models has been hampered by limitations in the phylogenetic coverage of past studies. By parallel sampling of 25 major plant and animal taxa along a 3.7 km elevational gradient on Mt. Kilimanjaro, we quantify cross-taxon consensus in diversity gradients and evaluate predictors of diversity from single taxa to a multi-taxa community level. While single taxa show complex distribution patterns and respond to different environmental factors, scaling up diversity to the community level leads to an unambiguous support for temperature as the main predictor of species richness in both plants and animals. Our findings illuminate the influence of taxonomic coverage for models of diversity gradients and point to the importance of temperature for diversification and species coexistence in plant and animal communities. KW - community ecology KW - macroecology KW - tropical ecology KW - biodiversity Y1 - 2016 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-169374 VL - 7 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ziegler, Alice A1 - Meyer, Hanna A1 - Otte, Insa A1 - Peters, Marcell K. A1 - Appelhans, Tim A1 - Behler, Christina A1 - Böhning-Gaese, Katrin A1 - Classen, Alice A1 - Detsch, Florian A1 - Deckert, Jürgen A1 - Eardley, Connal D. A1 - Ferger, Stefan W. A1 - Fischer, Markus A1 - Gebert, Friederike A1 - Haas, Michael A1 - Helbig-Bonitz, Maria A1 - Hemp, Andreas A1 - Hemp, Claudia A1 - Kakengi, Victor A1 - Mayr, Antonia V. A1 - Ngereza, Christine A1 - Reudenbach, Christoph A1 - Röder, Juliane A1 - Rutten, Gemma A1 - Schellenberger Costa, David A1 - Schleuning, Matthias A1 - Ssymank, Axel A1 - Steffan-Dewenter, Ingolf A1 - Tardanico, Joseph A1 - Tschapka, Marco A1 - Vollstädt, Maximilian G. R. A1 - Wöllauer, Stephan A1 - Zhang, Jie A1 - Brandl, Roland A1 - Nauss, Thomas T1 - Potential of airborne LiDAR derived vegetation structure for the prediction of animal species richness at Mount Kilimanjaro JF - Remote Sensing N2 - The monitoring of species and functional diversity is of increasing relevance for the development of strategies for the conservation and management of biodiversity. Therefore, reliable estimates of the performance of monitoring techniques across taxa become important. Using a unique dataset, this study investigates the potential of airborne LiDAR-derived variables characterizing vegetation structure as predictors for animal species richness at the southern slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro. To disentangle the structural LiDAR information from co-factors related to elevational vegetation zones, LiDAR-based models were compared to the predictive power of elevation models. 17 taxa and 4 feeding guilds were modeled and the standardized study design allowed for a comparison across the assemblages. Results show that most taxa (14) and feeding guilds (3) can be predicted best by elevation with normalized RMSE values but only for three of those taxa and two of those feeding guilds the difference to other models is significant. Generally, modeling performances between different models vary only slightly for each assemblage. For the remaining, structural information at most showed little additional contribution to the performance. In summary, LiDAR observations can be used for animal species prediction. However, the effort and cost of aerial surveys are not always in proportion with the prediction quality, especially when the species distribution follows zonal patterns, and elevation information yields similar results. KW - biodiversity KW - species richness KW - LiDAR KW - elevation KW - partial least square regression KW - arthropods KW - birds KW - bats KW - predictive modeling Y1 - 2022 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-262251 SN - 2072-4292 VL - 14 IS - 3 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Grimm, Clemens A1 - Pelz, Jann-Patrick A1 - Schneider, Cornelius A1 - Schäffler, Katrin A1 - Fischer, Utz T1 - Crystal Structure of a Variant PAM2 Motif of LARP4B Bound to the MLLE Domain of PABPC1 JF - Biomolecules N2 - Eukaryotic cells determine the protein output of their genetic program by regulating mRNA transcription, localization, translation and turnover rates. This regulation is accomplished by an ensemble of RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) that bind to any given mRNA, thus forming mRNPs. Poly(A) binding proteins (PABPs) are prominent members of virtually all mRNPs that possess poly(A) tails. They serve as multifunctional scaffolds, allowing the recruitment of diverse factors containing a poly(A)-interacting motif (PAM) into mRNPs. We present the crystal structure of the variant PAM motif (termed PAM2w) in the N-terminal part of the positive translation factor LARP4B, which binds to the MLLE domain of the poly(A) binding protein C1 cytoplasmic 1 (PABPC1). The structural analysis, along with mutational studies in vitro and in vivo, uncovered a new mode of interaction between PAM2 motifs and MLLE domains. KW - PAM2w KW - PAM2 KW - PABC1 KW - MLLE domain KW - PABP KW - Poly(A) binding protein Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-207800 SN - 2218-273X VL - 10 IS - 6 ER - TY - THES A1 - Fischer, Julia Katrin T1 - Evaluation der Lebensqualität von Patienten mit Multiplem Myelom mittels standardisierter Fragebögen der EORTC T1 - Evaluation of health-related quality of life in patients with multiple myeloma by using standardized questionnaires of the EORTC N2 - Im Rahmen dieser Studie wurde die Lebensqualität (QoL) von Patienten mit Multiplem Myelom zu verschiedenen Therapiezeitpunkten untersucht. Dabei erwies sich die erstmals im Rahmen einer Studie mit Myelompatienten angewandte Kombination aus PHQ-4, EORTC QLQ-C30 und dem spezifischen -MY20 Fragebogen als geeignetes Instrument zur validen Erfassung von Ängstlichkeit/Depressivität und Lebensqualität. Insgesamt schätzten Erstlinienpatienten, Männer und jüngere Patienten vor, während und nach der Therapie ihre Lebensqualität positiver ein, sodass insbesondere Rezidivpatienten, Frauen und ältere Patienten von einer intensivierten therapiebegleitenden supportiven Betreuung profitieren könnten. Es sollte bei der Therapiewahl berücksichtigt werden, dass Erstlinienpatienten zum einen über eine insgesamt bessere allgemeine QoL und geringere Schmerzen als Rezidivpatienten berichteten und zum anderen es durch die systemische Therapie bei diesen zu einer weiteren Verbesserung kommen kann. Unabhängig hiervon korrelierte der ECOG-Status signifikant mit der QoL und sollte daher regelmäßig erhoben werden. Während der Therapie kam es bei Myelompatienten v.a. zu einer negativeren Wahrnehmung des eigenen Körperbilds, einer Abnahme der kognitiven Funktion und einer Zunahme der Therapienebenwirkungen, sodass interdisziplinäre Behandlerteams neben einem optimalen Nebenwirkungsmanagement auch in der klinischen Routine noch nicht so fest etablierte Ressourcen berücksichtigen sollten, wie z.B. psychoedukative Interventionen, Entspannungsverfahren oder auch kognitives Training. Eine der wichtigsten Erkenntnisse der Studie war die signifikant reduzierte Lebensqualität bei Patienten mit vermehrter Ängstlichkeit/Depressivität, die die Notwendigkeit eines regelmäßigen Screenings in der klinischen Routine aufzeigt, um Risikopatienten entsprechend zu identifizieren. Trotz der vermuteten Lebensqualitätsbeeinflussung durch die intensivere, längere Therapie, zeigten sich bei Tandemtransplantierten nicht mehr Lebensqualitätsvariablen signifikant negativ beeinflusst als beim Gesamtkollektiv, sodass diese Beobachtung eine wertvolle Entscheidungshilfe für Patienten sein könnte, die aus Sorge vor einer reduzierten Lebensqualität transplantationsbasierten Konzepten zurückhaltend gegenüberstehen. Unter Berücksichtigung der o.g. Limitationen, konnte zusätzlich eine deutliche positive Beeinflussung der Lebensqualität durch Teilnahme an klinischen Therapiestudien aufgezeigt werden, sodass Patienten evtl. von einer noch intensiveren multiprofessionellen Begleitung wie sie in Studiensettings gegeben ist profitieren könnten. N2 - Background: Multiple myeloma (MM) is an incurable hematologic malignancy with increasing importance and incidence due to an aging population. Currently, it’s the third most common haematological cancer worldwide. A multitude of therapeutic options for the treatment of MM is available. Each has a different range of adverse events and dependent on this, a varying influence on the health-related quality of life (HRQoL). As of yet, little is known about the impact of the different therapeutic options, especially during and after treatment on HRQoL, so this should be investigated. Also, this study aims to show the influences on the HRQoL of some other patient characteristics like anxiety/depression, gender, age etc. Additionally, the influence of participation in a clinical trial on HRQoL should be examined. The aim of this study is to identify patients with MM at a higher risk for decreased HRQoL under therapy to provide a basis for the consideration of those results in clinical decisions. Methods: In this prospective observational study, the HRQoL of MM patients with different therapies (first-line and higher-treatment-lines) was quantified by standardized questionnaires (EORTC QLQ-C30 and -MY20) in the context of individual depressiveness (PHQ-4), sociodemographic data, and a selected number of symptoms and clinical parameters. In case of treatment without stem cell transplantation, there was a baseline assessment before the start of therapy and two following assessments after the end of the treatment. In case of autologous/allogeneic/tandem-stem cell transplantation, in addition to the baseline assessment, there were two or three following assessments to measure the HRQoL during and after treatment. Results: In total, 70 patients were included in the study. Global health status was significantly higher in patients with first-line treatment and with less anxiety/depression. HRQoL decreased significantly after start of chemotherapy in the parameters body image, side effects of treatment and cognitive functioning. There was no impairment in further HRQoL parameters in patients with tandem-stem cell transplantation in comparison to the whole sample. After start of the therapy there was an increasing global health status and a decreasing pain level in patients with first-line, in contrast of both in patients with a treatment of a recurrent disease. In case of treatment as part of clinical trials, most aspects of HRQoL were indicated better, too. HRQoL scales were especially influenced by gender, age, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status and bone symptoms with better assessment of men, younger patients, lower ECOG index and less bone symptoms. Conclusion: Anxiety and depression, male gender, older age, higher ECOG status and bone symptoms can be early indicators for a reduced HRQoL of patients undergoing a therapy for MM. Especially patients with a higher-treatment-line need psycho-oncological support during chemotherapy. Additionally, because of the better HRQoL in most parameters, a treatment as part of clinical trials should be contemplated. However, due to inclusion criteria for clinical trials, it might be difficult to compare them with patients treated within standard therapy concepts. KW - Lebensqualität KW - Plasmozytom KW - Depressivität KW - PHQ-4 KW - Ängstlichkeit/Depressivität KW - Multiples Myelom KW - Prospektive klinische Verlaufsstudie KW - EORTC Y1 - 2023 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-316628 N1 - Teile der Ergebnisse der Diss. sind bereits in einem Zeitschriftenaufsatz veröffentlicht worden (Zeitschrift BMC Cancer): https://bmccancer.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12885-022-10101-9 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Albrecht, Jörg A1 - Classen, Alice A1 - Vollstädt, Maximilian G.R. A1 - Mayr, Antonia A1 - Mollel, Neduvoto P. A1 - Schellenberger Costa, David A1 - Dulle, Hamadi I. A1 - Fischer, Markus A1 - Hemp, Andreas A1 - Howell, Kim M. A1 - Kleyer, Michael A1 - Nauss, Thomas A1 - Peters, Marcell K. A1 - Tschapka, Marco A1 - Steffan-Dewenter, Ingolf A1 - Böhning-Gaese, Katrin A1 - Schleuning, Matthias T1 - Plant and animal functional diversity drive mutualistic network assembly across an elevational gradient JF - Nature Communications N2 - Species' functional traits set the blueprint for pair-wise interactions in ecological networks. Yet, it is unknown to what extent the functional diversity of plant and animal communities controls network assembly along environmental gradients in real-world ecosystems. Here we address this question with a unique dataset of mutualistic bird-fruit, bird-flower and insect-flower interaction networks and associated functional traits of 200 plant and 282 animal species sampled along broad climate and land-use gradients on Mt. Kilimanjaro. We show that plant functional diversity is mainly limited by precipitation, while animal functional diversity is primarily limited by temperature. Furthermore, shifts in plant and animal functional diversity along the elevational gradient control the niche breadth and partitioning of the respective other trophic level. These findings reveal that climatic constraints on the functional diversity of either plants or animals determine the relative importance of bottom-up and top-down control in plant-animal interaction networks. KW - Traits-Environment Relationships KW - Species Traits KW - Ecological Networks KW - 4TH-Corner Problem KW - Multiple Traits KW - Bottom-up KW - Biodiversity KW - Community ecology KW - Ecological networks KW - Ecology KW - Ecosystem ecology Y1 - 2018 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-221056 VL - 9 ER - TY - THES A1 - Fischer, Katrin T1 - Der Hervorgang der Welt aus Gott. Die Rezeption von Avicennas Ontologie bei Dominicus Gundisalvi, Wilhelm von Auvergne und Heinrich von Gent T1 - The Procession of the World from God. The Reception of Avicenna’s Ontology by Dominicus Gundisalvi, William of Auvergne and Henry of Ghent N2 - Avicenna (Ibn Sīnā, 980–1037) entwickelt vornehmlich in Kapitel I.5 und ergänzend in den Kapiteln V.1 und 2 seiner Metaphysik (al-Ilāhiyyāt) – dem vierten Teil seiner philosophischen Summe Buch der Heilung (Kitāb al-Šifāʾ) – den Grundgedanken seiner Ontologie: die Distinktion von Sein und Wesen. Diese Lehre hat er als erster Denker zu einer eigenständigen ontologischen Theorie ausgearbeitet und auf ihrer Basis eine Modalontologie entwickelt. Sie sollte zu einem seiner bekanntesten und einflussreichsten Lehrstücke werden – nicht nur in der arabischen und hebräischen Tradition, sondern auch in der lateinischen. Für Gelehrte, die von einer monotheistischen Weltanschauung geprägt sind, liegt die enorme Attraktivität der avicennischen Ontologie darin, dass sich aus der Sein-Wesen-Distinktion rein rational die wichtigsten Aspekte der Beziehung ableiten lassen, in der Gott und Welt zueinander stehen, wenn man diese Beziehung im Hinblick auf das Sein betrachtet. Mit der Übernahme der Ontologie Avicennas vermag man als christlicher Denker das eigene Modell der Wirklichkeit rational-argumentativ zu begründen, ohne in Autoritätsargumenten auf die Offenbarung zurückgreifen zu müssen. Dies kommt dem Modell insofern zugute, als die rationale Fundierung dazu dient, es zu stärken und den Glauben mittels der Vernunft besser zu begreifen – freilich ohne ihn dadurch zu rechtfertigen. Angesichts der Tatsache, dass Avicennas Ontologie bei den lateinischen Denkern stark rezipiert wurde, stellt sich für mich die zentrale Frage, die ich in dieser Arbeit verfolge: Wie weit kann man als christlicher Denker mit Avicenna gehen, wenn man dessen Ontologie her-anzieht, um das Verhältnis von Gott und Welt zu erklären? Mich interessiert vor allem, an welchen Stellen und aus welchen Motiven ein Denker Modifikationen an der avicennischen Theorie vornimmt, sie anders als andere interpretiert oder gänzlich mit ihr bricht. Was be-deuten diese Änderungen inhaltlich? Und insbesondere: Wie werden sie rational gerechtfertigt? Da Ontologie, Theologie und Kosmogonie miteinander verschränkt sind, wirken sich grundlegende Annahmen der Ontologie auch auf die beiden anderen Bereiche aus. Diese Auswirkungen nehme ich ebenfalls in den Blick. Meine Fragen trage ich an die Theorien dreier ausgewählter Denker der lateinisch-christlichen Tradition heran: Dominicus Gundisalvi († ca. 1190), Wilhelm von Auvergne (†1249) und Heinrich von Gent (†1293). Alle drei Denker sind in unterschiedliche Phasen der Rezeption von Avicennas Metaphysik im lateinischen Westen zu verorten. Für jeden Autor untersuche ich zunächst, inwiefern seine Ontologie von Avicennas Lehre beeinflusst ist und in welchem Verhältnis Gott und Welt zueinander stehen. Ausgehend davon verfolge ich anschließend, in wie weit der jeweilige Denker das in der Ontologie entwickelte Konzept eines durch sich selbst notwendig Seienden für Gott von Avicenna übernimmt und wie er die Spannungen zwischen avicennischer und christlicher Lehre zu lösen versucht, die sich beispielsweise hinsichtlich der Trinitätstheologie ergeben. Sodann lege ich dar, wie sich die einzelnen Autoren im Unterschied zu Avicenna Gottes Wirken ad extra vorstellen, auf welche Weise sie ihr eigenes Modell rechtfertigen und damit verbunden Avicenna kritisieren. Umgekehrt werde ich ausgehend von Avicennas Standpunkt die Lehren der christlichen Denker kritisch befragen. Die Kapitel meiner Arbeit widmen sich jeweils einem Autor und sind meiner Fragestellung entsprechend parallel zueinander in einen Abschnitt zur Ontologie, Theologie und Kosmogonie unterteilt. N2 - Avicenna (Ibn Sīnā, 980–1037) is famous for his ontology, in which he introduces the distinction of essence and existence and combines it with a modal theory. Based on this theory, he develops the following model of reality in a purely rational way, without relying on religious authority: On the one hand, there is a first principle that serves as both the efficient and final cause of the universe and can be identified with God. It is a necessary existent through itself (wāǧib al-wuǧūd bi-ḏātihī; necesse esse per se) that is able to exist out of itself alone, since essence and existence coincide in it. This characterization applies exclusively to the first principle. All other beings – the world as a whole as well as every single entity in it – are only possible existents through themselves (mumkin al-wuǧūd bi-ḏātihī, possibile esse per se), since their essences do not include existence. They are contingent beings, which means that their existence (and non-existence) is completely dependent on a cause. However, a cause that is only responsible for their coming into existence is not enough. Rather, during the whole duration of their actual existence, they need an external metaphysical efficient cause that coexists with them and permanently bestows existence upon them, since they never lose their essential disposition as possible existents in themselves. The chain of metaphysical efficient causes ends in the necessary existent through itself, God. Therefore, one can conclude that the world, with respect to its existence, is totally dependent on God. In addition to permanently bestowing being upon all worldly entities, he is responsible for the order of the cosmos, i.e., the formal structure of the world. Avicenna provides a detailed ontological and cosmological analysis in the Metaphysics (al-Ilāhiyyāt) of his philosophical summa Kitāb al-Šifāʾ (Book of the Healing). The Metaphysics was translated into Latin in the twelfth century as Liber de philosophia prima sive scientia divina. From then on, Latin Christian thinkers had access to Avicenna’s doctrines. They were attracted to his ontology, since in the model of reality described above, which can be developed based on this ontology, the relationship between God and the world corresponds to Christian faith. Taking over Avicenna’s ontology allows Christian thinkers to explain and demonstrate their own model of reality in a purely rational manner. In this way, they strengthen their own theory and show that reason does not contradict faith. Therefore, it is not surprising that Avicenna’s ontology became highly successful among Latin Christian thinkers. Since ontology provides the basic view of reality, it is not a theory that stands alone. Rather, it has an impact on other areas, such as theology and cosmogony. For example, Avicenna’s view of God and the way in which God causes the world’s existence are directly dependent on the ontological dispositions developed for the necessary existent through itself. Concerning the reception of Avicenna’s teachings among Latin thinkers, the main question of my dissertation is as follows: How far can a Christian thinker follow Avicenna when taking over the latter’s ontology to explain the relationship between God and the world? I am mainly interested in analysing where and why a given thinker modifies Avicenna’s theory or interprets it differently from other thinkers, and especially in finding out which rational justifications are provided for the modifications and interpretations. My analysis is based on the works of three Medieval Christian thinkers: Dominicus Gundisalvi (†ca. 1190), William of Auvergne (†1249), and Henry of Ghent (†1293). Each of them represents a different phase in the reception of Avicenna’s Metaphysics and deals with Avicenna in a different way. A separate chapter is dedicated to each author, with each chapter divided into sections on ontology, theology, and cosmogony. N2 - Wie weit kann ein christlicher Denker Avicenna folgen, wenn er dessen Ontologie zur Erklärung des Verhältnisses von Gott und Welt heranzieht? Dieser zentralen Frage der Avicenna-Rezeption widmet sich die vorliegende Arbeit. Avicenna (Ibn Sīnā, 980–1037) entwickelt in der Metaphysik (al-Ilāhiyyāt) – dem vierten Teil seiner philosophischen Summe Buch der Heilung (Kitāb al-Šifāʾ) – den Grundgedanken seiner Ontologie: die Distinktion von Sein und Wesen, die zu einem seiner bekanntesten und einflussreichsten Lehrstücke wurde. Nach der lateinischen Übersetzung von Avicennas Metaphysik im zwölften Jahrhundert fand die darin entworfene Ontologie rasche Verbreitung unter den lateinisch-christlichen Gelehrten. Für deren monotheistische Weltanschauung war diese Lehre insofern attraktiv, als sich aus der Sein-Wesen-Distinktion die wichtigsten ontologischen Aspekte der Beziehung von Gott und Welt rein rational ableiten lassen. Vor diesem Hintergrund stellt sich die genannte Frage, wie weit ein christlicher Denker mit Avicenna gehen kann, wenn er dessen Ontologie heranzieht, um das Verhältnis von Gott und Welt zu erklären. Diese Frage untersucht die Autorin für die drei Gelehrten Dominicus Gundisalvi († nach 1190), Wilhelm von Auvergne († 1249) und Heinrich von Gent († 1293). Die Verschränkung von Ontologie, Theologie und Kosmogonie gibt der Autorin die Möglichkeit, für diese drei Bereiche jeweils herauszuarbeiten, an welchen Stellen und aus welchen Motiven Modifikationen an der avicennischen Theorie vorgenommen wurden, um sie eigenen Zwecken oder neuen Kontexten wie der Trinitätstheologie anzupassen. Zugleich zeigt sie auf, an welchen Punkten mit Avicennas Theorie gänzlich gebrochen wurde. Was bedeuten diese Änderungen und Brüche inhaltlich? Und insbesondere: Wie werden sie rational gerechtfertigt? KW - Avicenna KW - Guilelmus, Arvernus KW - Heinrich, von Gent KW - Dominicus, Gundissalinus KW - Trinität KW - arabisch-lateinische Tradition KW - ontology KW - trinity KW - arabic-latin tradition KW - philosophy KW - emanation KW - Emanation KW - Ontologie KW - Philosophie KW - Theologie Y1 - 2024 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-351705 SN - 978-3-95826-244-7 SN - 978-3-95826-245-4 N1 - Parallel erschienen als Druckausgabe bei Würzburg University Press, 32,90 Euro, ISBN 978-3-95826-244-7. PB - Würzburg University Press CY - Würzburg ER -