Microchimica Acta - The legacy of Otto S. Wolfbeis (1947 - 2023)

In June 2023, the long-time Editor-in-Chief of Microchimica Acta, Otto S. Wolfbeis sadly passed away. The Editors and the Publisher of the journal would like to pay tribute to Otto Wolfbeis as an outstanding scientist, as well as to the rich legacy of his scientific achievements. A special collection of invited articles in memoriam Otto S. Wolfbeis (this opens in a new tab) opens for submission on November 1, 2023. Researchers interested to contribute should contact the Editors-in-Chief, Alberto Escarpa or Mamas Prodromidis, prior to submission.

To inspire future research, please find below the impressive curriculum vitae of Otto Wolfbeis, including an overview of his scientific achievements:

OTTO S. WOLFBEIS

Professional Experience:

1972 - 1974 Post-doctoral fellow at the Max-Planck-Institute for Radiation Chemistry, Muelheim (Germany) with Prof. Koerner von Gustorf
1976 - 1977 Post-doc at the Technical University Berlin with Prof. E. Lippert
1977 - 1987 Assistant Professor at Karl-Franzens University, Graz, Austria
1987 - 1995 Associate Professor at KFU Graz
1995 - 2012 Full Professor of Analytical and Interface Chemistry at the University of Regensburg (UoR)

Administration

1995 - 2012 Director of Institute
1998 - 2000, 2007 - 2009 Member of the Senate of the UoR
1998 - 2012 Head of Laboratory for Environmental Radioactivity (URA)
2000 - 2002 Dean of the Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy
2002 - 2003 Vice Rector of the UoR
2004 - 2008 Regensburg Representative of the Bavarian Elite Academy

Research
General

Chemical and biochemical sensing schemes, analytical (laser induced) fluorescence spectrometry, fluorescent probes and labels including metal-ligand complexes, fluorescence imaging, sensor materials including graphenes, fullerenes and photon upconversion materials; surface plasmon resonance based sensing; photonic crystals.
By application

Sensors for use in clinical settings and in biotechnology, in disposable or microplate format, high-throughput screening, sensors for dermatology

Patents
named (co)inventor of 51 patens (Eur, US, Jpn)

Papers
> 600

Other Activities

Editor-in-Chief
• of Microchimica Acta (2002 - 2019)
• of the Springer Series on Methods and Applications of Fluorescence (1999 - 2013)
• of the Springer Series on Chemical Sensors and Biosensors (2000 - 2006)
• of Methods and Applications of Fluorescence (IOP, London; 2012 - 2018(?))

Curatorship
Angewandte Chemie (01/2006 - 12/2013)

Chairman
(a) of the Permanent Steering Committee of the Conference Series on Methods and Applications of Fluorescence (1989 - 2011); this conference series was founded by O. S. Wolfbeis in 1989; 
(b) of the Permanent Steering Committee of the Conference Series on Optical Sensors and Biosensors ("Europt(r)ode") (1992 - 2008); this conference series was founded by O. S. Wolfbeis in 1992.

Companies
Founder and former Chairman of the Board, of Chromeon GmbH (2001 – 2005); now part of Active Motif Inc.

Honors
Sandoz Prize (1982); Feigl Prize for Microanalysis (1987); Merck Prize (1989); Friedrich-Emich Medal (Austrian Chem. Soc.; 1996); Japanese Honorary Lectureship Award (2003); Křižík Medal (Czech. Acad. Sci.; 2010); Lu Jiaxi Lectureship Award (Xiamen University; 2012); Hanuš Medal (Czech Chemical Society; 2012); Clemens Winkler Medal (German Chem. Soc.; 2013)

Major Accomplishments in Bioanalytical Fluorescence
• In Optical Sensor Technology
• first optical chemical sensor ever commercialized (1984)
• first 2-parameter sensor (halothane & oxygen, 1985)
• use of ion carriers in optical sensing (1986)
• use of potential-sensitive dyes in optical sensing (1986)
• first LED-based chemical sensor (1986)
• first ruthenium complexes as probes for oxygen (1986)
• first optical sensor for detection of enzyme activity (1986)
• first lifetime-based optical sensor (oxygen, 1988)
• multi-color sensor (for CO2/O2, 1988)
• microbial optical sensor (1992)
• capillary sensors (1995)
• microplates with integrated optical chemical sensors (1996; oxygen, pH)
• dual lifetime referenced (DLR) sensors (2000)
• chloride sensor for blood (2004)
• first optical chemical sensor based on upconverting nanoparticles (2009)
• In Fluorescence Spectroscopy
• 2D-spectra of serum and urine, and interpretation of peaks (1983-1986)
• dual luminophore referencing (DLR, 1997) as an alternative to lifetime sensing
• modified dual DLR sensing (time domain & frequency domain) (2006)
• In Imaging
• DLR imaging (2001)
• detection of skin tumor via oxygen imaging
• monitoring cell growth (chondrocytes) via imaging of pH and oxygen
• methods for imaging hydrogen peroxide, glucose, and glucose oxidase (2003 – 2005)
• simultaneous imaging of oxygen and temperature (2006)
• imaging of wound pH (2011)
• In Designing Fluorescent Probes
• first chloride-sensitive probes (1982-1984)
• diode-laser excitable and specific probe for albumin (1992)
• fluorescent ruthenium probe for saccharides (1998)
• EuTc as a Eu3+-based fluorescent probe for hydrogen peroxide (2002)
• optically encoded nanobeads for bioassays (2003)
• fluorescent probes (Eu3+-based) for phosphate and phosphate esters (2004)
• terbium-based ultrasensitive DNA probe (2005)

List of products (such as instrumental analyzers, labels, probes, etc.) that have been commercialized by various companies.
* Extracorporeal blood gas monitoring systems for optical determination of pH value, O2, K+, pCO2 during cardiopulmonary bypass (CDI series 400 and higher; Terumo Inc.)
* Becton Dickinson BacTec 9240 and 9050 for detection of bacteria in blood
* Test Kit for Detection of Borderline Micro-Albuminuria, Progen
* Mycobacteria (tuberculosis) growth system and indicator tube (Becton Dickinson)
* Fiber optic microsensors (20 µm) and planar sensor foils for O2, pH value, CO2; includes hand-held imagers for imaging these species, (Presens GmbH)
* Portable and Fast Blood Analyzers for pH, pO2, pCO2, tHb, SO2; Na+, K+, Ca2+, Cl-, glucose (OptiMedical; Systems OPTI® CCA Touch, Medical OPTI® LION, Medical OPTI® R)
* Optical TOC (total organic carbon) Test, Merck
* Animal electrolyte and blood gas analyzer (Idexx VetStat)
* Fluorescent labels, antibodies, immuno kits, and uses in cell biology, super-resolution microscopy, and click chemistry (ActiveMotif Inc.)