Dr Jorg Hardege

Dr Jorg Hardege

Reader in Chemical Ecology

Faculty and Department

  • Faculty of Science and Engineering
  • School of Natural Sciences

Qualifications

  • PhD / DPhil

Summary

For almost 30 years, Dr Hardege has studied how animals use chemical signals.

Our understanding of senses has greatly improved, but our knowledge of the importance of smell and odour in animal, microbial and plant communication systems is still relatively weak.

This is challenging in the face of climate change with the reduction in the oceans' pH affecting marine organisms' ability to use chemical signals.

We currently have no realistic idea as to whether animal signalling systems can adapt or have the plasticity to overcome what is known as 'olfactory disruption'. Most of Dr Hardege's current research focuses on this topic as well as the impacts of combined stressors including microplastic pollution and endocrine disruption.

Recent outputs

View more outputs

Journal Article

Bioassay complexities – exploring challenges in aquatic chemosensory research

Hardege, J., Fletcher, N., Burnett, J., Ohnstad, H., & Bartels-Hardege, H. (2024). Bioassay complexities – exploring challenges in aquatic chemosensory research. Frontiers in ecology and evolution, 11, Article 1293585. https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2023.1293585

Hermit crabs as model species for investigating the behavioural responses to pollution

Briffa, M., Arnott, G., & Hardege, J. D. (2024). Hermit crabs as model species for investigating the behavioural responses to pollution. The Science of the total environment, 906, Article 167360. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.167360

Heat induces multiomic and phenotypic stress propagation in zebrafish embryos

Feugere, L., Bates, A., Emagbetere, T., Chapman, E., Malcolm, L., Bulmer, K., …Wollenberg Valero, K. C. (2023). Heat induces multiomic and phenotypic stress propagation in zebrafish embryos. PNAS Nexus, 2(5), Article pgad137. https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgad137

The Readiness of Water Molecules to Split into Hydrogen + Oxygen: A Proposed New Aspect of Water Splitting

Schäfer, H., Schuster, A., Kunis, S., Bookholt, T., Hardege, J., Ruewe, K., & Brune, J. (in press). The Readiness of Water Molecules to Split into Hydrogen + Oxygen: A Proposed New Aspect of Water Splitting. Advanced materials, Article 2300099. https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.202300099

Becoming nose-blind—Climate change impacts on chemical communication

Roggatz, C. C., Saha, M., Blanchard, S., Schirrmacher, P., Fink, P., Verheggen, F., & Hardege, J. D. (2022). Becoming nose-blind—Climate change impacts on chemical communication. Global change biology, https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.16209

Research interests

- Sensory physiology and chemical signals

- Climate change and stability of functional traits

- Impacts of combined stressors on animal health

- Effects of microplastics

- The use of pheromones in invasive species and pest control

- development of ecologically sound aquaculture

- development of plastic replacement products

- development of electrodes to split water for hydrogen production

Lead investigator

Project

Funder

Grant

Started

Status

Project

Effects of Environmental Context on Species Trait Expression in Moderating Projections of Marine Ecosystems Futures

Funder

NERC Natural Environment Research Council

Grant

£171,344.00

Started

1 January 2020

Status

Complete

Project

GCRF 2019 PPF14: Development of Rapid Detection Methods to Mediate the Impact of Cyanobacteria and Cyanotoxins in drinking water on Diarrhoea (Cholera) and related Public Health Diseases in Ghana

Funder

00 University of Hull

Grant

£28,950.00

Started

1 April 2019

Status

Complete

Project

Crab Trapping in Oregon Study

Funder

Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission

Grant

£9,165.00

Started

1 April 2019

Status

Complete

Project

Sex Pheromones as Novel Tools for Monitoring and Control

Funder

OSU Oregon State University

Grant

£4,083.00

Started

1 August 2017

Status

Complete

Project

Understanding ocean Acidification Impacts onChemical Communication in marine species — AcidIC

Funder

EC European Commission

Grant

£174,535.00

Started

1 January 2022

Status

Complete

Co-investigator

Project

Funder

Grant

Started

Status

Project

Towards enabling sustainable expansion of offshore wind while protecting marine benthic biodiversity and functioning (BEcoWIND)

Funder

NERC Natural Environment Research Council

Grant

£612,236.00

Started

1 April 2023

Status

Ongoing

Postgraduate supervision

Dr Hardege welcomes MSc and PhD projects that deal with animal ecology and physiology, especially when research on animal olfaction is involved.

His research group also has a major interest in applied projects in areas such as aquaculture and pest control, developing sensor for animals, plant fitness and research related to the impacts of climate change (i.e. ocean acidification). These are encouraged, as are projects linking these to past extinctions or predicting future extinctions.

The group's work spans areas from behaviour to physiology, including molecular aspects as well as chemistry.

Completed PhDs

Over the past 20 years, Dr Hardege's research group has hosted 14 PDRAs and more than 50 postgraduate students, most of whom are now in academic positions worldwide - including in China, the USA, Portugal, Uruguay, Germany, Ghana, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the UK. Current PDRA/Fellows: Dr. Nichola Fletcher (NERC), Dr. Victoria Scott (EU fellow);

Over 20 PhD research projects have been completed under his supervision, with all but one of these externally funded. Current PhD supervisions:

First supervisor:

Paula Schirrmacher, Jessica Hurley, Rebecca Goodwin, Ashely McCowen, Hannah Ohnstad,

Second supervisor:

Amber Jones, Jonathan Burnett, Bryce Richardson, Victoria Scott, Afshan Dabeer, Nazish Fatima,

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