My research deals with chemical compounds (small molecules) that occur in agricultural plants or in the agricultural environment. I have built up and am the team leader for Team Natural Product Chemistry and Environmental Chemistry. My team investigate a) the natural chemical substances of agricultural plants, which can have effects both as alternative plant protection agents and as health-promoting substances, b) the fate of pesticides in the environment and c) agricultural and environmental metabolomics. My research regarding the natural chemicals of agricultural plants deals with the occurrence of the chemical in the plants under varying cultivation conditions and stress influences; the excretion of the chemicals from the agricultural plants, the turnover of the chemicals, binding and leaching in the soil environment; their effect on the soil microbial environment; absorption and metabolism in humans and animals; health promoting effects; isolation and structure clarification. We use state-of-the-art mass spectrometry (LC-MSMS, LC-MSQTRAP, LC-TOF, GC-TOF and LC-MS-DAD). In Team Natural Chemistry and Environmental Chemistry, we have built up a strong specialization within the chemistry of benzoxazinoids (quantitative analysis, metabolization, structure elucidation, effects, synthesis, isolation). The benzoxazinoids are a group of bioactive natural substances that occur in most cereals and a few dicotyledonous plants. My research takes place in a broad interdisciplinary collaboration with: agronomists, biologists, pathologists, molecular biologists, veterinarians, weed researchers, microbiologists, statisticians, doctors.