Advancing quantum technology into real-world applications - 06/11/2024

QSens: BMBF future cluster brings quantum sensors of the future into medicine

The BMBF-funded future cluster ‘QSens – Quantum Sensors of the Future’ is developing ultra-sensitive sensors that could open up new options in medicine, enabling faster drug research, more accurate diagnostics and improved rehabilitation. The universities of Stuttgart and Ulm are actively working with 17 industry partners to put these cutting-edge innovations to immediate practical use.

They are underestimated genetic control elements: it is known that changes in the genome can trigger diabetes. But now researchers at the University Hospital Ulm and the INSERM Cochin Institute in Paris have shown that a previously under-researched region of the genome also plays a crucial role in the development of this disease.

NMI project WOUNDSENS - 23/10/2024

Wound monitoring using sensory nanofibres

Monitoring the condition of chronic, non-healing wounds requires wound dressings to be changed at short, regular intervals. In the EU-funded WOUNDSENS project, researchers at the NMI in Reutlingen are using electrospinning to produce novel types of wound dressings. These consist of biosensory fibres that send information about the condition of the wound to the outside, thereby improving inflammation detection.

Sustainable medical technology - 10/10/2024

Rethinking plastics in medical technology

Good healthcare relies heavily on medical products made from plastic. However, the widespread use of synthetic materials, particularly disposable items, creates vast amounts of waste, depletes resources and leads to a substantial carbon footprint. To create more environmentally friendly plastic products in the future, substantial changes to production processes are essential.

Whether we are predisposed to particular diseases depends to a large extent on the countless variants in our genome. However in the case of genetic variants the influence on the presentation of certain pathological traits has been difficult to determine. Researchers have introduced an algorithm based on deep learning that can predict the effects of rare genetic variants.

Certain developmental signals play a significant role in maintaining our genetic blueprints. They prevent alterations in the genome, known as mosaicism. The underlying biological mechanism helps the DNA to produce an identical copy of itself during cell division using the original genetic blueprint. However, it can also contribute to genomic mosaicism during nerve cell development.

Personalized medicine with individually tailored therapies is becoming more a reality in cancer. This requires a look into the genetic material of tumors, a molecular diagnostic tumor profile. A research group from the German Network for Personalized Medicine (DNPM) has recorded the quality standards according to which genome analyses are carried out in Germany. The data is a prerequisite for integrating gene sequencing into routine care.

In the “Cluster4Future” QSens of the Universities of Stuttgart and Ulm, scientists, companies and start-ups are researching quantum sensors with a wide range of potential applications. The Federal Ministry of Education and Research is funding QSens for a further three years as part of “Clusters4Future”.

Five transnational and cross-institutional doctoral networks at Heidelberg University are being funded as part of the “Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions”. They work together on current scientific topics with high innovation potential. Ruperto Carola coordinates an MSCA Doctoral Network on artificial intelligence in physics, two networks in medicine, life sciences and engineering.

Biotechnology team at University of Tübingen obtains valuable byproduct in protein production. This could be a potential to the contribution of feeding a growing world population without livestock farming.

A new molecular engineering technique can precisely influence the development of organoids. Microbeads made of specifically folded DNA are used to release growth factors or other signal molecules inside the tissue structures. This gives rise to considerably more complex organoids that imitate the respective tissues much better and have a more realistic cell mix than before.

With mice, researchers showed that experimentally induced lack of blood flow in the brain epigenetically reprograms astrocytes into brain stem cells, which in turn can give rise to nerve progenitor cells. This discovery shows that astrocytes could potentially be used in regenerative medicine to replace damaged nerve cells.

Researchers of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and Voxalytic GmbH developed a new method that allows, for the first time, to elucidate the chiral structure of molecules – the exact spatial arrangement of the atoms – by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. This important step in the development of new drugs used to be a time-consuming process until now.

Synthetic immunology is the topic of an article in the “Perspectives” section of the journal “Nature Nanotechnology”. Herein, Heidelberg researchers describe a so-called bottom-up approach that uses the toolbox of nanotechnology and synthetic biology to construct systems from molecular building blocks and specifically equip them with immune functions.

How are proteins in our cells modified while they are still being synthesized? An international team of researchers from the University of Konstanz, Caltech, and ETH Zurich has deciphered the molecular mechanism of this vital process.

A cutting-edge chemical process is the first to make it possible to quickly and easily produce modified peptides with boronic acids. As part of this work, scientists managed to synthesize a large number of different biologically active peptide boronic acids and investigate their properties. They open up new possibilities in the young research field of synthetic immunology and could go on to be used primarily in immunotherapy.

Start-up Cerebri GmbH - 05/08/2024

Comprehensive EEG supply thanks to telemedicine

Fewer and fewer patients are getting timely access to electroencephalograms, as the process of measuring brain activity and interpreting the results requires specific expertise. Cerebri GmbH, a newly established Tübingen-based company, aims to address this issue by offering user-friendly EEG caps and providing rapid, location-independent and top-tier diagnostics by experts.

Encouraging results from a large international study led by Heidelberg have recently been published in the journal “Lancet”: The genetic material of cancer cells with unknown tissue of origin contains numerous targets for specific drugs that are already available and have been developed to treat other forms of cancer. These suppressed the disease in CUP patients for significantly longer than chemotherapy.

Freiburg-Prague research collaboration achieves scientific breakthrough in understanding cell division. The international research collaboration has uncovered a new mechanism of the crosstalk between microtubules and actin cytoskeleton during cell division and revealed unique characteristics of the previously unexplored protein FAM110A.

The summer reception hosted by BioRegio STERN Management GmbH has once again provided a fitting backdrop for the Science2Start award ceremony. Last Thursday, at Tübingen observatory, was the 15th time that scientists and start-up founders were celebrated for outstanding ideas that a panel of experts judged to have special economic potential.

With "OrgaPlexing", scientists at the MPI of Immunobiology and Epigenetics have developed a new method that shows how guardian cells of the immune system, the macrophages, orchestrate their cell structures during inflammation or bacterial infection, making it possible to observe the interactions between several organelles simultaneously and thus providing insights into cell metabolism and the production of inflammatory molecules.

Max Planck scientists will present a low-field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner in Lindau. Two researchers from the MPI for Biological Cybernetics in Tübingen, Germany, will present a model of a new low-field MRI system. It combines hyperpolarization with imaging techniques that can be run at low magnetic field strengths. The quality of the MRI images can be enhanced with the help of artificial intelligence.

For her ground-breaking scientific studies in the field of synthetic biology, the 2024 Alfried Krupp Advancement Award is to go to Prof. Dr Kerstin Göpfrich. The award, endowed with one million euros in funding, is granted annually by the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation to young academics holding their first professorship in the natural and engineering sciences.

Researchers from the University of Heidelberg have published a study on more than 60,000 patients in the renowned journal Lancet Digital Health, demonstrating the potential of AI in cardiac medicine.

Baden-Württemberg receives the EU Commission's "Regional Innovation Valley" label - 01/07/2024

Customised healthcare for all: BIOPRO is a partner in the EU project PRECISEU

The EU research project PRECISEU, which started in June 2024 and will run for five years, aims to connect innovation ecosystems across Europe and advance personalised medicine throughout Europe. BIOPRO Baden-Württemberg is one of 25 partner organisations from 11 European countries that are working on the further development of customised healthcare as part of the research project.