Healthcare industry

Article - 17/06/2013

EHEC prevention: mission ‘safe salad’

Raw fruit and vegetables are popular and healthy, at least as long as they are not contaminated with pathogens such as those that caused the EHEC outbreak in 2011 where sprouted foods were identified as the source of the E. coli outbreak. Researchers from the University of Hohenheim are looking into how the risk of consumers being infected by ready-to-eat vegetables and salads can be minimised.

Article - 06/04/2009

Frank Allgöwer: an engineer with wild ideas

At the age of 19 Frank Allgöwer did not have the faintest idea that he would one day be head of the Department of Technical Cybernetics at the University of Stuttgart. There was no way he could have known this as the high-school graduate had never even heard of the subject. Neither could he have known that the methods developed in this department would one day be used to control robotic arms as well as to analyse biological processes. These days…

Article - 12/12/2011

Comprehensive Biomarker Center GmbH – next-generation biomarkers

Biomarker research has moved on from proteins to nucleic acids where one of the main priorities is the use of microRNA expression profiles. The Heidelberg-based biotech company Comprehensive Biomarker Center GmbH (CBC, formerly febit) has state-of-the-art technologies and the skills and knowledge to advance the development of new nucleic acid biomarkers for complex diseases in cooperation with partners from research and industry.

Article - 28/11/2011

Dogs – the latest way to detect lung cancer

Dogs can reliably sniff out lung cancer, according to a study carried out by a group of doctors from Stuttgart. The study shows that a dog can accurately detect cancer-specific components by sniffing human breath.

Article - 28/02/2011

Contact dermatitis – removing a leg from a tripod

Contact dermatitis is one of the most frequent occupational skin reactions resulting from exposure to allergens. Chronic allergic reactions to environmental allergens might sometimes become job- or life-threatening. Prof. Dr. Stefan Martin and his group of researchers in the Allergy Research Group of the Department of Dermatology at the Freiburg University Medical Centre are investigating the molecular mechanisms underlying the disease. One of…

Article - 10/03/2014

From structure to mechanism

Life would be impossible without the broad range of enzymes that enable the flow of cellular metabolites in plant, animal and microbial organisms. Enzymes are biocatalysts that control and facilitate difficult chemical reactions associated with inheritance, breathing and digestion as well as the synthesis of natural products. Enzymes like chorismatase have long been attractive drug discovery targets. Junior professor Dr. Jennifer Andexer from the…

Article - 23/09/2013

Giorgos Pyrowolakis to investigate the playground of evolution

Amazing but true: the basic state of a cell theoretically enables it to develop into any other possible cell. However, certain signalling molecules (morphogens) and the quantity in which they are present cause cells to develop into specific cells. In the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, they may become part of the wing, part of a leg or an intestinal cell. Dr. Giorgos Pyrowolakis, a developmental biologist at BIOSS (Centre for Biological…

Article - 15/08/2011

Electrogenic transport of ammonium across the cell membrane

Humans bacteria and plants possess ammonium transport proteins that transport nitrogen into cells. Crystallographic investigations have led to the elucidation of the complex structure of numerous ammonium transporters. However little is known about the complex signalling cascades and the function of the transport proteins. Dr. Andrade and her team are taking a very close look at these transport molecules.

At present active immunotherapy seems to produce the best results in the treatment of cancer. The Tübingen-based biotech company CureVac is now hoping to achieve a breakthrough in cancer therapy with a worldwide unique vaccine. The first clinical trials have recently commenced.

Article - 28/01/2013

Dietmar Thal and the Alzheimer ABC

The initial consensus guidelines for the postmortem diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease were published in 1997. In the same year, Dietmar Thal started his four-year research project at the Institute of Anatomy at the University of Frankfurt under the supervision of Heiko Braak, who was then one of the leading figures in Alzheimer’s research, notably for his achievements in grading the presence and distribution of tau tangles in the brain in 1991. In…

Article - 04/08/2014

Europe’s first gene therapy

Scientists from the National Center for Tumour Diseases (NCT) have shown that adeno-associated viruses (AAV) do not pose a cancer risk. This conclusion is based on the analysis of several million patient cells treated with AAV and the finding that the viruses do not integrate into the patient genome. AAV is the first-ever gene therapy for clinical use in the Western world. AAV vectors could also potentially be used as prototypes for the treatment…

Article - 12/07/2011

Deeper insight into the activity of the cortex

Visual and tactile objects in our surroundings are translated into a perception by complex interactions of neurons in the cortex. The principles underlying spatial and temporal organization of neuronal activity during decision-making and object perception are not well understood yet. Jason Kerr from Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics in Tübingen, in collaboration with Winfried Denk from the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research…

Article - 04/03/2013

Genomic structural variations can cause cancer

Genome-wide sequencing analyses show that comprehensive structural variations of chromosomes can play a key role in the pathogenesis of many types of cancer. Dr. Jan Korbel’s research group at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Heidelberg has been investigating chromosomal aberrations in paediatric brain tumours and early-onset prostate cancer.

Article - 14/09/2011

COMBINE 2011 – coordination of systems biology standards

Systems biologists and bioinformaticians from all over the world met in the Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies in early September 2011 with the aim of coordinating the various community standards and formats in systems biology and related fields. The “Computational Modelling in Biology Network” (COMBINE) aims to advance international understanding and cooperation in the field of systems biology.

Article - 18/10/2010

DNA analysis is becoming more automated

GATC Biotech AG is already on the lookout for next generation sequencing technologies in the form of real-time single-molecule sequencing. In an interview with BIOPRO Thomas Pohl CTO of GATC Biotech AG explains why the company is continuously expanding its existing equipment with the latest global technologies.

Article - 12/08/2013

Drugs from plants – insights into how they are manufactured

Herbal plants suit many people who prefer to take the natural option for their health. Although pharmacologically active plant compounds are often derived from traditional medicinal plants, the way they are processed into the final product has little to do with traditional preparation. Dr. Karin Berger Büter from Vital Solutions Swiss AG develops and investigates new herbal compounds for use in food supplements and drugs using state-of-the-art…

Article - 15/09/2014

Gene therapies for pulmonary disease are close to final development

Gene therapy currently offers the only chance of curing genetic diseases such as cystic fibrosis and beta thalassaemia. Gene therapy is the replacement or correction of a mutated gene with DNA that encodes a functional gene. Intensive research has been going on in this field for many years however only a handful gene therapies are available at this point in time. Dr. Michael Kormann junior professor at the Childrens Hospital at the University of…

Article - 30/08/2010

Genetic testing for the prevention of diseases?

Genetic testing is beginning to play an important role in personalised medicine and is indispensable for the diagnosis and therapy of many diseases. However, the preventive and diagnostic power of many genetic tests is still inferior to traditional diagnostic tests. In addition, commercial genetic tests do not always live up to the claims made about them.

Article - 16/04/2012

Endosymbiosis and horizontal gene transfer

Mitochondria and plastids, which evolved by way of symbiogenesis, have over time come under the control of nuclear genes. It is still not known how the expression of genes encoded in the nucleus and mitochondrion is coordinated to make them functional. Model systems such as highly specialized plastid-incorporating marine slugs can be used to help clarify such issues.

Guest article - 31/01/2014

Experience report: internship at Boehringer Ingelheim in Shanghai

A scholarship from the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Science, Research and the Arts enabled Henrik Baran to do an internship at Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH and Co. KG in Shanghai. From March to August 2013, Henrik worked in the company's Global Biopharma Engineering & Technology department where he was involved in cleanroom planning. He was also project coordinator in charge of redeveloping company premises. Here he summarises his…

Article - 19/09/2011

How clients become fans in the World Wide Web

Konstanz-based GATC Biotech AG is a life science pioneer in the use of dynamic Web 2.0 and social media applications. The company uses many new channels to enhance the contact with its customers. Elke Decker Senior Director Marketing and Christian Heckmann Assistant Corporate Communications talk about their positive and negative experiences with the new media and the prerequisites for successful online communication.

Article - 23/06/2009

Hepatitis B and the Münchhausen enzyme

Virologists in Prof. Dr. Michael Nassals group at the University Medical Centre in Freiburg are investigating the molecular mechanisms used by the hepatitis B virus to reproduce. The researchers work might in future be able to help the three to four hundred million people worldwide who suffer from chronic hepatitis B infections.

Article - 10/09/2012

Jan Wehkamp to investigate the causes of chronic inflammatory bowel diseases

It takes a great deal of courage to question a common scientific doctrine especially for scientists at the very beginning of their careers. But around ten years ago Dr. Jan Wehkamp did not shy away from doing just that and as a result he and his scientific partner Professor Dr. Eduard Stange came up with a new explanation for the pathogenesis of chronic inflammatory bowel diseases.

People with know-how must bear responsibility said the microbiologist Dr. Kilian Hennes who lectures bioprocess engineering at Constance University of Applied Sciences HTWG. Teaching is one of the major challenges for the experienced scientist and practitioner in particular because his discipline is seen as somewhat exotic by future process engineers and requires a different way of looking at things. But this is what makes his job truly…

Article - 10/02/2009

Janine Reis – improving the acquisition of motor skills

Putting a teaspoon of sugar into a cup of coffee would appear to be a very trivial action. However the coordination of hand and fingers becomes a virtually insurmountable challenge for people who have suffered a stroke. Dr. Janine Reis assistant doctor and researcher in the Department of Neurology at the Freiburg Medical School is investigating ways to improve the acquisition of fine motor skills.