Assay to support the diagnosis of autoimmune diseases - 22/06/2022 Tracking down pathogenic immune complexes Soluble complexes of antibodies and their target structures circulating in the blood can trigger serious systemic inflammations. Dr. Philipp Kolb and Haizhang Chen from the Institute of Virology at the Freiburg University Medical Centre have developed a sensitive, cell-based test system for detecting these immune complexes. The system can be used to diagnose systemic autoimmune diseases, and also severe cases of COVID-19.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/tracking-down-pathogenic-immune-complexes
Peptide-based COVID-19 vaccine - 21/04/2022 CoVac-1: T-cell activator against COVID-19 Current vaccines against COVID-19 aim at forming neutralising antibodies that prevent the virus from penetrating the host cells. Since people with impaired B-cell immune responses – which can also occur in cancer or autoimmune diseases – are not able to do this, researchers at the University of Tübingen have developed the peptide-based T-cell activator CoVac-1, which promises broad and long-term immunity.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/covac-1-t-cell-activator-against-covid-19
Press release - 13/08/2021 Paradigm shift in immunology 'Adaptive Tolerance' balances autoimmune reaction Immunologists at Ulm University and its Medical Centre have developed a new model that could revolutionise the treatment of autoimmune disease as well as vaccine development. As 'Adaptive Tolerance' demonstrates, autoreactive antibodies are by no means disease drivers which a healthy organism swiftly eliminates. Rather, they trigger the formation of a class of antibodies that protect the body's own structures. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/paradigm-shift-immunology-adaptive-tolerance-balances-autoimmune-reaction
Review article (new edition) - 08/07/2020 Immunology – at the forefront of medical progress Immunology is constantly changing with the emergence of new technologies and areas of application, and has branched out in many directions. Immunological approaches are central to everything – be it the development of innovative active substances and vaccinations against cancer, the search for new therapies against neurodegenerative diseases or autoimmune diseases, or combatting well-known infectious diseases or new virus epidemics.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/dossier/immunology-forefront-medical-progress
Multiple sclerosis - 12/03/2020 Direct application of biopharmaceuticals through the nose into the brain There is currently no cure for multiple sclerosis, the most common neurological autoimmune disease in humans. Biopharmaceuticals that can delay the course of the disease or diminish its effects are often prevented from being fully effective by the blood-brain barrier. A European consortium led by the Fraunhofer IGB, Stuttgart is developing a new technology that can transport an innovative active ingredient directly to the central nervous system.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/Direct-application-of-biopharmaceuticals-through-the-nose-into-the-brain
Press release - 23/05/2017 TolerogenixX secures seed funding and completes Phase I clinical trial TolerogenixX GmbH has developed a patented and clinically tested cell therapy technique for individualised immunosuppression in transplant patients. The technique enables the targeted disabling of undesired reactions caused by the immune system’s defences. As a seed stage investor, High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) will finance this innovative technique and the preparations for Phase II of the clinical trial, which begins in spring 2018. Further…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/tolerogenixx-secures-seed-funding-and-completes-phase-i-clinical-trial
Personalised Medicine - 04/05/2017 Big data make therapy work better An international team of researchers has shown for acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) that cancer therapy can be personalised using big data. The authors of the study “believe this paper is a step towards validation of genetic techniques as a route to personalised medicine”. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/mit-big-data-genauer-therapieren
Article - 22/12/2014 The immune system – both weak and overreactive in the absence of CTLA4 The ability to recognise a pathogen and combat it effectively is certainly one of the most complex and sophisticated processes the human body has evolved. People with an immunodeficiency or autoimmune disease may have a genetic defect in one of the genes involved in the immune response. Working with immunologists from London scientists Desire Schubert and Prof. Dr. Bodo Grimbacher from the Centre for Chronic Immunodeficiency CCI at the Freiburg…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/the-immune-system-both-weak-and-overreactive-in-the-absence-of-ctla4
Article - 13/01/2014 DIARECT AG – development and production of immunodiagnostics components Founded by Dr. Heinz Haubruck and Prof. Dr. Bodo Liedvogel in 1998, the biotechnology company DIARECT AG (DIAgnostic by RECombinant Technology) from Freiburg sells tried and tested and new products. The company produces proteins, nucleoproteins and assay components for the diagnostics sector. These products enable the reliable identification of autoimmune disorders and infectious diseases.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/diarect-ag-development-and-production-of-immunodiagnostics-components
Article - 12/11/2012 Autoimmune diseases – when the body sheds its skin Most people believe that snakes and insects are the only animals able to shed their skin. However autoimmune diseases of the largest human organ i.e. the skin can have a similar effect by creating blisters scars peeling and wet wounds. Dr. Cassian Sitaru from the University of Freiburg Medical Centre specifically focuses on blistering autoimmune dermatoses. Using disease models in Petri dishes and laboratory mice Sitaru and his team hope to find…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/autoimmune-diseases-when-the-body-sheds-its-skin
Article - 12/12/2011 Rheumatoid arthritis biomarkers A plethora of biomarkers is available for the early diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis and associated tissue damage and disorders. In addition, new biomarkers that improve the diagnosis and treatment of patients suffering from this common destructive autoimmune disease are constantly being discovered.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/rheumatoid-arthritis-biomarkers
Press release - 30/11/2011 Researchers are challenging a common model of immunology Up to now, scientists have assumed that mast cells, a certain type of immune cells, play a central role in the development of autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis. Current studies conducted at the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ) have now provided evidence to refute this assumption. Now it is only the mast cells’ central function in allergies that remains undisputed.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/researchers-are-challenging-a-common-model-of-immunology
Press release - 12/10/2011 Autoimmune Diseases Affect Cancer Risk In a recently published study, scientists of the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ) have calculated the interrelations between autoimmune diseases and cancer of the digestive tract. They discovered that many autoimmune diseases increase the cancer risk, while others, such as rheumatism, are associated with a significantly lower bowel cancer risk. These differing impacts on cancer risk may be attributable to the…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/autoimmune-diseases-affect-cancer-risk
Press release - 05/03/2011 Research prize for the gene therapy of rare diseases The Eva Luise and Horst Köhler Foundation for People with Rare Diseases has awarded the 2011 Eva Luise Köhler Research Prize, which includes prize money of 50,000 euros, to an interdisciplinary team of researchers: Professor Dr. Christoph Klein, Department of Paediatric Haematology and Oncology at the Hannover Medical School (MHH), Professor Dr. Christopher Baum, Department of Experimental Haematology (MHH), Professor Dr. Christoph von Kalle,…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/research-prize-for-the-gene-therapy-of-rare-diseases
Article - 28/02/2011 Development of food allergies Allergic reactions to certain types of food can, in extreme cases, lead to life-threatening anaphylactic shock. People with peanut allergies are particularly at risk. Allergic reactions can also gradually develop into chronic intolerances such as coeliac disease, for example. The causes of food allergies nearly always originate in early childhood. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/development-of-food-allergies
Article - 28/02/2011 Rare fever syndromes provide insights into the anti-inflammatory effect of therapies Quite a few people suffer lifelong regularly occurring fever and inflammation attacks with no apparent reason. The identification of the genetic causes of the syndromes has in the meantime led to the identification of the metabolic pathway involved as well as to targeted therapies. Effective treatment has greatly improved sufferers quality of life.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/rare-fever-syndromes-provide-insights-into-the-anti-inflammatory-effect-of-therapies
Article - 11/12/2010 Opportunities, benefits and risks are not so different from each other Adverse drug reactions that compromise the safety of drugs do not necessarily mean that the development of a pharmaceutically active agent is immediately stopped. The case of a pharmaceutical agent initially developed by Tübingen-based c-a-i-r biosciences GmbH shows how an undesired event can actually lead to new opportunities. The original agent is now being further developed on a different basis from the original plans. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/opportunities-benefits-and-risks-are-not-so-different-from-each-other
Press release - 11/03/2010 Cellzome Announces Second Alliance with GlaxoSmithKline Cellzome today announced that it has formed a second strategic alliance with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). This new collaboration gives GSK exclusive access to Cellzome’s proprietary Episphere™ technology in the emerging field of epigenetics as applied to immunoinflammatory disease. Epigenetic mechanisms play a key role in controlling immune cell differentiation and inflammatory gene expression during an excessive inflammatory response. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/cellzome-announces-second-alliance-with-glaxosmithkline
Article - 28/11/2009 "You cannot afford to fail twice in Germany" Prof. Dr. Bodo Liedvogel and Dr. Heinz Haubruck founded the company DIARECT AG in Freiburg in 1998. They not only brought 20 years of experience in industry to the company but also their entire savings. In the following interview Dr. Heinz Haubruck tells Christoph Bächtle about the return investors expect from companies how to win over potential clients and the risks associated with setting up ones own business.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/you-cannot-afford-to-fail-twice-in-germany
Press release - 30/06/2009 Gentle rather than radical: ways to improve the treatment of autoimmune diseases Autoimmune diseases are usually treated with drugs that block the entire immune system rendering the body very susceptible to all kinds of infections. A team of Constance researchers under the leadership of Prof. Marcus Groettrup has developed a treatment method that only targets part of the immune system and is therefore far better tolerated by patients. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/gentle-rather-than-radical-ways-to-improve-the-treatment-of-autoimmune-diseases