Healthcare industry

"Programmable" polymer materials - 24/04/2023

Medicine of the future: intelligent 4D polymers from the printer

It is impossible to imagine medicine without 3D printing, which can be used to make implants or for culturing cells and tissues. It is now possible for 3D objects to be given an added dimension, namely an ability to make simple autonomous movements, by changing their size. Researchers at Heidelberg University have been able to produce microscopically small 4D structures from intelligent polymers that can be tailored to individual requirements.

Junior Professor Dr Daniela Duarte Campos has been awarded a substantial grant from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). She and her junior research group are investigating bioprinting for tissue and organ engineering at the Center for Molecular Biology of Heidelberg University and at the “3D Matter Made to Order” Cluster of Excellence, a collaboration between Ruperto Carola and Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT).

Elastin as artificial muscle material - 02/03/2022

Artificial muscle from proteins for diverse future applications

As far as diversity and complexity are concerned, proteins are nature's smallest marvels. Biotechnologists have already used natural proteins as a basis for the development, bespoke design and production of artificial systems. This is what the livMatS cluster of excellence at the University of Freiburg has been doing. Researchers in the cluster have successfully produced an artificial muscle from elastin that functions autonomously.

Dr. Stefan Schiller and Dr. Matthias Huber from the University of Freiburg’s livMatS Cluster of Excellence have succeeded in developing a muscle solely on the basis of natural proteins. The autonomous contractions of the material, which the researchers presented in the journal Advanced Intelligent Systems, can be controlled with the help of pH and temperature changes.

Which neurons in the brain mediate fear responses - and how do they flip the switch when the danger is over? The research team of Prof. Ingrid Ehrlich at the Institute of Biomaterials and Biomolecular Systems (IBBS), Department of Neurobiology studies these questions. Their latest results obtained in collaboration with scientists at the Friedrich Miescher Institute in Basel (Switzerland), the National Institute of Health (USA), and Innsbruck…

Stem cell therapy for regenerating intervertebral discs - 16/07/2020

Ulm’s simulator has Europe’s back

Back pain is often caused by intervertebral disc disorders. Much has already been tried and is available to help patients. Despite extensive progress, there is still no surefire recipe for success. iPSpine, an EU-funded project to which researchers from Ulm are contributing interdisciplinary engineering and biomedical expertise, aims to design a novel therapy for back pain based on intervertebral disc regeneration.

Article - 10/01/2019

Stocktaking and recommendations for action: the BBAW’s fourth gene technology report

In the new gene technology report, the interdisciplinary working group of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences (BBAW) takes stock of gene technology developments in Germany during the past few decades, and discusses the societal, legal and ethical challenges associated with these technologies in the future. The report is highly topical due to the controversy surrounding the ruling of the European Court of Justice on CRISPR/Cas9 genome…

The European Research Council awards Wilfried Weber an ERC Proof of Concept Grant. Wilfried Weber, Professor of Synthetic Biology at the University of Freiburg, has received a grant of roughly €150,000 for his project “Hide and Seek with Cancer Drugs” in which he is working to improve the drugs used in cancer treatment.

Article - 01/09/2016

Tailor-made biotech fibres for improved wound dressings

Scientists have developed a biotechnological process to produce bacterial alginate. The alginate quality is highly reproducible, making it suitable for the production of fibre-based medicinal products such as wound dressings.

Article - 29/08/2016

Cellendes and EU partners develop cell therapy for treating type 1 diabetes

Cells derived from suitable donor stem cells that can do the work defective insulin-producing cells can no longer do are the central focus of a European cell therapy project involving Reutlingen-based Cellendes GmbH as one of the partners. Cellendes develops a biomaterial that facilitates the mass production of cells and could potentially be approved for therapeutic use in humans.

Article - 01/06/2015

High-tech fibres for organ and tissue regeneration

Biologically degradable polymers can be electrically spun into a type of fleece that can be used as a scaffold and growth matrix for living cells. This fleece can be used to replace diseased or damaged tissue. In the field of cardiovascular medicine, the fleece can be used to produce new heart valves and tissue.

Medical technology is indispensible for human health and contributes a great deal to improving the quality of our lives. The field of medical technology covers many areas. These range from simple disposable products and consumables such as dressing materials and other clinical supplies, to IT-related telemedicine, homecare and eHealth systems as well as high-technology and innovative robotics, imaging, diagnostics and life-support systems. 842…

Article - 12/01/2015

Bionic chemistry: developing tailor-made functional units for bacterial cells

Dr. Stefan Schiller from the Center for Biological Systems Analysis (ZBSA) at the University of Freiburg combines synthetic biology and synthetic chemistry concepts in order to equip bacterial cells with organelle-like compartments. He has countless biotechnological applications in mind. In 2014, Schiller received the research prize “Next Generation of Biotechnological Methods – Biotechnology 2020+”. The prize is awarded every two years and…

Article - 01/09/2014

BARK CLOTH_europe – success through saving resources

Ecological, economical and socially sustainable - all apply to a company called BARK CLOTH_europe, which in 2013 was one of 10 companies recognised as fabric innovators by the 'LAUNCH System Challenge: Fabric'. With its biomaterial made from the bark of the African Ficus tree, the company sells an innovative material that is produced using traditional methods.

Article - 05/05/2014

Michael Doser brings together biomedicine and textile research

Textile products used for the treatment of wounds are increasingly being coupled with bioactive functions. A growing number of biocompatible and absorbable high-tech materials are used on and in the human body for therapy, diagnosis and measurements. Michael Doser, Director of Medical Engineering/Biomedical Process Engineering at the ITV Denkendorf, is working on innovative wound management products and processes.

Article - 07/04/2014

Christina Wege: from plant viruses to biomaterials

Plant viruses can be engineered in many ways for use by and in humans. Amongst other things, they can be used as scaffold structures for bioactive molecules, which might help improve implants. Prof. Dr. Christina Wege from the University of Stuttgart is studying these and many more options for the use of harmless viruses for human application.

Article - 24/02/2014

Enhanced feeling of well-being triggers regeneration

New biomaterials are all the rage – especially in the Department of Oral Biotechnology, which was established at the Dental School and Hospital at the Freiburg University Medical Centre in 2008. The department’s laboratory manager, Prof. Dr. Thorsten Steinberg, takes an approach that is inspired by clinical application and aimed at developing biomaterials that support the wound healing process. This approach must, of necessity, include basic…

Article - 16/12/2013

Cellendes puts paradigm change in cell research to good use

Cells grown on the flat furfaces of tissue culture plates do not behave as they would in their natural environment. This is why scientists are now using three-dimensional substrates to replicate the natural environmental of cells in tissue cellular matrix. Dr. Brigitte Angres and Dr. Helmut Wurst founders and managing directors of Cellendes GmbH in Reutlingen have taken advantage of this new knowledge and developed two novel hydrogels for cell…

Press release - 16/10/2013

BIOTECHNICA 2013 - Baden-Württemberg is a top life sciences spot.

The BIOTECHNICA trade show rolled out the red carpet for its exhibitors. Over 10,000 visitors walked over the carpet to inspect the exhibits that were on display at the Baden-Württemberg booth. The impressive exhibits of the companies showed that Baden-Württemberg has many highly innovative SMEs in the life sciences field.

Article - 24/06/2013

Cells and biomaterials for the treatment of intervertebral disc defects

A new therapeutic method uses a patient’s own cartilage cells for the regeneration of intervertebral discs. The NMI Natural and Medical Sciences Institute in Reutlingen and its partners are scientific partners in the first clinical application of the new method. The key aim of the researchers from Reutlingen is the validation of the safety, efficiency and efficacy of the new method in order to prepare for approval for broad application in…

Article - 08/04/2013

Integrated infrastructures for medical science

The annual TMF conference in Heidelberg dealt with the need for integrated science infrastructures for the advancement of medical research. The major focus was on quality criteria for medical biomaterial banks and the establishment of the German Biobank Registry as the core of a central IT infrastructure, with the overall aim of creating the right conditions for resource-saving medical research excellence in Germany.

Article - 31/12/2012

siRNA for the regeneration of tissue and nerves

Regenerative medicine is increasingly making use of siRNA to turn off proteins that prevent the application of regenerative therapies. Researchers at the NMI in Reutlingen develop siRNA technologies that have the potential to prevent the development of fibroses, the encapsulation of implants and improve the regeneration of nerves.

Article - 17/12/2012

Stefan Schiller – understanding and copying complex molecule systems

Dr. Stefan Schiller from the Institute for Macromolecular Chemistry at the University of Freiburg became interested in the diversity of molecular possibilities in nature as a student and is now a specialist in bionic chemistry and synthetic nanobiotechnology. Amongst other things his work involves the construction of complex protein machines that transfer signals protein networks for use in medicine and drug shuttles that enable the targeted…

It is also in the interest of small companies to look beyond their national borders: biotechnology and medical technology specialists in neighbouring European countries offer excellent prospects to German companies – and vice versa. Regional life sciences networks help establish and intensify contacts and collaborative activities between international partners.

Press release - 06/07/2012

Medicyte is receiving 4.2 Mio Euros from the European Union Seventh Framework Programm

Medicyte, The Electrospinning Company and the Universities of Manchester and Pisa launch a European wide unique project with the aim to design a biomimetic bioartificial liver (Re-Liver). The company GABO:mi ensures professional project management. Research is receiving 4.2 Mio Euros from the European Union Seventh Framework Programme.