Press release - 03/05/2024 Newly discovered mechanism of T-cell control can interfere with cancer immunotherapies Activated T cells that carry a certain marker protein on their surface are controlled by natural killer cells. In this way, the body presumably curbs destructive immune reactions. Researchers now discovered that NK cells can impair the effect of cancer therapies with immune checkpoint inhibitors in this way. They could also be responsible for the rapid decline of therapeutic CAR-T cells. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/newly-discovered-mechanism-t-cell-control-can-interfere-cancer-immunotherapies
Press release - 28/11/2024 Molecular biology: New interdisciplinary Research Training Group investigates cellular regulation Cell division, cell differentiation, cell repair and cell death play fundamental roles in the human organism, its development, health and reproduction. Cellular transformation processes are governed by two regulatory mechanisms: chromatin modifications and cell signaling networks. The EpiSignal Research Training Group sheds light on the hitherto little-researched interplay between these two complex systems.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/molecular-biology-new-interdisciplinary-research-training-group-investigates-cellular-regulation
Press release - 06/11/2023 Improving the efficacy of cancer immunotherapy with modified CAR-T cells CAR-T cell therapy is a last hope for many patients with blood, bone marrow or lymph gland cancer when other treatments are unsuccessful. A limiting factor of this very effective and safe therapy is that the cells used in the process quickly reach a state of exhaustion. Researchers at the University of Freiburg have now been able to prevent this exhaustion and thus significantly improve the effect of the therapy in a preclinical animal model.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/improving-efficacy-cancer-immunotherapy-modified-car-t-cells
Article - 22/10/2019 Using CAR T cells for treating cancer After successes in the treatment of advanced blood cancers, CAR T-cell immunotherapy has become a major beacon of hope in oncology. The first therapies have received regulatory approval. Despite their success, these immunotherapies can have serious side effects. The company AVA Lifescience develops antibodies with high tumour specificity to use as the basis for effective precision-guided CAR T-cell therapies that are better tolerated by patients.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/using-car-t-cells-for-treating-cancer
microRNA as a prognostic biomarker - 13/01/2022 Heart attack diagnosis: fast and unambiguous thanks to artificial intelligence People that arrive in emergency rooms with chest pain require swift action in order to rule out a heart attack or to initiate vital life-saving therapy. However, despite many advances, current tests are not yet optimal: they either take hours or produce false-positive results. Researchers at Heidelberg University Hospital are now using AI in an approach that takes microRNAs from a blood sample to specifically diagnose ‘acute coronary syndrome’.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/heart-attack-diagnosis-fast-and-unambiguous-thanks-artificial-intelligence
Press release - 01/03/2024 Using Data to Improve Understanding of Relationships between Proteins and Diseases Working with a new Emmy Noether Group, Dr. Pascal Schlosser is investigating how machine learning can aid in understanding the complex relationships between genes, proteins, and diseases.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/using-data-improve-understanding-relationships-between-proteins-and-diseases
Press release - 13/06/2024 Position of the cell nucleus affects epigenetics and therefore gene activity and cell function Depending on whether the cell nucleus of an epithelial cell is located on the outer or inner side of the tissue, the genome is more or less acetylated - genes can therefore be translated easier or harder. Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) have demonstrated this for the first time in the development of the Drosophila wing. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/position-cell-nucleus-affects-epigenetics-and-therefore-gene-activity-and-cell-function
Vicinity Bio: Optimisation of cancer diagnostics - 27/11/2024 Comprehensive histological diagnostics through high-dimensional imaging and artificial intelligence Microscopic examination of tissue samples is essential, particularly in tumour diagnostics. The Tübingen-based company Vicinity Bio leverages cutting-edge imaging technologies combined with machine learning to generate comprehensive datasets of individual cells from tissue sections. This approach not only helps identify more targeted therapies but also enhances our understanding of cellular functions and processes within tissues and tumours.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/Comprehensive-histological-diagnostics-through-high-dimensional-imaging-and-artificial-intelligence
Press release - 24/04/2025 3D bioprinting: NMI, TU Darmstadt and Black Drop develop improved bioink 3D bioprinting is a great hope in the field of regenerative medicine to produce miniaturized tissues and organ precursors with biological functionality. Today, however, scientists are still working on the challenge of producing a printable and at the same time compatible starting material. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/3d-bioprinting-nmi-tu-darmstadt-and-black-drop-develop-improved-bioink
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.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/Ulms-simulator-has-europes-back
Press release - 16/06/2023 What determines whether breast cancer cells can form metastases? In most cancers, it is not the growth of the primary tumor that determines the prognosis for the patient, but whether it will spread and form metastases. This process is very complex. There are often years between the development of the cancer and the aggressive growth of the metastases. Scientists from the DKFZ, the HI-STEM, the Ruhr University Bochum, Helmholtz Munich and ETH Zurich have studied and identified metastasis growth in breast cancerhttps://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/what-determines-whether-breast-cancer-cells-can-form-metastases
Article - 11/06/2019 New pathogens in beef and cow's milk contributing to the risk of cancer A team of researchers led by Nobel laureate Prof. Dr. med. Dr. h.c. mult. Harald zur Hausen has discovered a new type of infectious agent in dairy and meat products produced from European cattle that increases the risk for colon and breast cancer. These so-called Bovine Meat and Milk Factors (BMMFs) are small DNA molecules that are similar in sequence to both bacterial plasmids and certain viruses.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/new-pathogens-in-beef-and-cows-milk-contributing-to-the-risk-of-cancer
Press release - 11/04/2024 How the body switches out of “fight” mode Study in Nature unlocks how cortisone inhibits inflammation Cortisone and other related glucocorticoids are extremely effective at curbing excessive immune reactions. But previously, astonishingly little was known about how they exactly do that. A team of researchers from Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Uniklinikum Erlangen and Ulm University have now explored the molecular mechanism of action in greater detail. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/wie-der-kampfmodus-im-koerper-beendet-wird-studie-nature-entschluesselt-wie-kortison-entzuendungen-daempft
Dossier - 18/11/2013 Innovative textiles made possible by biotechnology Biotechnology plays a part in many high-tech fabrics that have become an integral part of our everyday life. Whether it is products for the treatment of wounds, fabrics for marquees or for clothing, many materials have been developed or are produced using biotechnological techniques and processes. Many products marketed as “micro” or “nano” are inspired by nature.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/dossier/innovative-textiles-made-possible-by-biotechnology
Press release - 21/09/2022 ERC funding: How to deliver gene therapies to a specific target site? With its "Proof of Concept" grants, the European Research Council ERC supports scientists in further developing the commercial potential of their research results. Nina Papavasiliou from the DKFZ is now receiving the prestigious grant for the second time: she wants to advance the development of a "molecular delivery service" that ensures that therapeutic genes reach the right address in the body in a targeted manner.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/erc-funding-how-deliver-gene-therapies-specific-target-site
Press release - 16/06/2025 Novel laboratory models pave the way for targeted therapies for childhood sarcomas Sarcomas in soft tissue usually occur in young people and are difficult to treat. Due to a lack of laboratory models, the causes of their development are poorly understood. A team of researchers has now succeeded in creating mouse models with a functioning immune system that replicate sarcoma types that remain unstudied. The method opens up new avenues for the targeted development of immunotherapies for children and adolescents with sarcomas.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/novel-laboratory-models-pave-way-targeted-therapies-childhood-sarcomas
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.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/artificial-muscle-proteins-diverse-future-applications
Press release - 20/06/2022 Protein changes in the liquor indicate inflammatory processes in the brain Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and other neurodegenerative diseases are associated with inflammatory processes in the brain. German researchers have succeeded in identifying a group of proteins in the liquor that could provide information about such inflammatory processes. As so-called biomarkers, the proteins could help to better understand disease processes in the future and to test the effect of potential drugs against brain inflammation.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/protein-changes-liquor-indicate-inflammatory-processes-brain
Press release - 06/02/2023 Fewer side effects thanks to personalised medicine Patients have 30 percent fewer serious side effects when medication doses are tailored to their genetic profile. This is what an international research consortium has found out, including the Dr. Margarete Fischer-Bosch Institute of Clinical Pharmacology at the Bosch Health Campus. With an individual DNA medication pass, as used in the study, treatments can be made more effective and safer in the future.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/weniger-nebenwirkungen-dank-personalisierter-medizin
Press release - 24/06/2024 Trustworthy AI Made in Mannheim How can we use artificial intelligence (AI) to make comprehensible medical decisions? A new project at the University of Mannheim, which has received funding from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), will analyze this question.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/trustworthy-ai-made-mannheim
Press release - 28/01/2022 Artificial Muscles Made of Proteins 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.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/artificial-muscles-made-proteins
Press release - 17/01/2023 Endogenous molecule protects from life-threatening complications after stem-cell transplantation Acute Graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) is a life-threatening complication after leukemia treatment with allogeneic stem cell transplantation i.e. the transplantation of cells from another person. GvHD occurs when the transplanted immune cells are overly active and damage the receiving patient's healthy tissue. Researchers found that an endogenous molecule can mitigate this misdirected immune response.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/koerpereigenes-molekuel-schuetzt-vor-lebensbedrohlichen-komplikationen-nach-stammzelltransplantation
Press release - 02/04/2024 Precise localization of miniature robots and surgical instruments inside the body In the medicine of the future, tiny robots will navigate independently through tissue and medical instruments will indicate their position inside the body during surgery. Both require doctors to be able to localize and control the devices precisely and in real time. Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) have now described a signaling method based on an oscillating magnet that can significantly improve such medical applications.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/precise-localization-miniature-robots-and-surgical-instruments-inside-body
Press release - 07/04/2025 Physical training has a positive effect on the sexual health of women with metastatic breast cancer Metastatic breast cancer requires complex and lengthy treatment, the side effects of which affect the quality of life of patients. These often include sexual problems. In a large international randomized exercise intervention trial, researchers have now shown that women who received a nine-month supervised exercise program reported significantly fewer symptoms than women who did not participate in the training program.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/physical-training-has-positive-effect-sexual-health-women-metastatic-breast-cancer
Press release - 23/11/2021 Multi-peptide vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 shows strong T-cell immune response At the University Hospital Tübingen, clinical evaluation of an in-house developed vaccine (CoVac-1) against SARS-CoV-2 was started in November 2020 under the direction of Prof. Dr. Juliane Walz in the CCU Translational Immunology of the Medical Clinic (Medical Director Prof. Dr. Helmut Salih). Now the results of the Phase I study are available and demonstrate a potent activation of the T-cell response against the coronavirus.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/multi-peptide-vaccine-against-sars-cov-2-shows-strong-t-cell-immune-response