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.

Pipetting robot for academic research - 28/08/2024

goodBot GmbH: a third arm for researchers

Repetitive tasks that researchers have to conduct in the lab tend to be tiring and often lead to errors. Precise pipetting is crucial for achieving reproducible results. Automation is underrepresented in research labs and existing pipetting robots are unsuitable for scientists. This is why Dr. Julius Wiener, Tobias Zundel and Oliver Brunner decided to found the company goodBot GmbH and develop a pipetting robot tailored to academic research.

Knowledge of the target structures for the immune cells is a basic prerequisite for the development of personalized cancer immunotherapies. Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center and the NCT Heidelberg are publishing a sensitive method based on mass spectroscopy to identify such tumor-specific "neoepitopes". The analytical method is designed to detect these low abundance protein fragments and requires minimal amounts of…

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.

Research association - 24/07/2024

SPI-MP: pioneer in personalised medical technology

Every person is unique – even when they are ill. This is why many approaches to personalised medicine have been under development. The Stuttgart Partnership Initiative - Mass Personalization (SPI-MP), which focuses on basic research into fabrication and biomaterial technologies for personalised biomedical systems, is at the heart of such research work. The projects range from artificial knee joint cartilage to state-of-the-art stroke diagnostics.

The "Friends of the German Cancer Research Center" association supports the DKFZ and aims to help strengthen its position in international competition. With the DKFZ Innovation Award presented at this year's DKFZ annual reception, the association honored Titus Brinker as a researcher whose highly innovative work builds a bridge from research to practical application with commercialization potential.

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.

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.

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.

Heidelberg Epignostix GmbH, a deeptech start-up committed to precision cancer diagnostics today announces €4.3M in seed funding. This investment will enable Heidelberg Epignostix to make a substantial leap forward in driving market development for its flagship indication for brain tumor classification.

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.

Researchers at University of Galway, the Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies (HITS) Heidelberg University, and Heidelberg University Hospital have created digital babies to better understand infants’ health in their critical first 180 days of life. The international team created computer models that simulate the unique metabolic processes of each baby. The models can help to better understand rare metabolic diseases.

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.

Gender-specific differences - 18/06/2024

Gender medicine: Why is good healthcare not a matter of course for everyone?

Gender medicine is the study of gender-specific health differences. Many diseases manifest themselves differently in men and women and therapies do not always have the same effect depending on the sex of the patient being treated. There is currently not enough data on these differences. Research teams including the one led by Professor Dr. Dr. Sonja Loges from the University Medical Centre Mannheim and the DKFZ are seeking to change this.

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.

Invasive infections such as sepsis require immediate and targeted treatment. Experts from the Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology IGB and group partners have succeeded in establishing a reconceptualized detection principle that can make a crucial contribution to saving lives through fast, ultra-accurate pathogen identification. They have been chosen to receive the 2024 Stifterverband Science Prize for their efforts.

Festo is expanding its portfolio to include multilayer manifolds made of plastic (bonded manifolds) in order to be able to offer manufacturers of medical and laboratory equipment solutions from a single source. To this end, Festo is taking over the production systems and processes for manufacturing these complex plastic manifolds from Carville, a leading company in this field.

Since 2019, the Research Training Group (RTG) "Intraoperative Multisensoric Tissue Differentiation in Oncology," a collaboration between the University of Stuttgart and the University of Tübingen, has been advancing research in medical technology. With the help of new sensor methods, the researchers want to help make surgical procedures on cancer patients safer and more effective.

Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the European Bioinformatics Institute EMBL-EBI, Hinxton, UK, are using the Danish health registers to predict individual risks for 20 different types of cancer with a high degree of accuracy. The prediction model can also be transferred to other healthcare systems.

Colorectal cancer differs from patient to patient. That is why scientists are looking for characteristic tumors markers that allow to make predictions about the likely response to certain therapies and the individual prognosis. The aim is to identify colorectal cancer subtypes so that these can then be treated in a customized manner.

App for tuberculosis diagnosis - 15/05/2024

"Find-TB" aims to improve access to tuberculosis diagnostics

Globally, the majority of children with tuberculosis remain undiagnosed and therefore untreated because their symptoms are categorised incorrectly. Researchers at Heidelberg University Hospital want to develop an app that analyses medical information, risk factors and local surveillance data to calculate individual risk of infection and test those who might be affected with TB as early as possible.

Professor Claudia Denkinger from Heidelberg University's Faculty of Medicine is leading the international collaborative project "BreathForDiagnosis". Researchers from Germany, Italy, South Africa and Romania are working with an industrial partner from Switzerland to develop user-friendly breath tests for the rapid diagnosis of respiratory infections such as tuberculosis.

An unexpected discovery surprised a scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart: nanometer-sized diamond particles, which were intended for a completely different purpose, shone brightly in a magnetic resonance imaging experiment – much brighter than the actual contrast agent, the heavy metal gadolinium. Could diamond dust one day become a novel contrast agent used for MRI?

PhD student at Furtwangen University develops method for faster determination of antibiotic resistance. The increase in antibiotic-resistant pathogens and the associated treatment, which is a major problem in public healthcare facilities, is the subject of a research project at Furtwangen University.

The market for medical technology is innovative, dynamic, and growing. Bosch sees medical technology as a strategic growth field and intends to expand its Bosch Healthcare Solutions subsidiary, based in Waiblingen. Bosch has now entered into a new partnership with the German diagnostics solutions company R-Biopharm. This partnership will be focused on Bosch’s universal, fully automated Vivalytic molecular diagnostic analysis platform.

Collagen has been used in ophthalmology since the 1990s, particularly in the treatment of corneal defects. However, why and how this technique works was only known in theory. Researchers at the NMI Natural and Medical Sciences Institute in Reutlingen led by Lu Fan have found the necessary evidence and can now reliably explain how this technique works.

Pioneering cutting-edge diagnostic systems for the detection of complex diseases: Cyber Valley is pleased to announce it has awarded funding of 500K EUR to the CELL’n’ROLL team through the 2023 Cyber Valley Innovation Fellowship program, funded by the Carl-Zeiss-Stiftung.

With its Vivalytic analysis platform, Bosch has set itself the goal of making fast and highly precise diagnostics accessible at the point of care – and aims to use molecular diagnostics to become a leading provider in the market by 2030. To achieve this, Bosch has now agreed on a strategic partnership with Randox Laboratories Ltd., a leading diagnostic and medical technology company.

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.

Does our therapeutic approach work against cancer? The answer to this question can make the difference between life and death - and is still difficult to answer. A team from the NMI Natural and Medical Sciences Institute at the University of Tübingen and the Werner Siemens Imaging Center Tübingen has developed a technique for observing immune cells.

HealthCare Royalty to purchase royalties from worldwide sales of Telix Pharmaceuticals’ imaging diagnostic agent ZircaixTM (TLX250-CDx) Heidelberg Pharma is eligible to receive up to USD 115 million in three near-term tranches Cumulative royalties sold are capped at a maximum value

Artificial intelligence (AI) can help dermatologists to detect skin cancer. However, many dermatologists distrust the algorithms' decisions, which they cannot comprehend. Scientists at the German Cancer Research Center have now developed an AI-based support system for skin cancer diagnostics that explains its decisions.

The German Cancer Society has certified the Center for Personalized Medicine (ZPM) at Heidelberg University Hospital. At the ZPM Heidelberg, patients with advanced and rare cancers and, in future, people with severe chronic inflammatory diseases will receive a molecular genetic analysis. The detailed information can open up new treatment options for those affected.

The new Center for Bionic Intelligence Tübingen Stuttgart aims to optimize the interaction between humans and technical systems in a fundamentally new way. Scientists from the Universities of Stuttgart and Tübingen, the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems and the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics are conducting research on intelligent bionic systems that will aid understanding and treatment of certain diseases of the CNS.

Dossier - 11/10/2023

The quantum revolution in the healthcare industry

From ultra-fast quantum computers to highly sensitive sensors - quantum technologies could take medicine a giant step forward. Possible areas of application range from drug development and early cancer detection to reading brain waves to control prostheses or exoskeletons. The German state of Baden-Württemberg plays a key role in the development of sensors in particular.

Current diagnostic methods do not always reliably distinguish between chronic inflammation of the pancreas and pancreatic cancer. About one third of all diagnoses are inconclusive. Scientists from the German Cancer Research (DKFZ) and from Heidelberg University Hospital (UKHD) therefore searched for molecular markers that could specify this diagnosis.

The computational design of new proteins for biomedical or other applications involves long computing times on powerful servers. A joint team of researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Biology Tübingen and the University Hospital Tübingen has now developed and tested a new computational method to greatly speed up the necessary energy calculations. Their framework allows for a precise and efficient design of functional proteins.

Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the Cambridge Stem Cell Institute have developed an AI system that recognizes and characterizes white and red blood cells in microscopic images of blood samples. The algorithm can help physicians diagnose blood disorders and is available as an open source method for research purposes.

A new study published in Nature Medicine, July 2023 has identified two novel markers for screening high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL), a precursor to anal cancer, from the anal microbiome of people with HIV (PWH). PWH are at a significantly higher risk of developing anal cancer. Current screening methods, such as anal cytology, have low specificity for detecting HSIL, which hinders the prevention of anal cancer.

Tumour organoids facilitate drug discovery - 20/07/2023

Drug screening for children with cancer using patient-specific miniature tumours

Standard drugs often don’t work in children and adolescents with recurrent cancer. Researchers from the Hopp Children's Tumour Centre (KITZ) and the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) in Heidelberg have been looking to open up new therapy options for those affected, and have cultivated individual miniature tumours from biopsy samples to test the effectiveness of a variety of drugs within a few weeks.

The AutoProNano German/French collaborative project involves developing a process for the automated production of nanoparticles for in vitro and in vivo diagnostics. The project is being launched within the smart analytics cooperation network. This international initiative has been funded by the Central Innovation Programme for SMEs (ZIM) of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) since May 2020.

Detecting drug resistance of tumour cells - 25/05/2023

AI-assisted diagnostics declares war on lung cancer

Lung cancer is one of the most common cancers and has a particularly high mortality rate. A significant challenge in treating this disease lies in the resistance of lung tumours to conventional drug therapies, rendering chemotherapy ineffective. There is hope on the horizon as a team of experts from Baden-Württemberg has joined forces to develop an innovative AI-supported test procedure that paves the way for individualised therapy approaches.

Proteins have characteristic amino acid sequences, the analysis of which is fundamental for research and medicine. These can be decoded; however, so-called protein sequencing is expensive and time-consuming. A large-scale research project led by Prof. Dr. Jan Behrends from the Institute of Physiology at the University of Freiburg now aims to establish a new technology for protein sequencing using nanopores, which will be rapid and cost-effective.

Heidelberg University is to acquire a research building to develop innovative engineering science strategies and technologies on the basis of life-inspired molecular systems. The German Science and Humanities Council has now expressed its backing for the idea with an outstanding rating. This recommendation is the crucial precondition for a new building on the university campus Im Neuenheimer Feld.

Tablet-based diagnostics - 12/04/2023

TuCAN - innovative diagnostic procedure for neuropsychiatric disorders

Neuropsychiatric disorders are often diagnosed late and have a negative impact on quality of life. Diagnosing the disease at an early stage is vital to be able to help those affected by offering them treatment adapted to their specific requirements. This is what the TuCAN project in Tübingen aims to achieve through the early and differential diagnosis of neuropsychiatric disorders.

Cytolytics GmbH - 14/02/2023

Bioinformatics meets medical diagnostics and drug development

The start-up company Cytolytics from Tübingen has developed a robust and user-friendly software platform that uses machine learning for the automated analysis of cells. This is beneficial in areas such as cancer diagnostics and the development of new pharmaceutically active substances.