Healthcare industry

Scientists from Heidelberg University Hospital the German Cancer Research Center and the company Febit Biomed GmbH have now developed a method that facilitates the analysis and detection of disease-causing genetic modifications for the first time ever this method enables the genetic characterisation of cardiomyopathy patients. For patients and their relatives this means that the disease can now be reliably diagnosed and specific treatment and…

Dossier - 26/11/2012

Genetic diagnostics: technology reaches the limits of what is medically reasonable

Rapid progress in sequencing technologies is poised to set the imagination of biomedical researchers on fire. Experts now believe that progress is about to make possible what seemed to be utopian a few years ago – it seems likely that it will soon be possible to sequence the human genome in only a few minutes and store and automatically analyse it using tiny automates. However, is everything that is technically feasible also reasonable?

The benchmark paper on the Genetic Diagnostics Act which has long been heralded by the governing coalition foresees the binding counselling of people concerned. The coalition is opposed to allowing employers to require their employees to undergo genetic tests.

Press release - 04/02/2020

CeGaT Brings New Dimension to Exome Diagnostics

CeGaT aims to solve all genetically-caused cases of disease to help physicians state a diagnosis. To pursue this goal, CeGaT incorporated its long-term expertise and latest scientific knowledge in an innovative diagnostic tool: CeGaT Exome Xtra is the most powerful genetic diagnostic option for patients with complex, unspecific, and rare diseases.

Article - 26/02/2011

Researchers from Ulm identify congenital genetic defect

Researchers led by the Ulm paediatrician Holger Cario have identified a rare, congenital genetic defect that leads to the dysregulation of the folic acid metabolism, resulting in aenemia, epilepsy and learning difficulties in children. All aspects of the disease can be treated quite successfully with the exception of the cramps associated with the defect.

Press release - 04/03/2010

New German-Austrian project for breast cancer therapy

Hope for breast cancer patients under the leadership of the Vorarlberg Institute for Vascular Investigation and Treatment VIVIT a cross border cooperation is to start between hospitals and bioanalytical laboratories of the Rhine Valley and Lake Constance region. It is aimed at exploring the influence genetic material DNA has on the progression of breast cancer and the response to breast cancer treatment. A collaboration which became possible…

Article - 10/05/2010

CeGaT: DNA and RNA sequencing specialist

Sequencing service providers are facing new challenges due to the enormous technological progress made in this field. The market requires technically feasible solutions reliable and rapid sequence analyses in which entire genomes can be analysed within a couple of days or weeks. This can only be achieved with state-of-the-art high-throughput technologies. Tübingen-based CeGaT GmbH has been offering DNA and RNA sequencing using state-of-the-art…

The German Federal Cabinet agreed on a draft bill on human genetic testing Gene Diagnostics Law. The law protects people against the danger of potential discrimination that could result from knowledge of the genetic properties of individuals. The draft bill prohibits secret tests to determine parentage.

Article - 04/10/2010

Dr. Kerstin Stemmer: important approaches for the early identification of carcinogenic substances

Dr. Kerstin Stemmer from the University of Konstanz has found a way to identify the carcinogenic potential of substances in just a few days using state-of-the-art technology and new investigation methods. This is the first time that researchers have been able to reduce the time and the number of animals used in carcinogenesis studies.

Article - 09/08/2010

Quick and early detection of rare diseases

Lysosomal storage diseases LSD are a group of around 50 rare inherited metabolic disorders. Only 12 LSDs have been described biochemically and microbiologically. Prof. Dr. Michael Przybylski from the Steinbeis Transfer Centre for Biopolymer Analysis and Proteomics at the University of Constance now hopes to change this situation. In a project carried out in cooperation with the biotech company Genzyme CEE Konstanz and the University of Timisoara…

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.

Press release - 24/09/2009

CeGAT: Tracking genes using cutting-edge technologies

To adequately meet the growing demand for genetic diagnostics doctor scientist and bioinformatician Dr. Saskia Biskup and her husband business graduate Dr. Dirk Biskup founded the Center for Genomics and Transcriptomics or CeGAT for short in July 2009. As a supplier of DNA and RNA sequencing in the STERN BioRegion CeGAT which is based in the Technology park Tübingen Reutlingen TTR uses state-of-the-art high-throughput technologies to examine…

Expert interview - 26/06/2018

Genome analyses: "Germany lags behind dramatically"

Around 6,000 genetic diseases can be diagnosed using genetic tests. Genetic testing enables the accurate identification of diseases especially when symptoms are unclear, and also allows statements to be made about disease progression. However, restrictive regulations considerably hinder the use of genetic diagnostics. BIOPRO spoke with Dr. Dr. Saskia Biskup, a human genetics specialist and co-founder of the Tübingen-based company CeGaT.

Article - 19/11/2012

Uncovering the genetics of prostate cancer

The prostate genome project, which is part of the International Cancer Genome Consortium, is focused on the genetic and epigenetic causes of the development and progression of this highly variable cancer and finding markers that enable the reliable diagnosis of the disease. The German research groups involved in the project are coordinated by the German Cancer Research Center and concentrate on prostate cancer patients under 50 years of age, as…

Article - 17/02/2014

Personalised tumour diagnostics with high-throughput sequencing

CeGaT GmbH Center for Genomics and Transcriptomics in Tübingen is one of the first organisations that have managed to combine human genetic diagnostics with high-throughput sequencing for the diagnosis of specific tumour variants. CeGat researchers have developed diagnostic panels that they use to study more than 550 tumour-relevant genes simultaneously. The identification of genetic changes provides a more detailed diagnosis of tumours and helps…

Press release - 23/05/2011

GATC Biotech and LifeCodexx develop a diagnostic test for early detection of preeclampsia

Preeclampsia is a hypertensive disorder of the mother during pregnancy. It is among the leading causes of death of mother and unborn child and occurs in approximately two to five percent of all pregnancies in Germany. Early detection is critical and improves the prognosis for the further course of the pregnancy.

Article - 12/08/2013

A complete exome sequence in one week

The exome is the part of the genome that is formed by exons i.e. the DNA regions that code for proteins and other functional products. Though comprising only about 1 of the total genome the majority of disease-causing mutations occur in the exome. Selectively sequencing the coding regions of the genome is quicker than whole-genome sequencing. Therefore exome sequencing plays an important role in the diagnosis of genetic diseases and cancer.…

So-called silent mutations have no effect on the composition of a protein. They are therefore not considered to promote cancer. However, scientists from the German Consortium for Translational Cancer Research (DKTK), partner site Essen, now describe in a case of kidney cancer an overlooked silent mutation with a major impact on prognosis.

Although the biomolecule DNS has provided many explanations and hopeful projections opinions are divided over the question of DNA being the carrier of genetic information. There is a huge need for clarification. Biologists clinicians psychologists lawyers and bioethicists discussed in Tübingen.

Article - 24/03/2014

DNA – from Watson and Crick to modern molecular biology

Watson and Crick deciphered the structure of DNA around 60 years ago and thus provided the key to understanding how genetic information is passed on. Since this discovery, which laid the foundation for molecular biology, new insights and developments have significantly changed many research areas and have also found their way into our everyday lives. DNA sequencing, genetic fingerprinting or personalised medicine – Watson and Crick’s heritage is…

Article - 04/04/2011

Technical innovations for better diagnostics

The quantitative detection of DNA single-strand breaks is of great importance for many areas of biomedical research and diagnostics. The Fluorescence-detected Alkaline DNA Unwinding FADU assay assists in the investigation of mechanisms of DNA damage and repair following DNA strand breaks upon exposure to chemicals. Prof. Alexander Bürkle and his team at the University of Konstanz have automated and optimised the original FADU assay which was…

Women have an increased risk of breast cancer if they have a family history of this disease. However, the risk may also be higher if first-degree family members have another type of cancer, according to a study by a team of scientists and physicians from the National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg, the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and Heidelberg University Hospital (UKHD), as well as international colleagues.

Article - 12/11/2012

Otmar D. Wiestler – combining excellent research and cancer medicine

The University of Tübingen Medical Faculty’s award of an honorary doctorate to the Chairman of the Executive Board of the German Cancer Research Center, Professor Dr. Otmar D. Wiestler, was not just a distinction awarded to a renowned neuropathologist, oncologist and stem cell researcher, it also honoured a well-known personality who has made a significant contribution to shaping health research in Germany.

Article - 29/03/2016

The zebrafish can mend its own heart

In adults, cells such as nerve or cardiac muscle cells have lost the ability to regenerate. This is why myocardial infarction is so dangerous – damaged cardiac muscle cells do not grow back and scar tissue forms in their place. Prof. Dr. Gilbert Weidinger and an international team of researchers have deciphered a mechanism responsible for the regeneration of the zebrafish heart.

Article - 30/06/2014

Targeting epigenetic DNA modifications for the diagnosis of cancer

Epigenetic DNA modifications have been shown to play a role in carcinogenesis and are therefore a promising target for the early detection of cancer. Dr. Daniel Summerer and his research group at the University of Konstanz have developed a method that enables the direct and site-specific identification of epigenetic changes. The method represents a new approach in the field of epigenetic analysis as well as a major step towards simpler cancer…