Milestone payment results in further profitability in fiscal year 2015, continuing the trend from 2014 - 17/12/2015 Phenex AG reaches milestone in collaboration with Janssen Phenex Pharmaceuticals AG (Phenex) today announced the achievement of a milestone in the collaboration with Janssen Biotech, Inc. (Janssen), which triggers a 6 M US$ payment by Janssen. In late 2012, Phenex and Janssen entered into a research collaboration on RORgt with a view to develop new therapeutic approaches for chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/phenex-ag-reaches-milestone-in-collaboration-with-janssen
Telemedizin - 19/10/2015 SMARTY – a new way to treat and care for chronically ill children Chronic and complex diseases in children are often a heavy burden on their families. Parents naturally want their children to have the latest treatment, and children are usually treated by several specialists. This makes it rather difficult, or, at the very least, involves considerable effort to keep everyone up to date. Dr. Joachim Riethmüller from the University Children’s Hospital in Tübingen and his team of doctors are using telemedicine in…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/smarty-a-new-way-to-treat-and-care-for-chronically-ill-children
Article - 27/07/2015 Looking for the Achilles’ heel of the tumour Although medicines that inhibit the growth of cancer cells are available, the prognosis for patients with solid tumours is generally still rather poor. The reason for this is that tumour cells develop resistance to therapy during treatment, and the tumour can continue to grow. However, tumours are vulnerable – if only more robust medicines were available. Prof. Dr. Lars Zender, senior physician and head of the Division of Translational…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/looking-for-the-achilles-heel-of-the-tumour
Article - 20/07/2015 Liver cell carcinoma: reducing tumour burden – increasing life expectancy Liver cell carcinoma or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most malignant human cancers. The disease arises from chronic damage to the liver, usually caused by virus- or alcohol-related liver cirrhoses. Liver tumours are considered difficult to treat, but there is evidence that they actually trigger an immune response in the body. Prof. Dr. Robert Thimme from Freiburg University Medical Centre is seeking to understand this effect and…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/liver-cell-carcinoma-reducing-tumour-burden-increasing-life-expectancy
Overview Red biotechnology The latest articles, press releases and dossiers on red biotechnology in Baden-Württemberghttps:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/biotech
Article - 16/03/2015 The critical balance between liver fibrosis and liver regeneration When the liver has been damaged, a receptor protein of the hepatic stellate cells called endosialin controls the balance between liver repair and scar formation. A team of researchers from Heidelberg and Mannheim has shown that endosialin is a positive regulator of fibrogenesis and a negative regulator of hepatocyte proliferation. Endosialin therefore seems to be a promising therapeutic drug target in non-neoplastic settings. https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/the-critical-balance-between-liver-fibrosis-and-liver-regeneration
Press release - 09/03/2015 Gilead Sciences aquires FXR-program of Phenex Pharmaceuticals AG Gilead Sciences, Inc. (Foster City, CA, U.S.A.) and Phenex Pharmaceuticals AG (Ludwigshafen/Heidelberg, Germany), a privately-held biotechnology company, announced the signing of a definitive agreement under which Gilead will acquire Phenex’s Farnesoid X Receptor (FXR) program comprising small molecule FXR agonists for the treatment of liver diseases including nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/gilead-sciences-aquires-fxr-program-of-phenex-pharmaceuticals-ag
Dossier - 09/03/2015 Advances in the study and treatment of liver diseases Liver diseases are often underestimated despite being quite common and potentially having serious and even life-threatening consequences, especially in chronic cases. The most common causes of liver diseases are hepatitis viruses, excessive alcohol consumption, and obesity; congenital or autoimmune liver diseases are quite rare. Thanks to advances in medical research, diseases such as hepatitis B and C can be treated effectively. Fewer advances…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/dossier/advances-in-the-study-and-treatment-of-liver-diseases
Article - 22/12/2014 Fighting hepatitis viruses with their own weapons Virologist Prof. Dr. Stephan Urban from the University of Heidelberg has been awarded the DZIF Prize for Translational Infection Research for the discovery and development of a promising peptide drug for the treatment of hepatitis B virus infections. The peptide prevents viruses from entering the liver cells, and is also effective against hepatitis D infection. Hepatitis D is the deadliest of all viral liver diseases and no specific antiviral…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/fighting-hepatitis-viruses-with-their-own-weapons
Article - 15/12/2014 Heart muscle cell 1.0 and 2.0 – two epigenetic programmes in one cell All the cells in an organism have to adapt to changing requirements as they develop and grow - including muscle cells in the heart. Crucial to this process are the cells’ growth in size and epigenetic factors that play a role in modulating the expression of various genes. The role of epigenetics in cancer development has been the focus of research for quite some time. The question is, what role do epigenetic factors play in the development of the…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/heart-muscle-cell-1-0-and-2-0-two-epigenetic-programmes-in-one-cell
Article - 13/10/2014 Data mining is likely to play an increasing role in clinical development Data mining still plays a minor role in the research-based pharmaceutical industry. But this is likely to change in the future. Mathematician Hans-Jürgen Lomp predicts that exploratory data analysis will be used to a greater extent in the future. Lomp is the Global Head of Statistics in Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co KG’s Department of Medical Data Service and Biostatistics in Biberach.https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/data-mining-is-likely-to-play-an-increasing-role-in-clinical-development
Article - 15/09/2014 Mesenchymal stromal cells: promising cell therapy candidates Mesenchymal stromal cells MSC are increasingly moving into the spotlight as the beacon of hope for somatic cell therapies. The biomedical research community is currently carrying out more than 300 clinical trials to investigate their suitability for a broad range of indications. Prof. Schrezenmeier professor of transfusion medicine and medical director at the Institute for Clinical Transfusion Medicine and Immunogenetics IKT in Ulm is involved in…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/mesenchymal-stromal-cells-promising-cell-therapy-candidates
Article - 25/08/2014 Frederik Wenz - radiologist sets milestone with new surgical technique for the treatment of bone metastases Can painful bone metastases be treated in a targeted and quick way? Can metastases that are potentially present in the liver and kidneys be adequately treated at the same time as bone metastases? These are the questions that Professor Dr. med. Frederik Wenz from the University Medical Center Mannheim asked himself before going on to develop an innovative surgical technique. After a long development period, this technique is now recognized as an…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/frederik-wenz-radiologist-sets-milestone-with-new-surgical-technique-for-the-treatment-of-bone-metas
Dossier - 31/03/2014 Peptides – diverse molecules of life Peptides exist in all organisms, wherever there are cells. The range of their physiological functions is huge. Biologically active peptides can act as hormones, neurotransmitters, growth factors as well as toxins and antibiotics. This is what makes them highly interesting drug leads. They are used for the treatment of autoimmune diseases, cancer and other diseases. Despite some drawbacks, peptides are gaining in importance as candidates for drugs…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/dossier/peptides-diverse-molecules-of-life
Article - 26/03/2014 CeloNova is taking off CeloNova BioSciences is a global medical device company whose core technology is currently mainly used for interventional cardiology (stents) and tumour embolisation (selective occlusion of tumour arteries) products. The company has been expanding since 2010. CeloNova products are currently available in 52 countries and there are plans to place them on the Asian market in 2014 and further increase company turnover.https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/celonova-is-taking-off
Dossier - 10/03/2014 Cancer therapy and cancer diagnostics Thanks to improved diagnostics and therapy, today’s cancer patients can live considerably longer than patients several years ago. Nevertheless, some cancers, especially the strongly metastatic ones, are difficult to treat. Therapies targeting immune cells or cancer stem cells could potentially improve the current situation. The early detection and classification of tumours is crucial for the successful treatment of the disease, and molecular…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/dossier/cancer-therapy-and-cancer-diagnostics
Article - 29/07/2013 Food supplements from blue-green algae do more harm than good Dietary supplements containing different types of algae claim to be rich in minerals that help improve mental acuity and concentration. While many of these products are neither useful nor harmful, products containing blue-green algae have raised serious concerns. Consumers have repeatedly complained about pain and discomfort after consumption. A study carried out by toxicologist Prof. Dr. Daniel Dietrich from the University of Konstanz has now…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/food-supplements-from-blue-green-algae-do-more-harm-than-good
Dossier - 13/05/2013 The human proteome – the next major goal The “Human Proteome Project”, a ten-year global initiative that is making a systematic effort to map all human proteins, has moved from the planning to the experimental stage. How significant and how effective the project will be depends on how much the resources offered are used by proteome researchers and on the data that the researchers bring into the project. https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/dossier/the-human-proteome-the-next-major-goal
Article - 15/04/2013 Molecule-specific diagnosis of metabolic diseases In cooperation with the company Centogene AG Prof. Dr. Michael Przybylski from the Steinbeis Transfer Center for Biopolymer Analysis and Biomolecular Mass Spectrometry at the University of Konstanz has developed a method that involves a novel substance class and enables the parallel measurement of enzyme activity based on fluorometry and mass spectroscopy. The method for which the inventors have recently filed a patent application forms the basis…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/molecule-specific-diagnosis-of-metabolic-diseases
Article - 08/04/2013 The first major cell migration It is of crucial importance that cells stick tightly together where their function requires them to do so for example in organs such as the heart and the liver to name but two examples. However it is equally crucial that cells start to migrate at some stage during embryonic development in order to form such organs. Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Driever from the Institute of Biology I at the University of Freiburg and his team have elucidated the molecular…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/the-first-major-cell-migration
Article - 28/01/2013 Epigenetics and childhood blood cancer Juvenile myelomonocytic leukaemia JMML is the most common chronic cancer of the blood in children and tends to have a poor response to chemotherapy. Prof. Dr. Christian Flotho and his team from the Centre of Paediatric and Adolescent Medicine in Freiburg have shown that epigenetic mechanisms play a key role in the pathogenesis of JMML. As part of a German Research Foundation priority programme the researchers from Freiburg are working on…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/epigenetics-and-childhood-blood-cancer
Article - 07/01/2013 HepaChip: a promising tool for assessing adverse drug effects Liver damage is one of the most common adverse drug effects. Since results obtained with animal experiments can only be transferred to the situation in humans to a limited extent, there is a need for cell-based systems that model human organ function as closely as possible. The new HepaChip, developed by researchers at the NMI in Reutlingen on the basis of human liver and endothelial cells is able to do just this.https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/hepachip-a-promising-tool-for-assessing-adverse-drug-effects
Article - 17/12/2012 Medicyte GmbH – gold standard for human cells Medicyte GmbH is a life sciences company located in the city of Heidelberg. It focuses primarily on the production of quasi-primary human cells of the highest quality and in virtually unlimited quantity. MediCyte’s goal is to establish its proprietary cell proliferation technologies as gold standard for the use of human cells and cell products in research, development and cell therapy.https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/medicyte-gmbh-gold-standard-for-human-cells
Dossier - 05/11/2012 Cancer – basic research, successes and trends Science is approaching cancer treatment by using new systems biology approaches and setting up large-scale multidisciplinary projects such as the International Cancer Genome Consortium. Progress in genome, epigenome and gene expression analyses of cancer cells, new insights into the regulation and interaction of cells gained in cooperation with stem cell research and virus research contributes to gaining a causal understanding of cancer. This…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/dossier/cancer-basic-research-successes-and-trends
Article - 22/10/2012 syneed imaging: precise visualisation of functional tissue properties Functional medical imaging modalities are of great significance in modern medical diagnostics. Existing ways of diagnosing diseases are now being expanded with the arrival of the innovative parameter imaging method. syneed imaging uses proprietary highly sensitive software for the analysis of dynamic image data. This software complements standard methods such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging and increases the significance of…https:////www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/syneed-imaging-precise-visualisation-of-functional-tissue-properties