Hummingbird Diagnostics GmbH - 22/09/2022 The great potential of blood-based microRNA analyses "The early bird catches the worm", is an apt description of what motivates Hummingbird Diagnostics GmbH from Heidelberg. The medium-sized biotechnology company analyses special biomarkers in blood, so-called microRNAs, in order to diagnose diseases at an early stage and to be able to make forecasts about the course of the disease and the success of therapy.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/great-potential-blood-based-microrna-analyses
Press release - 10/02/2022 CureVac Doses First Participant in Phase 1 Study with Multivalent Influenza Vaccine Candidate Based on Second-Generation mRNA Backbone Developed in Collaboration with GSK CureVac N.V. (Nasdaq: CVAC), a global biopharmaceutical company developing a new class of transformative medicines based on messenger ribonucleic acid (“mRNA”), today announced that it has dosed the first participant in a Phase 1 study of its seasonal influenza second-generation mRNA vaccine candidate, CVSQIV, developed in collaboration with GSK.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/curevac-doses-first-participant-phase-1-study-multivalent-influenza-vaccine-candidate-based-second-generation-mrna-backbone-deve
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 - 16/08/2021 Blood-based micro-RNAs indicate the risk of colorectal cancer The risk of colorectal cancer can be predicted more accurately by determining seven blood-based micro-RNAs (miRNAs) than by using traditional methods - and can be done so many years before a diagnosis is made. In a current study, researchers from the German Cancer Research Center and the National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT) Heidelberg show that miRNA profiles provide greater predictive accuracy than genetic or lifestyle-based risk…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/blood-based-micro-rnas-indicate-risk-colorectal-cancer
Press release - 04/01/2018 CureVac and Arcturus Therapeutics Announce Broad Strategic Collaboration to Advance Next Generation of Lipid-Mediated mRNA Therapeutics CureVac AG, a leading clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of pioneering mRNA therapeutics, and Arcturus Therapeutics Ltd. (NASDAQ:ARCT), an RNA medicines company, today announced they have entered into a broad strategic collaboration to jointly discover, develop and commercialize novel messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/curevac-and-arcturus-therapeutics-announce-broad-strategic-collaboration-to-advance-next-generation-of-lipid-mediated-mrna-thera
Article - 02/03/2017 Personalised antibiotics therapy: fewer antibiotic-resistant bacteria Antibiotics have long been used as all-purpose weapons against infectious diseases – too often and too early, as we now know. This tendency has caused many bacteria to become resistant to standard antibiotics. The search for new substance classes has proved quite difficult. Care must therefore be taken to use existing antibiotics prudently in order to reduce the number of bacteria becoming resistant to them in the long term. Researchers from…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/personalised-antibiotics-therapy-fewer-antibiotic-resistant-bacteria
Article - 22/02/2017 MammaScreen – blood test for early detection of breast cancer The MammaScreen team from the University of Heidelberg Women’s Hospital has developed a blood test for diagnosing breast cancer. This new test can detect breast cancer at a very early stage. It works on women of all ages with tumours of any type and size. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/mammascreen-blood-test-for-early-detection-of-breast-cancer
Article - 04/07/2016 Epigenetic modifications for the treatment of oesophageal cancer Oesophageal cancer is a rare but highly aggressive type of cancer with a rather poor prognosis. Dr. Theresa Ahrens, a researcher in a group led by Prof. Dr. Silke Laßmann and Prof. Dr. Martin Werner at the Institute of Clinical Pathology at the Freiburg University Medical Centre, has tested a variety of epigenetic drugs that can interfere with the development of oesophageal cancer. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/modifikation-epigenetic-modifications-for-the-treatment-of-oesophageal-cancer-als-therapie-bei-speiseroehrenkrebs
Article - 14/12/2015 Cathepsin L: overcoming stress in tumours Cathepsins are proteases, i.e. enzymes that break down proteins into smaller fragments. They are also involved in the formation of new blood vessels and wound healing. Another thing that cathepsins do is help tumours spread and form metastases in the body. Prof. Dr. Thomas Reinheckel and his team from the Institute of Molecular Medicine and Cell Research at the University of Freiburg are studying how this happens. Insights into the role of…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/cathepsin-l-den-stress-im-tumor-ueberwinden
Article - 28/09/2015 Breast cancer: a few millilitres of urine to diagnose the disease early It would be phenomenal news if it turned out that breast cancer could be detected by way of urine samples. Treating physicians would be able to use conspicuous test results to begin further examinations as quickly as possible along with therapy if necessary. Prof. Dr. Elmar Stickeler and his team from the Freiburg University Medical Centre have developed a method that identifies the composition of microRNAs in urine. They were able to predict…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/breast-cancer-a-few-millilitres-of-urine-to-diagnose-the-disease-early
Article - 13/10/2014 Personalised cancer therapy based on microRNA analysis microRNAs are not just required for the regulation of gene expression, their expression signatures also allow conclusions to be drawn on the type and progression of cancer. Sensovation AG is therefore working with partners from industry and clinical research to develop an automated microRNA analysis platform that can detect and evaluate microRNA signatures faster than has previously been possible. The system is designed to make it easier to…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/personalised-cancer-therapy-based-on-microrna-analysis
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 - 16/01/2014 Kerstin Otte and her specific interest in tiny RNA molecules Molecular biologist Kerstin Otte is guided and inspired by content. This interest-based principle has brought Kerstin Otte to the Upper Swabian city of Biberach where she has found her professional niche. She has been professor of general molecular and cell biology at the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology at Biberach University of Applied Sciences since 2006. She is currently specifically focussed on a class of small RNA molecules that…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/kerstin-otte-and-her-specific-interest-in-tiny-rna-molecules
Dossier - 02/12/2013 RNA interference: confidence is returning The 15-year history of RNA interference is not short on dramatic effects. It begins with the unexpected discovery and publication of the process of post-transcriptional gene silencing in 1998 for which the two Americans Andrew Fire and Craig Mello were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine just eight years after their discovery. In 2001 Thomas Tuschl succeeded in switching off genes in human cells with small synthetic pieces of RNA…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/dossier/rna-interference-confidence-is-returning
Article - 14/10/2013 Online-tool predicts functions of regulatory RNAs Metabolism stress response and gene expression are all controlled by regulatory networks in living systems. Well-known regulators are proteins which function as enzymes chaperones or transcription factors to regulate numerous processes. Less well-known are RNA-molecules which also regulate a multitude of processes small RNAs or sRNAs. Dr. Jens Georg from the Department of Genetics and Experimental Bioinformatics at the University of Freiburg has…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/online-tool-predicts-functions-of-regulatory-rnas
Article - 12/08/2013 Sensovation AG: a special camera for rapid allergy diagnosis Between 20 and 30 million Germans suffer from allergies to house dust mites, pollen and many other allergens¹. The diagnosis of allergies is usually a rather time-consuming process as more than 20,000 potential allergens need to be tested in order to identify the allergen that causes a patient’s particular symptoms². Sensovation AG has developed a technology that allows the parallel analysis of 20 allergens and which has the potential to simplify…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/sensovation-ag-a-special-camera-for-rapid-allergy-diagnosis
Article - 25/03/2013 Ralf Baumeister – tinkering, constructing and switching off genes The focus of Ralf Baumeisters research a small nematode that is known as Caenorhabditis elegans is a rather simple organism. Nevertheless the worm can be used to study complicated behaviour including associated learning. This is how Prof. Dr. Ralf Baumeister from the Institute of Biology III at the University of Freiburg describes the animal that he works with on a daily basis. The worm has now got very little left to hide. And the genetic…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/ralf-baumeister-tinkering-constructing-and-switching-off-genes
Article - 11/03/2013 MicroRNAs – the saviours of stem cells Life means almost permanent renewal. Layers of skin and the blood cells of animals are replenished on a life-long basis while plants can even grow whole new leaves flowers and branches. All this is due to stem cells the all-rounders of the cell kingdom. In plants and animals stem cells have the potential to give rise to many types of cells thereby giving plants the ability to grow throughout their life cycle. But how does a cell know that it is a…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/micrornas-the-saviours-of-stem-cells
Article - 04/02/2013 Combining bio- and medtech for the diagnosis of cardiac diseases The Department of Cardiology at Heidelberg University Hospital and Siemens Corporate Technology have been working together since 2011 to develop new software that improves the diagnosis of heart diseases. The new software analyses and manages data related to the genetic causes of cardiomyopathy and presents the data to physicians in a clear manner. Specific microRNAs in the blood of patients have the potential of being used as new biomarkers,…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/combining-bio-and-medtech-for-the-diagnosis-of-cardiac-diseases
Article - 07/01/2013 Small RNAs and immunological reactions Patients with common variable immunodeficiency CVID lack antibodies that would protect them against infections. Only a handful of patients develop the disease because of a single defect in any of the genes involved in CVID pathogenesis. A group of researchers led by Dr. Ulrich Salzer at the Centre for Chronic Immunodeficiency CCI at the University of Freiburg Medical Centre investigates how small RNA molecules control B-lymphocyte development as…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/small-rnas-and-immunological-reactions
Press release - 12/11/2012 Phosphate switch to fine-tune the protein production in cells MicroRNAs are essential regulators of the genetic program in multicellular organisms. Because of their potent effects the production of these small regulators has itself to be tightly controlled. That is the key finding of a new study performed by Tübingen scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology. They identified a new component that modulates the production of microRNAs in thale cress by the removal of phosphate residues…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/phosphate-switch-to-fine-tune-the-protein-production-in-cells
Press release - 20/12/2011 No brakes on breast cancer cells Scientists of the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) have discovered a tiny RNA molecule, called miR-520, which at once blocks two important pathways in the development of cancer in cells. In estrogen receptor-negative breast cancer, the production of this microRNA is often reduced and this is correlated with malignant behavior of tumor cells. The DKFZ team has found out that tumors with low levels of miR-520 have a particularly strong tendency…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/press-release/no-brakes-on-breast-cancer-cells
Article - 12/12/2011 Comprehensive Biomarker Center GmbH – next-generation biomarkers Biomarker research has moved on from proteins to nucleic acids where one of the main priorities is the use of microRNA expression profiles. The Heidelberg-based biotech company Comprehensive Biomarker Center GmbH (CBC, formerly febit) has state-of-the-art technologies and the skills and knowledge to advance the development of new nucleic acid biomarkers for complex diseases in cooperation with partners from research and industry. https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/comprehensive-biomarker-center-gmbh-next-generation-biomarkers
Dossier - 12/12/2011 Development of new molecular biomarkers Biomarkers are playing an increasing role in drug discovery and development. They can be used as molecular indicators for diseases and disease risks as well as for monitoring the effectiveness of therapy. Highly specific molecular biomarkers are being identified using state-of-the-art technologies from the fields of genomics, proteomics and metabolomics.https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/dossier/development-of-new-molecular-biomarkers
Article - 29/08/2011 Ute Schepers – the therapeutic potential of small RNAs and molecular transporters Small RNAs can specifically interfere with cellular mechanisms; or more precisely, with the cells’ protein biosynthesis machinery. Scientists have therefore decided to exploit this potential by using small RNAs against cancer cells or cells damaged in other ways. But the question arises as to how the small RNAs can reach the site where their role is to prevent the generation of dangerous proteins. Dr. Ute Schepers and her team from the Karlsruhe…https://www.gesundheitsindustrie-bw.de/en/article/news/ute-schepers-the-therapeutic-potential-of-small-rnas-and-molecular-transporters