Healthcare industry

Prof. Dr. Lenhard Rudolph a well-known stem cell researcher at Ulm University is investigating the relationships between telomeres stem cell ageing and diseases. In the following interview with Walter Pytlik BioRegion Ulm Rudolph gives insights into state-of-the-art ageing research and its potential applications.

Karin Scharffetter-Kochanek dermatologist and head of the Department of Dermatology and Allergology at the University Hospital of Ulm has spent a long time investigating skin ageing. Her specific focus on skin has not however restricted her understanding of ageing to barely deterministic or mechanistic details. Quite the opposite is true.

There are only a few signalling pathways that have been as well conserved during evolution as the Notch signalling pathway. This is due to the pathways unique biological function. Notch enables two identical cells to develop into completely different tissues. Anette Preiß professor at the University of Hohenheim has been working on the function of the Notch signalling pathway for almost 20 years.

The Europe-wide MARK-AGE project involving scientists from 14 countries commenced on the 1st April 2008. Scientists have joined forces to investigate the factors involved in ageing. They are using standardised questionnaires and analysing data acquired from physical and biochemical examinations of the blood and urine from 3700 volunteers. The team of experts includes the medical expert Professor Alexander Bürkle and the mathematician Prof.…

Hartmut Geiger a biochemist and stem cell researcher at Ulm University Hospital is using genetic methods to investigate the molecular basis of the physiological ageing of haematopoietic stem cells. After having spent a period in Cincinnati Geiger is currently head of the clinical research group Molecular and cellular ageing from the mechanisms of action to clinical perspectives.

In principle human tracheas and porcine small intestines do not have much in common. However both have a tube-like structure. This was the basis for Dr. Thorsten Walles extraordinary idea. In collaboration with Professor Dr. Heike Mertsching he is working on the development of methods for turning the intestines into bioartificial trachea substitutes.

Researchers at the University Hospital of Heidelberg are investigating the effect of signalling substances on muscle development. If mice are missing a gene for a certain muscle protein they become marathon runners.

During his doctorate Dr Rüdiger Rupp from the University of Heidelberg developed neuroprostheses that can be controlled with weak muscle tension or even with thought power. Rupp was awarded the Konrad Biesalski Prize of 5000.

The scientist Dr. Derk Frank from Heidelberg has discovered that calsarcin 1 protects the heart against pathological alterations caused by overstraining. Frank was awarded the 2008 Gotthard Schettler Prize for Cardiovascular Research.

For three days from 9 to 11 October more than 300 scientists from over 20 countries met at the Haus der Wirtschaft in Stuttgart to discuss the current state of research the latest product developments and therapies in regenerative medicine and stem cell research.

Press release - 15/10/2008

Hans-Jürgen Apell - insights into active ion transport

Biophysicist Prof. Hans-Jürgen Apell carries out basic research at the University of Constance in order to elucidate the molecular mechanisms involved in the transport of ions through membranes and to come up with important findings for new therapeutic concepts. His major field of research focuses on structure-function relationships of P-type ATPases enzymes which cleave ATP adenosine triphosphate and transport ions thereby resulting in muscle…

Duchenne muscular dystrophy DMD is a severe disease affecting boys characterised by rapid progression of muscle degeneration so that boys as young as 10 to 12 years of age have to use a wheelchair and leading to death in young men. In Germany about 2500 children and young adults suffer from DMD.

Sometimes a few nanogrammes of toxin are all that is needed to kill someone. Prof. Dr. Dr. Klaus Aktories from the Institute of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacy at the University of Freiburg is investigating why some bacterial toxins are so extremely toxic. Together with his team of researchers Aktories has identified the molecular mechanism of action of Clostridium difficile toxins.

The NMI Natural and Medical Sciences Institute in Reutlingen organised its biannual MEA conference from 8 to 11 July 2008. More than 200 developers and microelectrode array users from 18 countries came together in Reutlingen to present their latest developments and results.

Dossier - 03/07/2008

Molecular imaging - a close look inside the human body

Molecular imaging recognises the functional state of cells and molecules. It visualises biological processes on the cellular and molecular level and is thus able to detect pathological alterations a long time before disease symptoms become apparent. Molecular imaging offers new possibilities for improving diagnosis and enabling more targeted therapies than has previously been possible. Many experts regard molecular imaging as a paradigm shift in…

The new drug screening and safety pharmacology laboratory at NMI Technologie Transfer GmbH NMI TT GmbH in Reutlingen with its standardised and special test systems complies fully with the requirements of safety pharmacology tests.

The German Research Foundation will continue to fund the Transregional Collaborative Research Centre Inflammatory Cardiomyopathy - Molecular Pathogenesis and Therapy for another four years with a total of 10 million euros. The Department of Cardiology of the University Hospital of Tübingen will also become part of the SFB.

Histone acetyltransferases HATs and their antagonists the histone deacetylases are important enzymes in epigenetic gene regulation. Scientists discovered new HAT inhibitors that are now being investigated for their potential as anti-cancer drugs.

The NMI Natural and Medical Sciences Institute in Reutlingen is a role model for how research findings can be turned into financially sustainable products and services. Prof. Hugo Hämmerle has been a key figure in this success story for over 20 years. In February 2008 he took over as Managing Director of the institute.

The German Parliament decided in favour of relaxing the restrictions on the import of stem cells. Martina Keller-Ullrich spoke with the pharmacologist Prof. Dr. Marcel Leist the only Baden-Württemberg scientist authorised to carry out research involving embryonic stem cells.

The Ravensburg-based company Vetter Pharma-Fertigung GmbH & Co. KG is one of the leaders in biopharmaceutical contract manufacturing. We spoke with Max Horn, who has been with the company since 1981 and was appointed Managing Director in 2002.

Scientists from Mannheim Heidelberg an Freiburg working together in the cooperative research area Vascular Biology have developed a method that can be used to create a human vascular system in mice which stays functional even after several months.

Almost half of the veins transplanted to restore blood flow in the heart become clogged again within ten years after surgery. Gene therapy pre-treatment of the vein fragments that prevents the muscle cells from entering the vascular wall might decrease the risk of this happening.

The neurogeneticists in the group of Professor Karl-Friedrich Fischbach at the University of Freiburg are investigating how the complex optical areas of the brain are organised. They found that proteins form a functional unit.

Article - 30/03/2008

Small air bubbles with a huge impact

Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Metal Research in Stuttgart and their colleagues from Chicago and Miami have identified a physical mechanism that gives a new explanation as to how ion channels work.