Healthcare industry

TGU Varimol - 24/07/2020

Click chemistry for new medical procedures

Using a simple molecular click process, biochemists have been able to connect ring-shaped molecules with each other and couple therapeutically active substances to these molecules. Drugs can thus be specifically delivered to diseased cells and used for imaging processes or biosensors. The Stuttgart-based start-up Varimol is using this new technology to provide its customers with tailored applications that are as simple to use as a kit.

CureVac AG, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a new class of transformative medicines based on optimized mRNA, today announced that the German Health Authority Paul-Ehrlich-Institute (PEI) and the Belgian Federal Agency for Medicines and Health Products (FAMHP) have approved the Phase 1 clinical trial for its vaccine program to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection. The trial will be conducted in Germany and Belgium.

CureVac AG, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company pioneering mRNA-based drugs for vaccines and therapeutics, confirmed today that internal efforts are focused on the development of a coronavirus vaccine with the goal to reach, help and to protect people and patients worldwide.

Novel coronavirus outbreak - a status report on recent developments - 04/03/2020

Waiting for a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine

Researchers around the world are working frantically on the development of a vaccine against the new coronavirus. A project by the Tübingen-based biotechnology company CureVac, funded by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), uses the company’s technology platform for mRNA-based vaccines to accelerate vaccine development, thus contributing to the future prevention of the disease.

Daniel Menichella, CEO of biopharmaceutical company CureVac, was today invited to the White House to discuss strategies and opportunities for the rapid development and production of a coronavirus vaccine with U.S. President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force and high-ranking representatives of pharmaceutical and biotech companies working on the outbreak’s response.

The High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) and two private investors are convinced of the importance of single-cell isolation for the production of biopharmaceuticals and for genetic analysis in research and diagnostics. EUR 3 million will be invested in the further development of the technology, the expansion of the sales organization and in opening up further applications for Cytena’s single-cell printers.

Plant breeding - 19/11/2018

Tobacco for health

Plants can be used as biofactories to produce valuable active ingredients such as proteins, antibodies, dyes or vaccines. A project called Newcotiana aims to re-position the existent tobacco industry infrastructure. The project partners, including Prof. Dr. Holger Puchta from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, use modern breeding methods to develop tobacco varieties with new capabilities.

Article - 02/06/2017

SÜDPACK: a great example of biotech as a cross-sectoral technology

SÜDPACK Verpackungen is a qualified supplier of plastic films to the biopharmaceutical industry. The company is the leading European manufacturer of packaging products for the food industry and also offers its expertise to the biopharmaceutical industry. In 2011, SÜDPACK created an exclusive cooperation partnership with Sartorius Stedim Biotech, a global technology provider for the pharmaceutical biotech industry, which has now been extended…

Article - 02/08/2016

Can the ticking Huntington clock be stopped?

An early phase clinical study involving thirty-six Huntington’s disease (HD) patients is currently underway to investigate whether a method called gene silencing can cure the disease. If the gene that causes the disease can be turned off, it would be the first step towards a treatment that not only fights symptoms but actually treats the causes of HD, hence providing a cure.

Article - 19/07/2016

Licence to kill – the enormous potential of CAR T cells

With 6 million euros of EU funding, the CARAT project aims to optimise a technology called CAR T that is used to equip T cells with antibody fragments and specifically direct them to destroy cancer cells. The CARAT consortium comprises a multinational team of experts from the Institute for Cell- and Gene Therapy at the Freiburg University Medical Center led by Prof. Dr. Toni Cathomen and seven partner institutions. Cathomen’s team is developing…

Article - 16/06/2016

Microfluidic biofermenter mimics plant tissue

It is estimated that as many as one million secondary plant metabolites can be used as medical agents. Plants produce these compounds to aid their growth and development as well as to discourage herbivores from eating them. However, it is still very difficult, or even impossible, to produce secondary plant metabolites industrially. Researchers from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) are now developing a microfluidic bioreactor to make…

New construction represents an important component of a previously announced investment strategy - 22/03/2016

Creation of a new 70 million euro Vetter production building

Vetter, a leading global contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) for the development, commercial manufacturing and final packaging of aseptically prefilled drug-delivery systems, today announced the construction of a new building at a ground breaking ceremony held at its Ravensburg Schuetzenstrasse site. Scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2018, the building is planned to begin operations in early 2019. Expected to…

The latest articles, press releases and dossiers on red biotechnology in Baden-Württemberg

The latest articles, press releases and dossiers on pharmaceutics in Baden-Württemberg

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…

Dossier - 04/11/2013

Biotechnology – driver of innovation in the pharmaceutical industry

The biotech industry is the innovative driver for a pharmaceutical industry that, due to the shift from blockbluster products to personalised medicine, now depends on new concepts. The production of new drugs using genetic engineering relies on knowledge gained from genomics, proteomics and systems biology and creates new treatment strategies that combine therapy and diagnostics (i.e. companion diagnostics) to provide a specific individualised…

Article - 22/07/2013

Marcus Fändrich strengthens protein biochemistry at Ulm University

After quite a long vacancy the directors post of the Institute for Pharmaceutical Biotechnology at the University of Ulm has finally been filled. Marcus Fändrich and his team moved into the laboratories and offices of the new life sciences building on the Oberer Eselsberg Ulm University campus in November 2012. Fändrich fills a gap in the Ulm Bioregions biopharmaceutical education activities as he will not only be teaching biochemistry…

Article - 11/03/2013

PHAST GmbH: firm focus on growth strategy

Since August last year, PHAST Development GmbH & Co. KG has been bringing a breath of fresh air to the old research campus of the pharmaceutical company Takeda (formerly Nycomed) in Konstanz. The pharmaceutical company, with its roots in the city of Homburg, Germany, is a specialist in innovative methods for testing the quality of medicines. Amongst other things, PHAST develops test methods that enable the optimisation of drug release. A…

Article - 18/02/2013

Biotechnology in Biberach: a success story that breaks new ground

At its New Year reception Biberach University of Applied Sciences outlined the universitys success the establishment of its biotechnology programme is going smoothly and student interest remains steady. Biberach also has a successful track record of acquiring third-party funding and has established new national and international cooperations.

Merck Serono, a division of Merck, Darmstadt, Germany, announced on 10th Oktober 2012 during the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS) congress in Lyon, France, that the company has initiated a new global research award to improve understanding of multiple sclerosis for the ultimate benefit of patients.

Article - 16/07/2012

Laupheim to become an international forum for biomanufacturing

The 2nd Laupheimer Zelltage conference organized by Rentschler Biotechnologie GmbH in Laupheim on 11th and 12th June 2012 focused on “Bioprocess light”. Twelve experts from applied research institutions and biotech companies from Germany and abroad provided the 200 or so guests with information on how modern bioproduction methods can be made simpler, more robust, cheaper, more reliable and hence more competitive.

Article - 19/03/2012

Protein aggregation: when proximity becomes dangerous

The aggregation of proteins in the human body might have severe medical consequences, as is the case with Alzheimer’s disease, for example. A less known fact is that the biopharmaceutical industry is also faced with the biological phenomenon of protein aggregation and is working on preventive measures.

Press release - 15/11/2011

PANATecs GmbH will move into new laboratories in Heilbronn in 2012

In Summer 2012, PANATecs will move its headquarters to Heilbronn, where the firm will have modern and purpose-built laboratories in the Wohlgelegen Research Park.

Article - 25/07/2011

Cell culturing as a taught subject: many more “Biberachs” are needed

Cell culture technology is only taught at a handful of universities. However, this interdisciplinary subject is the core of the “Pharmaceutical Biotechnology” programme offered by the Biberach University of Applied Sciences. We talked about the subject with Professor Jürgen Hannemann, founding dean of the “Pharmaceutical Biotechnology” programme, and with Professor Friedemann Hesse, who runs the “cell culture technology” teaching programme.