Healthcare industry

In order to be able to manage the growing amount of information in the life sciences the international research community has developed numerous electronic databases over the last few years. Supported by sophisticated software programmes the stored information can now be analysed effectively. In parallel with work-intensive screening methods which involve many laboratory experiments scientists are increasingly relying on computer-based methods.

Prof. Dr. Harald Krug a toxicologist who runs the Materials-Biology Interaction division at Empa - Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research in St. Gallen Switzerland and his team are investigating the interactions of synthetic materials with biological systems. The team of 25 researchers is focusing in particular on the effect of particles and nanomaterials such as CNT on human and animal cells. The division has been an…

Dossier - 29/09/2008

Drug screening - higher throughput, quicker and more effective thanks to automation

Over the last few years automation has revolutionised the search for pharmaceutical compounds. Using methods such as high-throughput screening or high-content screening it is possible to analyse thousands of molecule activities very quickly.

Professor Dr. Christoph Borner from the University of Freiburg and his team are investigating the molecular mechanisms of apoptosis. Their research also provides insights into the medical treatment of cells that do not want to die - cancer cells.

Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology together with American colleagues have decoded the genome of the Pristionchus pacificus nematode. It consists of a large number of genes. The scientists gain insight into the evolution of parasitism.

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.

Mayers major interest is cell division which he sees as an interesting and also a beautiful aesthetic process. Prof. Dr. Thomas U. Mayer occupies the chair of molecular genetics at the University of Constance where he enjoys working in close contact with colleagues from the field of chemistry.

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.

Professor Dr. Günther Schützs work on the cell- and development-specific gene regulation using nuclear receptors has led amongst other things to new insights into the steroid hormone-dependent early development and differentiation of the nervous system the molecular mechanisms of learning and the development and regulation of drug addiction. Schütz has now been appointed Helmholtz professor which will enable him to continue his work beyond…

Proteins that are involved in the development of an organism must be activated at the right time and then inactivated if no longer required. Scientists in Tübingen investigate the specific degradation of these proteins through specialised and highly selective systems of the cell.

The primary objective of greenovation Biotech GmbH is the implementation of a stable production platform for the manufacture of glycoproteins for industrial pharmaceutical applications in accordance with GMP guidelines. Now Gregor Mirow succeeds Hans Bodo Hartmann as the new managing director.

Article - 25/08/2008

Markers that reveal the correct biological age

Researchers at the University of Ulm have just identified a number of proteins that reveal the biological age of a person. These biomarkers might be used in medical applications to adapt the medical treatment of older people to their individual biological age.

More than 50 of recombinant proteins are altered while they are being synthesized in the cells sometimes once and sometimes several times. Experts call these alterations post-translational modifications.

Tübingen-based Hölle & Hüttner AG is taking over the entire share capital of Cologne-based INTAVIS Bioanalytical Instruments AG retroactively as of 1 January 2008. Both companies specialise in the development and marketing of systems for the automation of biochemical and molecular biological processes.

Frank Kirchhoff an AIDS researcher from Ulm has learnt to pose important questions and find the right answers during his post-graduate studies. This recipe has brought him and his research group international recognition and makes him one of the best AIDS researchers worldwide. Important publications within a very short time and numerous awards are clear evidence of his outstanding achievements. In addition he has just started a clinical trial…

About a year ago Prof. Dr. Martin Schwemmle and his team at the University Hospital of Freiburg discovered a new starting point in the fight against the H5N1-virus. In the meantime the scientists are working together with the company Pike Pharma to develop a compound.

Claus Schwechheimer at the Centre for Plant Molecular Biology at the University of Tübingen has succeeded in identifying a protein function in plants which if it is understood might lead to important progress in human cancer research.

Dr. Vladimir Katanaev a biologist at Constance University is investigating an intracellular signalling pathway that is of decisive importance for the embryonic development of multicellular organisms. The Wnt-Frizzled signalling pathway also plays an important part in the development of cancer.

The Membrane Proteins and Biological Membranes research training group combines research groups from Freiburg Basel and Strasbourg. Students from numerous countries benefit from the know-how of the diverse life sciences areas.

Prof. Dr. Bernhard Eitel Rector of the University of Heidelberg awarded the HMLS Prize to Prof. Dr. Bernd Bukau Centre for Molecular Biology in Heidelberg and Prof. Dr. Hans-Georg Kräusslich Institute of Hygiene at the University of Heidelberg.

Article - 07/07/2008

Control centre for light and cold

Plants grow well under optimal light conditions but only if they are not under stress. Cell biologists have long assumed that information is exchanged between the molecular signalling pathways that mediate light perception and stress tolerance.

Cancer cells are dangerous foodies. They metabolise far greater amounts of sugar than healthy cells. Nuclear medicine experts make use of cancer cells craving for sugar since the advent of modern positron emission tomography PET. This has led to an improvement in the quality of cancer treatment.

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 NanoZoomer robot at the TIGA High-Tech Imaging Centre at the University of Heidelberg delivers images of cells and tissues and analyses them completely automatically. The system creates virtual slides that can then be viewed at different focal planes.

Article - 28/06/2008

A doorman in plant cells

The Research Group of Klaus Harter at the Centre for Plant Molecular Biology ZMBP University of Tübingen Germany identified the AHK5 as an important signallingprotein for the stress-response in plant cells. The result of the study is released on PLoS ONE.