Healthcare industry

Christiane Pelzer and Ingrid Kassner biologists at the University of Constance recently discovered a previously unknown protein that plays a role in the binding of ubiquitin to target proteins. This discovery is a milestone in the research of basic enzymatic processes.

Red biotechnology became commercially successful because process engineering succeeded in expressing foreign genes in microorganisms and got a grip on cells tissue cells were not only cultivated using technical methods but also purified for medical application on an industrial scale. However the biopharmaceutical industry is now facing rising costs.

The history of Bt-maize is a strange mix of opportunities risks scientific contradictions market authorisations and recalls. It is also an excellent example of why the public scepticism towards genetically modified organisms GMO is growing.

The Dietmar Hopp Foundation has donated one million euro for a new small-animal tomograph at the University Hospital in Heidelberg. The new system is suitable for small animals such as rats and mice and can be used to investigate diseases and therapies.

Holger Barth works with a special kind of Trojan horses. The toxicologist from Ulm is investigating bacterial toxins. These proteins manage in a similar way to the ancient Greeks before them to open the barricaded portal of the cells with a trick whereupon they start wreaking destruction.

Dr. Gilbert Gorr has been fascinated by the moss Physcomitrella patens for many years in fact it occupies a great deal of his waking moments. The enthusiasm with which the CSO of greenovation Biotech GmbH talks about the key object of his work is both intoxicating and contagious. The latest discovery The moss produces a therapeutic antibody that is far more effective than its predecessors created in animal cell cultures.

Biametrics Marken and Rechte GmbH has developed new analytical devices based on reflectometric interference spectroscopy thus adopting the trend of label-free detection methods. This is because labelling tends to interfere with the natural activity of the biomolecules under investigation.

The forensic scientist Dr. Frank Wehner from the University of Tübingen has developed a method that enables him to determine the time of death to within a few days. The method is based on the degradation of proteins like insulin or cystatin C.

Article - 21/02/2008

The females choose their mates

The team of researchers led by evolutionary biologist Dr. Gerrit Begemann at Constance University is using swordtails to investigate the development of traits that evolved by sexual selection. Their major focus is the molecular mechanism of growth control in the caudal fin. Or put more simply why do these fish have swords?

The basic classification of bilateral animals is based on the comparison of their embryonic development and was confirmed in modern molecular phylogeny by the analysis of the relationship of the genes involved. Conserved groups of genes are responsible for the formation of the body axes.

Article - 20/02/2008

Threadworms throughout time

Threadworms are versatile research objects and are excellent models for investigating fundamental evolutionary principles. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology use the Caenorhabditis and Pristionchus threadworm genera to study the molecular mechanisms of biodiversity.

mtm laboratories has launched the Cervatec assay for the early diagnosis of cervical cancer. The Cervatec assay will initially be commercialized as an adjunct to the Pap test for the screening of women aged 35 and younger.

Article - 10/02/2008

4th Biomarker Workshop at the NMI in Reutlingen: another success

The Biomarker Workshop held at the NMI in late January has become a fixed date for a growing number of proteomics researchers. With an attendance of 130 this years workshop exceeded all previous ones. Those who were keen to find out more about the latest trends and findings were presented with a successful mix of basic and applied research information.

Dossier - 01/02/2008

Glycobiotechnology - sugar research is picking up speed

Alongside DNA and proteins sugar structures play an important role in cellular transport and communication processes. They are also part of the molecular control and regulation machinery making them of particular interest to biotechnologists. The pharmaceutical industry as well as the food sector and material sciences have realised the potential of sugar structures.

Article - 30/01/2008

How cells communicate

Prof. Valentin Wittmann professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Constance is investigating carbohydrates. At present his major area of interest is carbohydrate-RNA and carbohydrate-protein interactions where he is trying to understand the biological functions of complex sugar molecules glycans.

Article - 29/01/2008

Breakthrough for glycomics

New databases and bioinformatic tools provide the field of glycomics with a solid basis for dynamic development in molecular biology and medicine. Willi von der Lieth a researcher from Heidelberg was an important pioneer of glyco-bioinformatics. His sudden death is a great loss for this new scientific field.

Article - 25/01/2008

How do cells work? Glycoconjugate cell coat models provide new answers

At the Max Planck Institute for Metal Research in Stuttgart researchers are developing model systems that imitate the sugar coats of living cells. They hope to gain new insights into the regulation of biological functions and develop the system into a platform for biosensoric applications.

Tumours develop sophisticated strategies to escape the immune defence. One of these strategies is the modification of the cells sugar coat. Specific immune cell receptors bind to these sugars thereby preventing the tumour cell from being discovered by the immune system. Medics from the University of Tübingen are investigating the mechanisms involved and are looking for therapeutic targets.

Micro-biolytics GmbH now based in the Esslingen-based Life Science Centre develops and produces microsystems solutions for bioanalytical issues. With the support of networks micro-biolytics is hoping to considerably expand its activities.

Press release - 20/01/2008

LifeCodexx AG - Clarity within the genetic data jungle

Constance based GATC Biotech founds the subsidiary company LifeCodexx AG. LifeCodexx is the first web-based information service for the storage and utilisation of biological and medical data from the analysis of genetic codes and protein codes in the EU.

Researchers led by a scientist at the Department of Neurology at the University Hospital in Heidelberg has identified a new gene variant as a risk factor for cerebral venous thromboses. 16.7 per cent of patients with cerebral venous thrombosis had the new variant compared to only 5.5 per cent of the healthy population.

Scientists at the German Cancer Research Centre DKFZ have now succeeded in generating peptides on a microchip - faster and thus cheaper than with previous methods.

The microRNA miR-21 suppresses the production of tumour suppressor Pdcd4 which protects cells from developing cancer. Researchers at the DKFZ have now found out that colorectal cancer cells in particular lack Pdcd4 while these cells have an oversupply of miR-21.

Ulrike Müller professor at the Institute of Pharmacy and Molecular Biotechnology IPMB at Heidelberg University received the Alzheimer Research Prize 2008 from the Hans and Else Breuer Foundation for her achievements in molecular Alzheimers research.