Healthcare industry

Article - 02/12/2008

Cancer cells do not like rocket salad

Isothiocyanates which are substances found in vegetables such as rocket kohlrabi or mustard promote good health. Dr. Evelyn Lamy and her team at the Freiburg University Hospital found out that isothiocyanates lead to considerably fewer DNA strand breaks.

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.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Atriva Therapeutics GmbH, a biopharmaceutical company pioneering the development of host-targeting antiviral therapies, concluded a €24 million financing agreement today to facilitate the company’s development and clinical testing of a novel therapy treating severe respiratory infections with RNA viruses. RNA viruses cause diseases such as influenza, SARS and COVID-19.

Article - 06/06/2011

Review: “DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance Forum on Aging & Cancer” in Heidelberg

At the DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance Forum 2011 recently held in Heidelberg internationally leading molecular and cell biologists cancer researchers and epidemiologists presented their latest results on the ageing of cells and organisms and the development of cancer.

Article - 15/04/2013

Molecule-specific diagnosis of metabolic diseases

In cooperation with the company Centogene AG Prof. Dr. Michael Przybylski from the Steinbeis Transfer Center for Biopolymer Analysis and Biomolecular Mass Spectrometry at the University of Konstanz has developed a method that involves a novel substance class and enables the parallel measurement of enzyme activity based on fluorometry and mass spectroscopy. The method for which the inventors have recently filed a patent application forms the basis…

Press release - 27/11/2009

Gene Mutations Underlying Risk for Parkinson's Disease

Two genes containing mutations known to cause rare familial forms of parkinsonism are also associated with the more common, sporadic form of the disease where there is no family history, researchers have found. The finding came in the largest genome-wide association study (GWAS) reported to date involving Parkinson's disease.

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?

Article - 09/09/2013

Karsten Borgwardt, a specialist in data mining

The use of cutting-edge genomics, proteomics and metabolomics methods generates ever-increasing amounts of data in ever decreasing timescales. Special mathematical and computational methods are required for deducing relevant information from specific patterns. The data mining specialist Karsten Borgwardt from Tübingen is developing such methods for specific application in the life sciences.

Article - 24/05/2013

Nanotechnology in Ulm goes into application: a sensor for the life sciences

Life scientists use rather bulky measurement devices to study sensitive cells. Huge pipettes or cannulas are pushed into ultra-tiny structures such as cell membranes or cytoplasm in order to measure complex processes or reactions inside cells. Rough treatment of this kind can damage cells and affect measurement results in ways that are difficult to quantify. The materials scientist Steffen Strehle from Ulm University has plans to begin…

Dossier - 14/06/2016

CRISPR/Cas – genome editing is becoming increasingly popular

The number of publications and patents that involve the CRISPR/Cas system has been increasing exponentially since the technique was first described a few years ago. The increase in funding for projects involving CRISPR/Cas also demonstrates how powerful this new method is. The targeted modification of genomes (also called gene editing or genome editing) using CRISPR/Cas is extraordinarily accurate and also has the potential to cure hereditary…

Article - 06/12/2011

Bridging the gap between academia and industry

Prof. Dr. Katja Schenke-Layland divides her work equally between the Stuttgart-based Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology IGB, where she is the deputy head of the Department of Cell Systems, and the University Hospital in Tübingen where she teaches and researches the use of biomaterials in the field of regenerative medicine at the Department of Thoracic, Cardiac and Vascular Surgery. By working between the two…

Article - 28/06/2010

ATG:biosynthetics GmbH – Modular molecular systems of the future

ATGbiosynthetics GmbH based in Merzhausen close to Freiburg produces biological systems that can combine gene constituents following a construction kit principle. The company provides the pharmaceutical industry and basic researchers with products that have specifically chosen properties.

Does tactile sensation also depend on structure and order? Using modern imaging methods the research group led by Prof. Dr. Jürgen Hennig from the University Hospital of Freiburg is investigating whether mice with disturbed brain organisation are able to process tactile stimuli normally.

Article - 30/05/2011

Technology Licensing Office (TLB): invention and patent management

The Technology Licensing Office TLB works in partnership with science and industry and is continuously coming up with new ways to ensure the economic success of inventions from all the key fields of technology. Dr. Frank Schlotter head of Life Sciences at the Karlsruhe-based TLB provides insights into the work that his office does taking as examples innovations from the fields of regenerative medicine and diagnostics.

Article - 18/07/2011

Titanium screws and stem cells for dental implants

How are we supposed to chew and smile when the tooth fairy comes to fetch our second set of teeth? When it’s difficult to tell the difference between modern tooth implants and real teeth in both technical and aesthetical terms, people who lose their teeth due to accidents or age very quickly regain their smile. However, there needs to be enough bone to hold and support the implant. Prof. Dr. Dr. Ralf Gutwald and his team in the Department of Oral…

Article - 28/02/2011

The regulation of the intestinal immune system

If the interplay of factors that regulate the intestinal immune system tips out of balance, this could result in allergic reactions or serious inflammatory intestinal diseases. Professor Dr. med. Stefan Meuer, Managing Director of the Institute for Immunology at the University Hospital in Heidelberg, is focusing on the molecular mechanisms of mucosal immune regulation.

Article - 11/03/2009

Gerd Jürgens – from model fly to model plant: a high risk career

Some scientists have a keen sense for new and exciting research topics. The developmental biologist Dr. Gerd Jürgens from Tübingen is one such scientist. His courageous step from research involving the well-known fruit fly to research on a rather inconspicuous plant has recently been rewarded with his appointment as the new director of the Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology.

Article - 17/06/2013

Evolution of light perception networks in plants

Genetically identical plants develop rather differently depending on the light conditions in which they live. In the dark the plant grows in length in order to reach the sunlight needed for photosynthesis. Exposed to light the plant then switches to a different development programme becomes green and assembles its photosynthesis machinery. Prof. Dr. Andreas Hiltbrunner from the University of Freiburg is interested in finding out how the…

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.

Press release - 09/10/2009

BIOTECHNICA 2009 - turning ideas into value

BIOTECHNICA 2009 which took place in Hanover Germany from 6th to 8th October 2009 featured the seminal motto Turning ideas into value. The exhibition programme was rounded off by numerous talks and plenary discussions held at the joint Baden-Württemberg booth.

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.

Article - 25/01/2010

Intelligent use of suitable biomarkers

How quickly does a pharmaceutical substance exert its effect? What mechanisms does it use to exert its effect on people and how long does it remain active? In a team headed by Prof. Dr. Martin Elmlinger Nycomed GmbH has developed an efficient biomarker discovery concept specially adapted to the companys requirements and designed to clarify such questions. The concept is specifically geared to the phases and requirements of the companys projects.…

Dossier - 20/11/2008

Anti-Ageing is still a far-off dream

Is it possible to halt the ageing process? This question was first raised in the 1980s when researchers succeeded in delaying the ageing process in threadworms by modifying a specific gene. Nowadays hundreds of gene mutations are known to prolong the lifespan of yeast fruit flies and mice. Will the human dream of eternal youth eventually become reality? The truth is probably not.

Genedata AG has developed a modular software system known as Genedata Screener that is tailored to screening and hit-to-lead applications. Dr. Timo Wittenberg who works at the companys site in Constance Germany told us about the advantages of the software for identifying high-potential leads.

Article - 15/03/2010

Cornelia Ulrich: Cancer prevention through food and sports

The appointment of Cornelia Ulrich as professor and head of the Departments of Preventive Oncology at the National Centre for Tumour Diseases and the German Cancer Research Centre shows that Heidelberg is expanding its research priorities in the prevention and early diagnosis of cancer. Ulrichs main focus has been on the folic acid metablism C1 compounds and inflammation.