Healthcare industry

Press release - 08/12/2009

Vaccination of honeybees against the Varroa mite is possible

For the first time ever, honeybees were orally ‚vaccinated’ with a genetically engineered product that was later detected in the bloodsucking Varroa mite. This product is a DNA-plasmid that is normally used for man, horses, swine and also for fish. The inventor of this innovative DNA-vaccination system for bees is Matthias Giese, PhD, who launches his own Institute for Molecular Vaccines (IMV) in Heidelberg/Germany starting in 2010.

Article - 03/12/2009

Matthias Giese: DNA vaccine to combat worldwide honeybee deaths

Varroa mites attach to the body of bees and weaken them by sucking hemolymph infecting them with viruses that are believed to be the cause of the mass death of European honeybee colonies. Matthias Giese of the Heidelberg-based Institute for Molecular Vaccines developed a DNA vaccine that might just lead to a breakthrough in the quest to get rid of the Varroa parasites. Giese tells us about his project in the following interview.

Article - 14/11/2009

"A little naivety always helps"

The biotech company CureVac based in Tuebingen is working on the development of a new tumour therapy based on RNA molecules. Dr. Ingmar Hoerr one of the scientists who founded CureVac tells Christoph Bächtle about the obstacles the young company had to overcome and the tough decisions that led to success. At the very start he tells us the company owes its origins to a huge dollop of luck.

CureVac GmbH, the mRNA vaccine company, today announced that the German authorities approved the start of the Phase IIa trial in Prostate Cancer after assessment of the first safety data of lead candidate CV9103, a RNActive®-derived mRNA vaccine. Results so far from the Phase I show CV9103 to be safe and well tolerated.

Cancer cells use tricks to evade the immune system. Thus, for example, they attract specific blood cells which suppress the body’s own defense mechanisms. Scientists of the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ), collaborating with colleagues of the University Surgical Hospital in Heidelberg and an international research team, have investigated these processes in bowel cancer. The results of their research have now…

The biopharmaceutical company immatics biotechnologies GmbH announced the appointment of Dr Carsten Reinhardt as Chief Medical Officer (CMO) effective October 1, 2009. “I am very pleased to be joining immatics at this exciting stage of the company’s development” said Dr Reinhardt.

The World Health Organization is seeking innovative technologies, in particular medical devices that offer solutions to global health concerns in low- and middle-income countries. The deadline for submission of proposals is January the 31st 2010.

Article - 21/08/2009

Patenting and clinical trials go hand in hand

Back when he was doing his degree thesis at the German Cancer Research Centre in Heidelberg the immunologist Prof. Peter Öhlschläger who now works at the University of Constance laid down the basic principles for developing an artificial gene for the treatment of cervical cancer. Prof. Öhlschläger is currently in the process of filing a patent for DNA vaccines for HPV. In the following interview the scientist says that the greatest challenges are…

Scientists of the University of Heidelberg and the German Cancer Research Centre have clarified the functional principles of an important receptor for bacterial infections: immune cells recognise bacterial and viral pathogens with a receptor known as toll-like receptor 9 (TLR9), which mediates biochemical reaction chains in order to fend off intruders. This discovery made by the Heidelberg researchers paves the way to develop new anti-infective…

After a successful start of the 2009 business year, Boehringer Ingelheim is expecting their sales growth to outpace the world pharmaceutical market; for the tenth time in succession. As announced by this second-largest German pharmaceuticals producer, the company posted growth in local currency (+ 8.3 per cent) over the previous year in the first six months of 2009. Net sales amounted to 6,388 million euro.

Article - 30/07/2009

Keeping as many valuable attachments as possible

The goal of many projects focusing on the purification of recombinant proteins is to rapidly and effectively remove substances and side products that would compromise the quality and quantity of biopharmaceutical compounds. A consortium of industrial and scientific partners is currently focusing on a different step in the biopharmaceutical production process: the goal is to keep as many as possible of the drugs’ ‘attachments’. The project focuses…

The German Research Foundation (DFG) has approved funding for a new research project at the Universities of Freiburg and Heidelberg. The researchers are working on improving our understanding of the mechanisms that lead to chronic virus infections: how do hepatitis viruses manage to evade immunological defence reactions and survive in the organism without damaging the organism?

Article - 14/07/2009

Tiny particles are a weapon against tumours

Prostate carcinoma is one of the most common malignant diseases claiming more than 84000 lives per year in the EU and the United States. In cooperation with the University of Constance the Thurgau Biotechnology Institute BITg is working on ways to remove prostate carcinomas and other tumours that are difficult to treat by using tiny particles made of biologically degradable polyester. Prof. Dr. Marcus Groettrup and his team of researchers have…

Article - 02/07/2009

A virus that hides while it waits for an opportunity to replicate

Thomas Mertens, Medical Director of the Institute of Virology in Ulm, has a strong scientific and clinical interest in the human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), a big virus with a big impact which, despite its size, is overshadowed by known viruses such as the HI virus that is the object of research for Mertens’ colleagues. HCMV research is a challenging area where quick successes are rare.

Article - 10/06/2009

Dirk Linke - a vaccine is ready - just in case

There is a well-known saying: travel broadens the mind. This is not the only consequence of travel – the biochemist Dr. Dirk Linke from Tübingen travelled to India on holiday and brought back an idea for a new scientific project. Since his return, his idea, the possibility of developing a vaccine with a wide-ranging effect against some of the most frequent diarrhoea pathogens, has even generated financial backing from prominent supporters.

Press release - 28/05/2009

CureVac Begins Clinical Study with mRNA Vaccine

CureVac GmbH announced that the Paul-Ehrlich-Institute, the German regulatory authority for medicinal products, has approved the Clinical Trial Application (CTA) to begin a Phase I clinical study with RNActive® derived mRNA vaccine CV9201. The vaccine will be tested in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer who have been pre-treated with different therapies.

Article - 16/05/2009

Mykotown Greentech AG uses mycorrhiza to keep plants going

Mykotown Greentech AG offer mycorrhizal preparations that protect the plants against dehydration and bacteria. The fungi also enhance plant growth. The plants provide the natural soil fungi with carbon while the fungi help the plant to capture nutrients and liquids from the soil.

Press release - 30/04/2009

In the tubular system of human cells

Scientists from the Hygiene Institute at the Heidelberg University Hospital have succeeded for the first time ever in showing the three-dimensional architecture of the dengue virus replication and assembly sites in human cells. Their paper was recently published in the renowned journal “Cell Host & Microbes”.

At present active immunotherapy seems to produce the best results in the treatment of cancer. The Tübingen-based biotech company CureVac is now hoping to achieve a breakthrough in cancer therapy with a worldwide unique vaccine. The first clinical trials have recently commenced.

CureVac Receives IND Approval from the FDA to start its Phase I/IIa mRNA Vaccine Clinical Trial in Prostate Cancer.

The German regulatory authority has approved the Clinical Trial Application CTA to begin a Phase I clinical study with RNActive - derived mRNA vaccine CV9103. It will be tested in patients with hormone-refractory metastatic prostate cancer.

Staying healthy as you get older that is probably what many people would wish for. As part of the European research network LifeSpan 130 scientists are now looking into how to make this wish come true. Prof. Dr. Graham Pawelec from the University Hospital of Tübingen UKT is one of the 130 scientists and his principal focus is immunological ageing processes.

Harald zur Hausen the long-time chairman and scientific director of the German Cancer Research Centre DKFZ a member of the Helmholtz Society discovered that human papillomaviruses HPV lead to cervical cancer. His discovery led to the development of a vaccine for cervical cancer which is the third most frequent type of cancer in women.

The Comprehensive Infectious Diseases Centre at the University of Ulm was recently presented to the public. The centre is responsible for coordinating the cooperation between specialists in the diagnosis and therapy of complex infectious diseases.

Renal cell carcinoma is a rare disease. In addition, the disease is difficult to treat, and the majority of pharmaceutical companies find the development of new drugs for its treatment too financially risky. Their argument: the market is too small to make up for the high development costs. The Tübingen biotech company immatics was courageous enough to do so and will now be rewarded. The immatics scientists have developed a therapy that not only…