Press releases

What drives the metastasis of melanomas right from the very beginning – long before it becomes clinically detectable? This is the question the research teams addressed in their publication in Nature Cancer.

Traditional storage solutions are reaching their limits in light of the steadily in-creasing volume of data generated worldwide. In the BIOSYNTH project, three Fraunhofer institutes are developing a microchip platform for future mass data storage using synthetic DNA. In this interview, Dr. Uwe Vogel, the project’s co-ordinator and head of the Microdisplays and Sensors department at the Fraun-hofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems IPMS, explains how the researchers plan to widen the use of this high throughput-capable, modular system for synthesizing DNA, RNA and peptides to also include biological applications such as screening for harmful substances and development of active ingredi-ents.

The development of novel therapeutics offer great hope for the fight against widespread diseases such as cancer, but they can impair the cardiovascular system, so development often fails early on. Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine ITEM and Hannover Medical School have developed a complex cardiac organoid model that can be used to study the potential cardiotoxicity of new medications. Their miniature heart even has an immune system of its own.

As part of the portfolio conference held by the Institute for Biomedical Translation (IBT) on November 27, 2024, a distinguished jury selected Inhale+ to receive €1.3 million in funding. We are immensely proud that this groundbreaking technology, developed at Fraunhofer ITEM, now reaches patients.

In July 2024, the Technical Rule for Hazardous Substances 529 (TRGS 529) was revised. TRGS 529 applies to all activities related to the production of biogas as well as the operation of biogas plants. It also regulates the handling of additives and auxiliary materials, including special safety measures required when using cobalt and nickel, as both heavy metals are considered carcinogenic.

Electronic cigarettes, or vapes, are commonly viewed as less harmful to people’s health than tobacco cigarettes. And yet, they are not without health drawbacks. For many ingredients, it is unknown how they will behave when heated. Since the temperatures inside e-cigarettes vary widely, different products can be released during thermal decomposition. This makes it more difficult to gauge the potential risks of these tobacco alternatives. Until now, there has been no testing system that could be used to test the ingredients used across the entire relevant temperature range. Now, with EVape, the Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine ITEM has developed a prototype device for controlled vaporization of e-liquids in a broad temperature range. The emissions released during the process can then be analyzed and subjected to a toxicological assessment. The findings are generally valid, regardless of which e-cigarette the liquid is used in.

Initiation of Phase Ia/Ib1 with the first human administration of the intranasal form of OM-85, a bacterial lysate and immune system modulator, already approved in oral form for the prevention of recurrent respiratory tract infections. Trial aims to deepen and understanding of OM-85-Intranasal (IN) and explore its potential impact on asthma management when administered as a nasal spray. (Geneva) OM Pharma, a global Geneva-based biotech and leader in bacterial lysate products, in collaboration with Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine ITEM announce the dosing of the first participant in a Phase Ia/Ib clinical trial evaluating the safety and tolerability of OM-85-Intranasal (IN) in 27 healthy volunteers during Phase Ia and 14 patients with mild asthma during Phase Ib.

The BIOSYNTH project is funded by the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft and aims to develop a new microchip platform that enables efficient and digitally controllable cell-free biosynthesis. The Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems IPMS leads the consortium and collaborates with the Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine ITEM and the Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology, part of Bioanalytics and Bioprocesses IZI-BB, on technologies that can be used in the future for mass data storage with very high storage density or in pollutant screening in human toxicology.

Every year, around half a million people in Germany are diagnosed with cancer. Despite the existence of effective treatment options for many types of cancer, many questions about the development of the disease remain unanswered. Why does a tumor develop? What factors promote the growth of cancer cells? Why do metastases spread to other organs over time? The animal models mainly in use to date only represent the actual processes in the human body to a limited extent. The Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology IWS in Dresden has developed special microsystems in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine ITEM in Hanover and the University of Regensburg. They are now using them to examine tissue sections of tumors under realistic conditions.