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THE CENTERS AND THEIR AIMS TRAIN As part of TRAIN, new research centres have been created for collaboration at all stages in the developmental chain of creating new treatments to fight infectious diseases, from discovering new drugs through early clinical trials. TRAIN stands for “Translational Alliance in Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony)”. This collaborative enterprise combines the expertise and infrastructures of research institutions within and outside of universities in order to more rapidly bring potential drugs and vaccines from the laboratory to the patient. Researchers in TRAIN will jointly transfer knowledge gained from basic research into new biomedical methods for diagnosis, therapy and prevention. The aim is to integrate the resources of research institutions in Lower Saxony in order to establish the whole developmental chain of medical research, from the initial discovery of a new active agent to creating a medication. BRICS – Braunschweig Integrated Centre for Systems Biology The TU Braunschweig and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) have launched a new joint centre for bioinformatics and systems biology at the TU Braunschweig called the Braunschweig Integrated Centre for Bioinformatics and Systems Biology. The purpose of the centre is to provide a place for researchers to study the behaviour of complex biological systems, how they regulate themselves and how they can be regulated. Researchers aim to discover starting points for new medications and therapies and to achieve a detailed understanding of functional host-pathogen interactions. In its research activities, the centre will closely integrate experimental biology and chemistry with the engineering sciences (feedback control systems, Institute for Scientific Computing, informatics). New Drug Research Centres at HZI and LUH The new DRFG (Drug Research and Functional Genomics Centre) in Braunschweig and BMWZ (Centre of Biomolecular Drug Research) in Hannover will combine their efforts in the search for drugs from new natural substances. Scientists at the DRFG at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research will examine microorganisms and plants from nature’s vast repertoire in order to identify substances that are potentially effective against infectious diseases or cancerous tumours. BMWZ researchers at the Leibniz University will develop such compounds chemically into potential drug candidates. These leads will then be pursued into the initial stages of clinical trials. CONTACT TRAIN-Administrative Office c/o Twincore GmbH Feodor-Lynen-Straße 7 30625 Hannover [email protected] Telephone: 0511 220027-222 www.translation-alliance.com THE PARTNERS TRAIN is a collaborative project of: The Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine (ITEM) The Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz University of Hannover The Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, Braunschweig (HZI) The Hannover Medical School (MHH) The University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation (TiHo) The Technical University of Braunschweig (TU BS) TWINCORE – Centre for Experimental and Clinical Infection Research Vaccine Project Management GmbH (VPM) CRC Hannover – Clinical Research Center Hannover The CRC is a collaborative project of the Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine (ITEM), Hannover Medical School (MHH), and the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI). Under this framework a test centre for Phase I clinical studies is being created on the ITEM campus. This centre will be the critical link in the developmental chain for new medications being created by TRAIN. It is here that research findings and data from the pre-clinical phases of development will be efficiently translated into clinical research. The Clinical Test Center will thereby close the gap between the development of a drug and its clinical application in patient care, a gap that has been, until now, the biggest hurdle in the course of developing new medications, diagnostic agents and therapies. Centre for Infectious Disease and Zoonosis Research, at the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover Infectious diseases play a key role in animal health and food safety. Zoonosis is of special importance for human medicine, as it is estimated that two thirds of all infectious diseases in humans originate in animals. At the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover (TiHo), there are a number of institutes and clinics whose focus is on infectious disease. Targets of their research include animal health and food safety, avian influenza (bird flu), classical swine fever (hog cholera), paratuberculosis, borreliosis, salmonella infections, campylobacter, and streptococci. The projects are devoted to discovering the mechanisms of host-pathogen interactions, as well as to developing new strategies for the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases in animals and humans. The Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine (ITEM) undertakes research by contract related to the broad field of human health. This includes disease prevention, research into new diagnostic methods and treatment concepts, toxicological research and preclinical and clinical approval studies. Quality assurance in the manufacturing processes of medicinal products (good manufacturing practice – GMP) and experience in conducting clinical trials of those products are critical in the development of new therapies and drugs. An example of the Institute’s work is its specialty in clinical studies related to allergies and illnesses of the respiratory tract such as asthma and COPD. The Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz University of Hannover (LUH) offers TRAIN the extensive expertise of its faculty of natural sciences in chemical and biological drug research. In addition to synthetic chemistry, research in infectious diseases and oncology, the faculty has particular expertise in the isolation and identification of new medicinal substances, especially those derived from plants. Also, its institutes in biotechnology and engineering provide the knowledge needed for the technical implementation of findings obtained from basic research. Researchers at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) in Braunschweig investigate infectious disease mechanisms and defences. Understanding what renders bacteria or viruses pathogenic is a key step in developing new medications and vaccines. The researchers at the HZI focus especially on vaccine research, immunology, natural product research, and structural biology. The Hannover Medical School (MHH) is a world-renowned institution in the areas of organ and stem cell transplantation and manages a comprehensive tissue bank. Because of the extensive transplantation programme at the MHH – and the complex challenges that transplantation poses to the immune systems of patients – clinical research into infectious diseases is a special area of interest. The MHH is the most successful German medical school in terms of research (DFG-Ranking 2009) and is the highest performing clinical university hospital in the area of tertiary care. The University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover (TiHo) is long renowned as a centre of excellence in veterinary medicine. It is a vibrant research institution, combining modern science with university tradition. At TiHo scientists conduct animal-focused research for the benefit of animals – and ultimately for the benefit of humans as well. This is especially apparent in the field of zoonosis research, where the areas of veterinary and human infectious disease intersect. The Technical University of Braunschweig (TU BS) is the oldest technical university in Germany. Its faculty combines the technical and mathematical knowledge of engineers with classical and molecular biology. Scientists at the TU Braunschweig Biocentre specialise in microbial, genetic and cell-biology research, profiting from the extensive research portfolio of a complete university, which includes access to engineering expertise in new bioinformatics approaches that will be integrated in TRAIN. The Vakzine Projekt Management GmbH takes vaccines and biopharmaceuticals from the laboratory to clinical trials. VPM provides consultation and project management services along the entire value production chain utilising a network of experts drawn from academia and industry. The strengths of VPM are its capacity to assume the responsibility as sponsor for clinical studies, its network of experts, its track-record in using and expanding a validated development structure, and its system of integrated project management and risk management through continuous stage-gate processes. TWINCORE – Centre for Experimental and Clinical Infection Research has a “twin core” that combines the basic research and clinical activities of physicians at the MHH (Hannover Medical School) and basic research by scientists at the HZI (Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research) who work side by side at TWINCORE in Hannover. Basic science researchers investigate mechanisms that play a role in host-pathogen interactions. In collaboration with clinicians they develop novel diagnostic methods, vaccines and therapies for patients. The latest findings from basic research can rapidly translate into new therapies or diagnostic procedures for patients. At the same time, questions arising from clinical practice stimulate new research endeavours.