The Department of Justice, Consumer Protection and Anti-Discrimination of the Senate together with the State Office for Health and Social Affairs and the Association of researching pharmaceutical companies (vfa) is presenting the this years research prize for the promotion of the development of alternative and complementary methods to animal testing. The prize money amounts to euros 30,000,-. Deadline is the 30th of September.

Newsletter August 2019

Monday, 19 August 2019 15:02

This year's "Replacement of the Year" issue examines the current development and acceptance of a testing strategy to replace rodents in tests for brain development disorders (developmental neurotoxicity tests). Scientists have been working for some time with regulatory authorities such as the European Food and Safety Agency (EFSA) on a cost-effective testing strategy based on a reliable in vitro test battery to identify DNT hazards to reduce exposure to these chemicals. For this purpose, the complex processes of brain development are to be broken down into individual spatially and temporally separate development steps. For each step, individual tests are to be developed.

Between 9 September and 6 December of this year, applicants may apply or be nominated for the LUSH Prize 2020. The prize is worth a total of 350,000 British Pound and honours researchers and individuals in the five categories Science, Young Scientists, Training, Public Relations and Lobbying.  

Robotic fish for environmental tests

Tuesday, 06 August 2019 20:57

Scientists from the University of Magdeburg together with researchers from Dresden, Jena, Stuttgart and Estonia are working on a project to replace legally prescribed animal experiments in European hydropower plants by robotic fish. With this kind of artificial fish they want to gain information about flow conditions and expected harm to real fish in European river power plants.

Beating Heart Chamber from the 3D printer

Monday, 05 August 2019 08:36

With help of the 3D printer, American researchers from the Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh have created a left heart chamber consisting of collagen and myocardial cells, which began to beat on its own within a few days. The scientists have described their development in the magazine "Science".
 

Cardiologist Dr. Timon Seeger from the Department of Cardiology, Angiology and Pneumology at the University Hospital of Heidelberg has identified mechanisms of a gene mutation that
lead to a misregulation in heart muscle cells and thus to the genetically caused hypertrophycardiomyopathy (HCM). For his findings, the researcher received the renowned Wilhelm P. Winterstein Prize of the German Heart Foundation, endowed with 5,000 euros.

Biophysicists at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich have developed a microscope technology with which they can analyze the messenger substances of individual cells.

Scientists from RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia, have mimicked the human brain with an electronic chip. It uses light to create, change and delete "memories".

EPSC: New line of stem cells developed

Thursday, 25 July 2019 09:42

An international team of researchers from Great Britain, China, and Germany with the participation of Prof. Heiner Niemann from the Hannover Medical School (MHH) succeeded in breeding an even more efficient type of stem cell from human and pig. It is not only groundbreaking for regenerative medicine. It could be groundbreaking not only for regenerative medicine.