Fraunhofer Institute for Translational Medicine and Pharmacology ITMP

The Summer School of the Innovation Center TheraNova took place in Darmstadt on September 11 and 12, 2023. Invited speakers reported on various aspects of the translation of cell and gene therapies into clinical application. Participants had the opportunity to exchange information on their projects’ progress, take part in an excursion to the European Space Agency ESA, engage in a workshop on the topic of intellectual property, and learn about spin-offs and entrepreneurship in an open roundtable discussion with startup founders.

The newly formed IDERHA consortium, consisting of academia, industry, health authorities, clinicians, and patient representatives, addresses the obstacles in accessing, integrating and analysing health data to maximize their value for patient care and research. Focusing on lung cancer, IDERHA wants to use complex digital health data to improve patient health outcomes by enabling more personalized care.

The increasing resistance of bacteria against antibiotics represents a major threat for human health. On May 25 the University of Aix-Marseille, the Universität Hamburg and Fraunhofer ITMP signed a Memorandum of Understanding in Marseille to jointly develop novel drugs that eliminate resistance mechanisms in bacteria and thereby improve the efficacy of antibiotics. 

The four Fraunhofer institutes ITMP, IAP, IAPT and CML found the "Fraunhofer Industrial Application Center Quantum Computing Hamburg" (Fraunhofer IQHH) in the form of a virtual organization. The Fraunhofer IQHH project aims to bundle its competencies and capacities in application-oriented quantum computing, to develop synergies and thus to generate competitive advantages for various economic sectors in the Hamburg metropolitan region in a tailored and rapid manner.

Immune diseases, such as rheumatism or psoriasis, are systemic diseases that often affect several organ systems simultaneously. An interdisciplinary approach is absolutely necessary for the optimal care of patients. This is implemented at Fraunhofer ITMP in the concept of the 4D Clinic. Professor Frank Behrens, deputy director of the institute, describes in the Fraunhofer podcast why the 4D Clinic is unique and what the concept can achieve for patients and research.