Research building brings new perspectives for molecular medicine

Today, representatives of the University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, the Technical University Dresden, its Medical Faculty together as well as the Saxony´s Minister of State for Science and the Arts, Dr. Eva-Maria Stange, celebrated the laying of the cornerstone for the new Center for Metabolic Immunological Diseases and Therapeutic Technologies Saxony (MITS). In the next months, the new research building will be created and by 2023, physicians, biologists, engineers and materials scientists will work together in one place to further develop for example a bioreactor to make it available for patients. The innovative capsule will enable the treatment of diabetes and metabolic-immunological diseases. Being the only transplantation center for insulin-producing cells in Germany, Dresden is the best location for this challenging project. In order to further expand the associated expertise, experts from the fields of internal medicine, endocrinology, immunology, surgery, transplantation medicine, cell biology and materials science are developing new medical approaches for the diagnosis, therapy and prevention of metabolic diseases such as diabetes. The Federal Government and the Free State of Saxony support the construction costs, which amount to approximately 35.5 million euros.

A derailed metabolism, which reveals itself in overweight, elevated blood sugar and blood fat values, is one of the triggers for civilization diseases such as type 2 diabetes, strokes and heart attacks. The fact that there are connections between body measurements, blood values as well as other medical parameters and lifestyle-related widespread diseases has been scientifically proven by doctors and scientists from Dresden already in the 1980s, who for the first time described the "metabolic syndrome". In regard to the more than eight million Germans who currently suffer from diabetes mellitus, it is nowadays no longer sufficient to combat these and other diseases with the well-known prevention and therapy strategies. "In order to reduce the epidemic spread and develop new treatment approaches with less side-effects, we must leave the beaten track. One key to this is the intensive study of the molecular dimension of metabolism," says MITS spokesman Prof. Stefan R. Bornstein. "Innovative diagnostic methods - above all mass spectrometric methods and molecular imaging - help us in this respect. In the future, they will enable us to observe biochemical metabolic processes directly in a living organism. The Center for Metabolic Immunological Diseases and Therapeutic Technologies Saxony will be one of the institutions in Germany that will develop and test the necessary methods. The results will also make an important contribution to the further development of the bioreactor".

"At MITS, the University Medicine in Dresden can use its strengths in interdisciplinary, patient-oriented research. Physicians at the University Hospital and scientists at the Medical Faculty use the direct link between patient care and modern research approaches to open up the dimensions of molecular medicine. This makes the center an excellent example for classical translational research approaches at the University Medical Center Dresden," says Prof. Michael Albrecht, Medical Director of the University Hospital Dresden. "As a university hospital with the mission of providing comprehensive maximum care, we cannot wait for innovations, but must drive them forward ourselves. The scientific lead is an important factor for the continued positive economic development of our University Hospital," adds Katrin Erk, the Commercial Director of the University Hospital.

"The expectations on the work of international scientists who are going to move into the new domicile of MITS are high. The aim is to gain new insights into metabolic diseases, e.g. diabetes, thereby focusing on prevention and healing. Thanks to the translational approach, the results of cutting-edge research are transferred into state-of-the-art medicine. In the mid-term, this will serve to improve care and thus the well-being of patients. In addition, there will be an exchange of expertise between the MITS and the Dresden-based German Centers for Health Research, including the German Center for Diabetes Research. Reason enough to combine today's laying of the cornerstone with optimism about the medical progress," says Dr. Eva-Maria Stange, Saxony's Minister of State for Science and the Arts.

With the Center for Metabolic-Immunological Diseases and Therapeutic Technologies Saxony (MITS), Dresden and Saxony will gain another domicile for cutting-edge research. Here, scientists and physicians work hand in hand in more than ten working groups, also to ensure better patient care. "This will create working conditions for scientists and physicians that are significantly above the international standard and will further boost future-oriented research in Dresden," says Prof. Heinz Reichmann, Dean of the Medical Faculty of the TU Dresden.

Molecular insights into metabolism

"Especially in the diagnosis of metabolic diseases we are facing a profound change. Currently, we in the Institute for Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine mainly examine blood and other body fluids that were previously taken from patients. The future lies in observing the body's metabolic processes in greater detail," says Institute Director Prof. Triantafyllos Chavakis. The methods required for this are new mass spectrometric and molecular imaging methods. The former allows quantitative analyses of the metabolism including the fat metabolism, the latter relies on magnetic resonance-based molecular imaging being combined with metabolic analyses. These methods will be the basis for the development of novel therapies for metabolic-immunological diseases.

Prof. Michele Solimena, speaker of the Paul Langerhans Institute Dresden of the German Center for Diabetes Research and Professor for Molecular Diabetology at the Medical Faculty, uses "Molecular Imaging" to investigate the function of beta cells located in the pancreas. These are the only cells in the human body that release the blood sugar-lowering hormone insulin. The autoimmune destruction of beta cells leads to type-1 diabetes, whereas impaired insulin secretion plays a role in the development of type-2 diabetes. Knowledge about the function of the cells and the processes in the body during disease progresses could prevent diabetes in the long-term and optimize existing therapies. Amongst others, various research groups of the PLID are already working on further improving the cells used in the bioreactor. "The MITS offers excellent opportunities to bring together scientists in the field of diabetes research," says Prof. Michele Solimena.

Young scientists from Dresden and London are also jointly working on molecular biological processes involved in the development of diabetes. The international Research Training Group "Immunological and Cellular Strategies in Metabolic Diseases", which is part of the transCampus Initiative, is working on better understanding of organ-crosstalk and immunological processes that lead to peripheral insulin resistance and type-2 diabetes. The aim is to advance and develop new interventional and immunological approaches and treatment options.

Implanted bioreactor takes over the formation of insulin

"The bioreactor can be considered as a kind of pacemaker. A small box, five to six centimeters in diameter, that is transplanted onto the peritoneum, i.e. under the skin," says Prof. Bornstein. Beta cells, for example from pigs, are packaged in the capsule and thus protected against the defense mechanisms of the human body. The cells are supplied with oxygen from the outside via a port and the body's own nutrients are supplied via the membrane. The reactor can autonomously produce insulin as required and release it into the body. The administration of insulin via syringe or pump into the body would thus be redundant. Until the bioreactor can help all people with type-1 diabetes, doctors, cell biologists, engineers and materials scientists will have to continue their research. The MITS will be the center for this.

New building combines research on cellular and metabolic regeneration

With the MITS, the concept of a closely interlinked synergistic work chain from cellular to metabolic regeneration, which is unique in Germany, will be implemented. The close integration within the more than 2,000 square meters of research space at the MITS will further strengthen the international competitiveness of the Medical Faculty and the University Hospital Dresden. The new building will be built directly next to the Medical-Theoretical Centre (MTZ) of the Medical Faculty on Fiedlerstraße, which was opened in 2000. The new building costs over 28 million euros. A further seven million euros are required for initial and large-scale equipment.

Picture:

© PLID

At the laying of the cornerstone (f.l.t.r.), Prof. Dr. med. Stefan R. Bornstein, Director of the Medical Clinic and Polyclinic III as well as the Center for Internal Medicine and spokesman of the MITS, Prof. Michael Albrecht, Medical Director of the University Hospital Dresden, Katrin Erk, Commercial Director of the Dresden University Hospital, Minister of State Dr. Eva-Maria Stange, Prof. Heinz Reichmann, Dean of the Medical Faculty Carl Gustav Carus of the TU Dresden, Prof. Michele Solimena, Speaker of the Paul Langerhans Institute Dresden of the German Center for Diabetes Research and Professor for Molecular Diabetology at the Medical Faculty, and Prof. Gerhard Rödel, Pro-rector for Research at the TU Dresden. Photo: PLID / Frank Möller

Press Contact
Universitätsklinikum Carl Gustav Carus Dresden
Prof. Dr. med. Stefan R. Bornstein
Direktor der Medizinischen Klinik und Poliklinik III sowie des Zentrums für Innere Medizin sowie Sprecher des MITS
Tel.: 0351 458 2931