The BioRegio STERN team at the German Biotechnology Days 2024 in Berlin
BioRegio STERN Management GmbH spent two successful days at the German Biotechnology Days (DBT). The DBT took place for the 14th time - this time in the heart of the capital Berlin. During two exciting days, science, industry and politics exchanged ideas and showed what the biotechnology sector in Germany has to offer.
In addition to Dr. Julia Schaft and Dr. Oliver Schacht, the DBT 2024 was opened by Kristin Schreiber from DG GROW with a keynote speech on the EU Commission's Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Initiative and Prof. Andreas Dengel, who spoke about the synergies between biotechnology and AI.
This was followed by symposia on various topics such as cell and gene therapy, the bioeconomy and Germany as a business location.
A highlight of the first day was the award ceremony for the "BioRegions Innovation Prize". A total of three winners were chosen. Every year, the AK-BioRegio awards the "Innovation Prize" to the three most innovative (patented) research ideas in the life sciences with excellent market opportunities. The prize is endowed with 2,000 euros each.
MucosaTec, a spin-off of Freie Universität Berlin, was honored for its project "Bifunctional peptides to combat pathogens". The "FungiMAB" team from Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg, which is developing novel therapies against invasive fungal infections, also won a prize. A working group from the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Duisburg-Essen, which produces extracellular vesicles for cell-free stem cell therapy, was also among the winners of the Innovation Prize. The audience was won over by the innovation of "ResCure" - a new type of polymer material that combats excessive inflammation in a chronic wound. The team was awarded the audience prize.
The second day of the German Biotechnology Days was introduced by Dr. Sanda Zimmermann from the WifOR Institute with a keynote speech on the economic significance of biotechnology. An impulse from the Parliamentary State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Economics was followed by a discussion with Michael Kellner and other members of the Bundestag on innovation policy in Germany.
A total of 19 symposia were held to explain, clarify and discuss the topic. As always, there was also plenty of time for networking! The BioRegio STERN Management GmbH team is already looking forward to DBT2025 in Heidelberg.
BioRegio STERN Management GmbH