Researchers can use neuromuscular organoids to investigate the mechanisms of serious neuromuscular diseases and to test drugs. Dr. Mina Gouti's team at the Max Delbrück Center has developed these three-dimensional tissue models from human stem cells. The scientists now want to find out how they can accelerate the maturation of the organoids.
Organoids of the digestive tract enable researchers led by gastroenterologist Prof. Dr. Michael Sigal to understand infectious diseases more precisely. It is becoming increasingly clear to them why some germs are followed by cancer decades later.
Organoids are of significant interest due to their frequent portrayal as a potential substitute for animal testing. However, there is currently a lack of uniform, well-established quality standards for these organ models. A project at the Einstein Center 3R aims to change this.
The aim of the EC3R project "Engineering of human heart tissue for functional diagnostics, drug testing and therapy" is to reproduce heart diseases in a Petri dish. Under the leadership of Prof. Michael Gotthardt and Dr. Sebastian Diecke, the research team is developing artificial heart tissue in order to shed light on disease mechanisms, test drugs and reduce the number of animal experiments in accordance with the 3R principle.
Human lung tissue cultivated in the laboratory helps to better understand respiratory diseases ranging from asthma to pneumonia and enables researchers to find new therapeutics. Moreover, the risk of new pathogens can also be assessed more quickly.
On the occasion of 24 April, the Day of the Laboratory Animal, Prof. Dr. Stefan Hippenstiel (Charité - Universitätsklinikum Berlin, Charité 3R) gave an interview on Deutschlandfunk for the resort "Umwelt & Verbaucher".
Please note that this podcast is in German.
In the fourth BR50 podcast episode "Animal Testing in Berlin - In Search of Alternatives", moderated by science journalist Thomas Prinzler, the biotechnologist Julia Scheinpflug (Bf3R), Prof. Dr. Christa Thöne-Reineke (FU Berlin, EC3R) and Prof. Dr. Michael Gotthardt (MDC, EC3R) come together and discuss.
To the BR50 podcast episode #4 (duration approx. 45 min)
What is the BR50 Podcast?
Berlin Research 50 (BR50) is an initiative of Berlin's non-university research institutions that launched this podcast on the occasion of the Day of the Laboratory Animal on April 24, 2022.
BR50 includes the Helmholtz, Leibniz, and Max Planck Institutes, as well as the federal government's departmental research and other non-university research institutes in Berlin.
The BR50 podcast offers a science policy discussion format and highlights one exciting topic per episode, on which two to three scientists discuss controversial issues. The conversations are moderated alternately by Nancy Fischer and Thomas Prinzler.
Please note that this podcast is in German.
This podcast from 01.10.2021 is about the framework conditions of animal experiments and the 3R principle. Prof. Christa Thöne-Reineke and Prof. Stefan Hippenstiel (both EC3R) as well as Prof. Sina Bartfeld have their say.
Listen to the full podcast here.
Please note that this podcast is in German.
The science podcast "Synapsen" takes a multi-layered look at the topic of animal experiments and our relationship to animals. Prof. Michael Gotthardt from the MDC gives voice to the Einstein Center 3R.
Listen to the full podcast from 24.09.2021 here.
The podcast Synapses has published a second part on the topic under the title "Replace, Reduce, Refine" on 04.03.2022.
Deutschlandfunk | "Research without animal experiments"
For the Deutschlandfunk programme Campus & Karriere, Prof. Stefan Hippenstiel was interviewed on the topic of "Research without animal experiments". He talked about his experiences in research on pneumonia and about the Einstein Centre 3R.
Listen to the complete interview from 16.09.2021 here.
