BioRegion Rhine-Neckar Triangle

The BioRegion Rhine-Neckar Triangle with Heidelberg, its principal science centre, is one of the leading biotechnology locations in Europe. Some of the world´s renowned institutions in molecular biology and molecular medicine are located here: The European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), the German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ) and the Centre of Molecular Biology of the University of Heidelberg (ZMBH), as well as the Max-Planck Institute for Medical Research, the research institutes and university hospitals of Heidelberg and Mannheim, the Mannheim University of Applied Science and the University of Kaiserslautern, all contribute to the excellent science base in the fields of gene technology and molecular biology.

The Centre for Green Gene Technology in Neustadt/Weinstrasse provides a new research focus on molecular biotechnology of plants.

The BMM initiative of the Kirchhoff-Institute for Physics in Heidelberg has the intention to pool and to enhance the research potential of the location Heidelberg in the field of quantitative experimental analysis and theoretical modelling of supramolecular biostructures and their dynamic under the aspect of transporting processes.

Research is focused on functional genomics, proteomics and bioinformatics, particularly in the areas of cancer research, virology, immunology, neurobiology, as well as the molecular biology of membranes, receptors and signal transduction.

Manifold projects and partnerships exist between science at universities and research institutes and the biotech and pharma industry of the region. Big international pharmaceuticals, namely BASF / Knoll in Ludwigshafen, Roche Diagnostics in Mannheim (formerly Boehringer Mannheim) and Merck in Darmstadt, as well as a host of small and medium-sized enterprises provide the facilities and infrastructure for further development of the region as a leading location for biotechnology in the 21st century.

Basic research in all areas of molecular biology and biomedicine

• R&D projects of research institutions and universities
  
• Research projects, cooperative Research Groups, Priority Programmes funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Science Foundation)
  
• Lead Research Projects funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research

Applied research

• Projects for the promotion of molecular biotechnology in the region, preferably in connection with start-up companies
  
• Collaborative projects between research groups at science institutions and industry

Services and initiatives for start-up companies

• Advice on programmes and activities supporting start-up companies by the Federal and "Länder" Governments and by the European Community.
  
• Support and acquisition of capital for start-ups in the biotech area
  
• Special programmes for young entrepreneurs by the "Bundesländer"(in German)
  
• Consultations, assistance, networking for new enterprises

Public relations

Biotechnology-related seminars, workshops, lectures etc at the research institutions; emphasis on the public discourse on the understanding and acceptance of biotechnology and ethical questions concerned with it.

Press releases

Further Information: www.bioregion-rnd.de/