Upscaling for the successful production of cells for heart regeneration after myocardial infarction
In the project curARace, Boris Greber (Catalent), Robert Zweigerdt (MHH), and Johnny Kim (TRON) are collaborating to develop a scalable, GMP-compliant platform for the production of functional, transplantable cardiac cells and tissues derived from human iPS cells. By combining insights gained from curATime with Catalent’s extensive expertise in GMP-compliant manufacturing, gene editing, and quality control of cell products, the partners aim to advance innovative approaches for cardiac regeneration.
We warmly welcome Catalent to the consortium and look forward to jointly advancing next-generation solutions for heart tissue regeneration.
curATime Publication
Exciting news from our microbAIome project: A study by Nadja Paeslack from the group of Christoph Reinhardt has been published in the Redox Biology jounal, titled "Toll-like receptor 2 impacts small intestinal villus capillarization through epithelial dual oxidase 2".
The study identifies a novel microbiota–TLR2–DUOX2 signaling axis that regulates the vascularization of intestinal villi, the tiny structures responsible for nutrient absorption in the small intestine. The findings link microbial sensing in the gut epithelium to vascular remodeling during both homeostasis and inflammation.
curATime Publication
Great news from the phase I project biosignATure: The paper with the title "Blood DNA Methylation Patterns Across Carotid, Coronary, and Peripheral Atherosclerosis: A Comparative Analysis in 2 Prospective Cohorts" was published in the JACC Journal.
The study reveals epigenetic alterations in pathways involving smoking exposure, platelet reactivity and thrombosis, inflammation, and lipid metabolism. The results raise the possibility that persistent exposure-driven epigenetic alterations could become future therapeutic targets.
We are welcoming our new partners
As part of the second phase of curATime, a key focus lies on translating research findings into clinical application.
Within the ThrombID project, Prof. Wolfram Ruf (UM) and Kai Prager (DiaSys Diagnostic Systems GmbH) are collaborating to further advance the diagnosis of vascular dysfunction in the context of thrombo-inflammatory autoimmune diseases with cardiovascular implications. Insights from previous curATime work are being combined with DiaSys’ diagnostic expertise to develop new detection methods.
We warmly welcome DiaSys and are looking forward to a successful collaboration.
Successful DFG funding application by curATime members from University Medical Center Mainz
curATime members have successfully secured funding from the German Research Foundation (DFG) for the Collaborative Research Centre (CRC1784) “The Interplay Between Thrombosis and Inflammation – Translating Molecular Mechanisms into Clinical Applications (IntraC)”. The consortium will receive €12.8 million over the next four years to advance research on thromboinflammatory diseases and develop new strategies for their diagnosis, prevention, and treatment.
The CRC includes four projects led by researchers from University Medical Center Mainz. Two of these are headed by curATime members, including Principal Investigator Prof. Wolfram Ruf together with Dr. Nadine Müller-Calleja, and project leader Prof. Christoph Reinhardt.
curATime article in the first issue of MagSci
Our partner, the Life Science Center Mainz (LZM), has released its first issue of “MagSci”: a magazine focusing on the biotech and life sciences ecosystem in Rhineland-Palatinate and the Rhine-Main region—and we’re proud to be featured in this issue! “With its experience in supporting startups, fostering collaboration between science and industry, and providing access to investors, the LZM plays a key role in the further development of the curATime ecosystem.”
We are welcoming our new partners
We are delighted that the Mainz-based company StarSeq is now part of curATime!
In the project microbAIome, Sven-Ernö Bikár’s team is using a rapid metabarcoding approach to quantify genes involved in sphingolipid metabolism in order to determine the risk of atherothrombotic diseases.
curATime auf der re:publica 2026
curATime is part of Germany’s innovation hubs – and together we will present ourselves at the re:publica 2026 digital trade fair in Berlin. There, we will showcase our success stories together, because while there is much discussion about Germany’s capacity for innovation, it has long been happening—in the country’s innovation clusters.
We are welcoming our new partners
We have started the second implementation phase, and are excited to welcome new partners on board: Prof. Robert Zweigerdt and his team from Hannover Medical School are part of our new project curARace.
They bring their expertise in generating heart cells, which form the basis for heart regeneration following a heart attack.
We are really looking forward to this collaboration!
3rd curAEquality Award Ceremony
At the curAMeet conference, doctoral student Nadja Paeslack was presented with this year's curAEquality Award for her research on “Sex-dependent differences in Ldlr-deficient mice in in vivo platelet adhesion.” With a presentation of her research, she supported the important topic of paying attention to gender differences in research.
