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Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Physician Professor Walter Rosenthal has been appointed as Scientific Director of the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) Berlin-Buch, an institute which belongs to the Helmholtz Association of National Research Centers in Germany. Professor Rosenthal, the former director of the Leibniz-Institut für Molekulare Pharmakologie (FMP) succeeds cancer researcher Professor Walter Birchmeier who has served as the MDC Scientific Director for the past five years and who will now return his focus to his MDC research group. Professor Hartmut Oschkinat shall hold the office of Acting Director of the FMP until a successor has been appointed.
The MDC and FMP are both located on the Berlin-Buch Campus and have been working together for many years. They have many joint scientific collaborations. "The special quality of both institutes is that they share the same infrastructures. This will be continued", Professor Rosenthal pointed out. "The fact that both institutions complimented their research in the past years has been of great benefit for them" he explained. "Research in molecular medicine as well as in pharmacology are combined in Berlin-Buch. This is a unique potential for deciphering the molecular causes of disease and identifying new substances for diagnosis and therapy." Professor Rosenthal stressed that the research activities of both institutions will be closely coordinated in the future too.
Researchers at the MDC use tools of molecular biology and genetic engineering to investigate the onset of complex diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular, and neurological diseases. The MDC was founded in 1992 on the Berlin-Buch Campus and currently has 880 employees, among them 400 researchers. The institute's annual budget amounts to 50 million Euros, 90 percent of which is provided by the German federal government and ten percent by the State (Land) of Berlin. In addition, MDC scientists also received 16 Million Euros in extramural funding in 2007.
Under the directorship of Professor Birchmeier, the MDC has developed into one of the best research institutions in Germany, according to independent scientific reviewers and received an excellent evaluation within the programm-oriented research of the Helmholtz-Association. As a result, the MDC will receive about 36 million Euros in addition to its core budget over the next five years.
Researchers at the FMP work on the early stages of drug development. Scientists conduct research into the structure, function, and interaction of proteins and identify molecules which bind to those proteins and thus influence their function. In this way, the FMP promotes the development of new drugs. According to scientific evaluators, the FMP is unique as it combines modern chemical research with highly successful protein research as well as cell and systems biology - a structure which was established by Professor Rosenthal.
The FMP is a member of the Leibniz Association and has 258 employees, among them 162 scientists of whom 112 are funded through extramural funding. The institute has an annual budget of 14 million Euros, plus five million Euros extramural funding and is financed equally by the German federal government (50 percent) and by the State (Land) of Berlin.
Walter Rosenthal studied medicine at the Justus-Liebig-Universität Gießen, Germany, and at the Royal Free Hospital, School of Medicine in London (United Kingdom). In 1990, he became Assistant Professor (Habilitation) at the Free University of Berlin, Germany, for his studies on G-proteins which play a key role in signaling, followed by two years as Visiting Professor and Heisenberg Fellow at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA. From 1993 - 1996, he was the Director of the Rudolf-Buchheim-Institut for Pharmacology at the University of Gießen (Germany). In 1996, Professor. Rosenthal became the Director of the FMP and, in 2000, was responsible for moving the FMP to the Berlin-Buch Campus in order to work more closely with the MDC. He is also a professor at the Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, one of the largest university hospitals in Germany.
Barbara Bachtler
Press and Public Affairs
Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) Berlin-Buch
Robert-Rössle-Straße 10; 13125 Berlin; Germany
Phone: +49 (0) 30 94 06 - 38 96
Fax: +49 (0) 30 94 06 - 38 33
e-mail: presse@mdc-berlin.de
http://www.mdc-berlin.de/
http://www.mdc-berlin.de/en/index.html
http://www.fmp-berlin.de/
Professor Walter Rosenthal new Head of the MDC
(Photo/Copyright: FMP)
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Criteria of this press release:
Biology, Chemistry, Medicine
transregional, national
Personnel announcements
English
Professor Walter Rosenthal new Head of the MDC
(Photo/Copyright: FMP)
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