With the agreement of October 20, both companies’ representatives Dr. Bernhard Thiele and Dr. Vincent von Walcke-Wulffen set the origin to build up a collective reference HCV-bank. The aim of this Biobank is the storage of samples obtained from untreated patients prior to the prediction of direct acting antivirals. This sample strain will be used as reference by the pharmacologic industry to develop new pharmaceutical agents and therapies. Samples will be stored at a temperature of -80°C in BioKryos’ Biobank. Thus, they are available at any time for use. BioKryo GmbH provides the database and is responsible for logistic issues during the assembly of the reference Biobank and the organisation of shipments.

The liver inflammation of the liver hepatitis C is caused by the HCV (hepatitis-C-Virus). The “Robert Koch Institut” estimates that 400.000 to 500.000 people in Germany are infected with the HCV. About 130–170 million people worldwide are chronically infected with hepatitis C virus, and more than 350 000 people die from hepatitis C-related liver diseases each year.
(Fact Sheet N°164 WHO, June 2011)

The Institute for immunology and genetics provides its experience in genetics and immunology as well as technologies for characterisation of pathogenic agents. The main focus will be the sequencing of virus clusters.

The BioKryo GmbH offers cryostorage of valuable therapeutical and diagnostical biological samples, like stem cells and tissues. As a Fraunhofer-Institute for Biomedical Engineering (IBMT) spin-off, the BioKryo GmbH profits from a 10 year-experience in cryotechnology and stem cell research. We offer this highly specialized low-temperature storage, a.o. our biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry customers, so that they might store e.g. valuable cell lines as back-up. The BioKryo GmbH possesses a manufacturing license according to § 20c AMG for the storage of e.g. tissues or therapeutic stem cell lines and therefore we are able to provide a GMP compliant storage service.

Further information at:
http://www.immungenetik-kl.de or www.biokryo.com