Research and Development

The team of Immungenetics AG focuses on the research and development of "genetic associations“, i.e. the joint occurrence of certain genetic variations, so-called "Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms“ or SNP‘s together with a disease. These changes of individual base pairs in a Desoxyribonukleinacid strand (also called "DNA") are genetic sequence variations of healthy or normal DNA strands, which are mostly not the cause for the outbreak of a disease. However, in combination with a diagnosed disease a prediction regarding the course or the suitable therapy can be made, and in individual cases a therapy becomes possible.

In particular, our research activities focus on the field of immune mediated diseases during which the immune system shows extreme reactions towards the body’s tissues due to undefined reasons. For healthy people all body cells are characterised by means of certain proteins according to the so-called HLA system. Due to this characterisation the T-lymphocytes, i.e. white blood cells, can recognise which cells are foreign and which are not. Thus, foreign cells are immediately recognised and are fought by the T lymphocytes. In case of immune mediated diseases the immune system mistakes own cells as foreign ones. As a result, there are serious inflammation reactions leading to severe damages at the respective organs.

In order to research the genetic causes for immune mediated diseases and the course of the immune reaction animal models have been developed for Multiple Sclerosis (the so-called Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis, EAE) and for Rheumatoid Arthritis (the so-called Collagen induced Arthritis, CIA). By means of these animal models not only different courses of diseases and the course of the immune reaction can be analysed but also possible therapeutic approaches (including new agents and second indications for registered medication). Moreover, different genetic variations of animals can be put in a static relation with the results of the course analysis and the therapies, which can be verified subsequently in the scope of human cohort studies.

In the last years, genomic regions, which are associated with Multiple Sclerosis or Rheumatoid Arthritis and so-called susceptibility genes could be identified by means of animal models and different screening methods such as coupling and genetic expression analyses. Identified sequence variations in these genes can now be used as genetic markers hence enabling statements on the course of the diseases and possible therapies.