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Academy of Sciences founded a new Institute of Biotechnology
By 1st January 2008, the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic (AS CR) established a new public research institution, the Institute of Biotechnology AS CR, v.v.i. (VAT No.: CZ 86652036) at its biomedical research campus in Prague-Krč.
The primary ambition of this new institute is to develop cutting-edge basic and oriented research on topics opening for diagnostic and therapeutic applications in human medicine. In particular, the institute was established to serve as a nucleation center of BIOCEV (presentation attached below), the planned joined Biotech&Biomed Research Center of the Academy of Sciences with Charles University, to be built at Vestec near Prague by the year 2012 with the support of the European Regional Development Funds in frame of the Operational Program R&D for Innovation.
Having arisen by a transformation of the Division of Biotechnology of the Institute of Molecular Genetics AS CR, v.v.i. into an independent legal body, the new institute of 45 employees currently consists of 6 established research groups, with 2 more to be launched by the end of 2010.
The already operating laboratories develop research in the fields of:
1) Diagnostics for reproductive medicine (Head: Jana Pěknicova) characterizing processes and molecular players involved in egg fertilization process and developing tools (monoclonal antibodies) for detection of male infertility, as well as for detection of selected environmental pollutants with a negative effect on mammalian reproduction.
2) Diagnostics of autoimmune diseases (Head: Šárka Růžičková), focusing on humoral and genetic aspects in autoimmune diseases and identification of target molecules for therapeutic intervention and tools for new diagnostics for autoimmune diseases.
3) Molecular therapy (Head: Jiří Neužil) focusing on design and development of novel anti-cancer agents, in particular, vitamin E analogues efficient and selective for malignant cells, with a particular emphasis on molecular mechanism of apoptosis caused by such agents through mitochondrial destabilization.
4) Recombinant ligand engineering (Head: Peter Šebo), focusing on Design and rational improvement of high-affinity-binding recombinant ligand proteins for use in applications in which antibodies fail.
5) Gene expression (Head: Mikael Kubista), developing tools for spatiotemporal analysis of gene expression by high-throughput quantitative real-time PCR approaches on single cell and sub-cellular level, including multi-dimensional data analysis.
6)Laboratory of Molecular Pathogenetics ( Head: Gabriela Pavlínková), the goal of the research is to understand the molecular causes of abnormal embryonic development. We use animal models and gene expression profiling to identify the molecular targets for the development of preventive and diagnostic strategies.
The institute is a partner in the TATAA Biocenter Prague, co-organizing courses on gene expression profiling by qRT-PCR approaches. A particularly strong vocation of the new institute is to serve as knowledge base for the nascent advanced biotech industry in the Czech Republic, where IBT is catalyzing the establishment of a Czech Biotech Cluster centered around the biotechnology companies already having their production sites at Vestec near Prague.
The nascent Biotech Cluster is currently inviting to join all relevant human and veterinary vaccine producers and biotech companies using or producing recombinant proteins and/or focusing on tissue engineering.
Doc. RNDr. Jana Pěknicová, CSc.
nominee director
By 1st January 2008, the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic (AS CR) established a new public research institution, the Institute of Biotechnology AS CR, v.v.i. (VAT No.: CZ 86652036) at its biomedical research campus in Prague-Krč.
The primary ambition of this new institute is to develop cutting-edge basic and oriented research on topics opening for diagnostic and therapeutic applications in human medicine. In particular, the institute was established to serve as a nucleation center of BIOCEV (presentation attached below), the planned joined Biotech&Biomed Research Center of the Academy of Sciences with Charles University, to be built at Vestec near Prague by the year 2012 with the support of the European Regional Development Funds in frame of the Operational Program R&D for Innovation.
Having arisen by a transformation of the Division of Biotechnology of the Institute of Molecular Genetics AS CR, v.v.i. into an independent legal body, the new institute of 45 employees currently consists of 6 established research groups, with 2 more to be launched by the end of 2010.
The already operating laboratories develop research in the fields of:
1) Diagnostics for reproductive medicine (Head: Jana Pěknicova) characterizing processes and molecular players involved in egg fertilization process and developing tools (monoclonal antibodies) for detection of male infertility, as well as for detection of selected environmental pollutants with a negative effect on mammalian reproduction.
2) Diagnostics of autoimmune diseases (Head: Šárka Růžičková), focusing on humoral and genetic aspects in autoimmune diseases and identification of target molecules for therapeutic intervention and tools for new diagnostics for autoimmune diseases.
3) Molecular therapy (Head: Jiří Neužil) focusing on design and development of novel anti-cancer agents, in particular, vitamin E analogues efficient and selective for malignant cells, with a particular emphasis on molecular mechanism of apoptosis caused by such agents through mitochondrial destabilization.
4) Recombinant ligand engineering (Head: Peter Šebo), focusing on Design and rational improvement of high-affinity-binding recombinant ligand proteins for use in applications in which antibodies fail.
5) Gene expression (Head: Mikael Kubista), developing tools for spatiotemporal analysis of gene expression by high-throughput quantitative real-time PCR approaches on single cell and sub-cellular level, including multi-dimensional data analysis.
6)Laboratory of Molecular Pathogenetics ( Head: Gabriela Pavlínková), the goal of the research is to understand the molecular causes of abnormal embryonic development. We use animal models and gene expression profiling to identify the molecular targets for the development of preventive and diagnostic strategies.
The institute is a partner in the TATAA Biocenter Prague, co-organizing courses on gene expression profiling by qRT-PCR approaches. A particularly strong vocation of the new institute is to serve as knowledge base for the nascent advanced biotech industry in the Czech Republic, where IBT is catalyzing the establishment of a Czech Biotech Cluster centered around the biotechnology companies already having their production sites at Vestec near Prague.
The nascent Biotech Cluster is currently inviting to join all relevant human and veterinary vaccine producers and biotech companies using or producing recombinant proteins and/or focusing on tissue engineering.
Doc. RNDr. Jana Pěknicová, CSc.
nominee director