Interdisciplinary training in the medical field

ITN STIMULUS, a European training network in the field of biomaterials, has been launched with the participation of the University of Siegen and ATTO-TEC, a company originally spun off from the university. The aim is to further develop intelligent wound dressings that can identify bacterial infections and also treat them in a targeted manner.

According to estimates by the Robert Koch Institute, 400,000 to 600,000 so-called hospital infections occur in Germany every year. In most cases, such infections caused by bacteria can be treated well with antibiotics. However, pathogens that survive antibiotic treatments can pass on their resistance, so that resistant bacteria spread, which are definitely more difficult to fight. "In order to be able to detect and treat infections on wounds at an early stage without opening the wound or wound dressings, we are researching and developing new approaches for intelligent wound dressings that, for example, automatically release antibiotic-like molecules that kill the bacteria when certain bacteria multiply," explains Prof. Ulrich Jonas, polymer chemist at the Center for Micro- and Nanochemistry and Biotechnology at the University of Siegen (Cµ). This year, the training of the doctoral students begins within the framework of the European training network ITN STIMULUS with the total of nine funded and eight associated European partners. In Siegen, young researchers can apply for three out of a total of 15 positions at the university and ATTO-TEC.

"With the ITN STIMULUS, we are bringing together extensive preliminary work from different research projects from both the local and European contexts and expanding the approach in the sense of holistic training," explains Prof. Holger Schönherr, who also conducts research at the Cµ. For example, important preliminary work has already been carried out in the INTEGER project on integrated digital diagnostics with intelligent sensor materials for care in rural areas, which is being worked on at the Siegener Forschungskolleg (FoKoS) [Siegen Research College], among others. The project partners also laid the foundations for the now successful EU application at the Bionano Summer School 2018 in Kleinwalsertal on "Diagnostic and therapeutic materials for combating bacterial infections," which was funded by the Joachim Herz Foundation. The consortium was expanded in a targeted manner by the involvement of the Siegen-based company ATTO-TEC, among others. "Our dyes can also further increase the sensitivity of the sensor function in these medical applications, " says the responsible researcher at ATTO-TEC, Dr Arden-Jacob. The participants of STIMULUS will receive unique training in disciplines such as organic, macromolecular, physical and materials chemistry, materials science, electrical engineering, biotechnology, medicine, and microbiology. "In addition, experts in regulatory and approval issues, patent applications or spin-offs, as well as representatives of medium-sized and large companies and clinics, among others, are part of the training network. In this way, we can cover the entire value chain in the development of medical products, from the scientific basics to the approval of prototypes. There is no comparable training to date," says Schönherr. In addition to the two chemists, experts from other fields at the University of Siegen are also actively involved, such as Prof. h. c. Carl Friedrich Gethmann, who is a member of the German Ethics Council, Dr Uta Fenske, who researches in the field of gender studies, and Prof. med. Veit Braun from the Faculty of Life Sciences and the Siegen Diakonie Clinic.

The ITN STIMULUS is designed as a program of excellence. Within 36 months, the researchers are led to a doctorate. This includes collaborations at other partner universities, research institutions and industrial partners. This provides participants with a unique and truly in-depth interdisciplinary and multi-sectoral training experience. The network is funded by the European Union as a "European Training Network (ETN)" within the framework of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA). Of the almost 4 million euros in funding, around 505,000 euros will flow to the University of Siegen.

Contact:
Prof. Holger Schönherr
Physical Chemistry
Tel. 0271 740-2806
schoenherr@chemie.uni-siegen.de

Prof. Ulrich Jonas
Macromolecular Chemistry
Tel. 0271 740-4713
jonas@chemie.uni-siegen.de