Biotechnology/Systems biology

The figures speak for themselves: In 2022, Germany was by far the largest sales market for protein foods produced without animals, at 1.9 billion euros. Germans, who are otherwise sceptical about food innovations, are open to dairy products, fish and cheese produced using optimised microorganisms and cell-based processes. According to recent surveys, a good 60% of over-25s and almost 80% of under-25s would at least like to try them.

It may not have been enough for the Grand Prize, but four of the 19 German teams had a special reason to celebrate at this year's final of the iGEM Jamboree in Paris last week: at the most important global competition fo

It is the annual mega-event for synthetic biology: for the 20th time, thousands of young researchers, start-ups, investors, politicians and journalists from all over the world will come together from 2 to 5 November for the Grand Jamboree of the iGEM 2023 competition. This year, around 400 university teams will be competing in Paris for gold, silver and bronze medals as well as numerous other awards, including 19 German teams (see below).

As part of its bioeconomy research funding programme, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) aims to combine biotechnology with other promising future fields. These include artificial intelligence, robotics, nanotechnology, computer science and engineering. This is because innovations and disruptive developments are increasingly emerging at the boundaries between disciplines.

The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is investing around 50 million euros in innovative plant breeding research that is open to technology and methods as part of a new funding measure. The aim is to be able to guarantee a reliable, climate-resistant supply of high-quality, healthy and safe food.

Not releasing carbon dioxide from industrial processes into the atmosphere, but upgrading it chemically, this approach is intended to make a small contribution to the climate neutrality of the economy. Compared to possible eternal storage facilities for CO₂, this is also economically interesting because no disposal costs are incurred and a profit can even be made. Accordingly, intensive research is being conducted on appropriate CO₂ utilisation processes.

Biogas is one of the components that are to replace fossil raw materials in the energy transition. It is produced by microbial communities fermenting biomass. In principle, the processes involved are well understood, but how the microbial communities are composed has only been partially researched so far. An international research team with the participation of the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus - Senftenberg (BTU) has taken on this task – and made an important discovery.

Deep in the sea, there is apparently another biological solution to the global plastic waste problem: researchers from the universities of Kiel, Hamburg and Düsseldorf have discovered an enzyme in a microorganism from the deep sea that breaks down the plastic polyethylene terephthalate, or PET for short. PET is the main component of many plastic bottles.

Singapore and the USA are the only countries in the world where meat from the laboratory is already approved. In the EU, cell-based meat is not yet available for sale. Applications have not yet been submitted to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), not least because the approval procedure for novel foods covered by the so-called Novel Food Regulation is extremely strict. The first step towards an application for approval has now been taken by the Heidelberg-based biotechnology company The Cultivated B (TCB).