The "Cell-based & molecular medicine in the Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region" leading-edge cluster, or BioRN for short, is one of the two top clusters in the region to be honoured by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) in September 2008 and awarded funding to the tune of around 40 million euros.
In the BioRN cluster, a total of around 50 medications, diagnostic products, technology platforms and services in the fields of personalised medicine and cancer treatment are intended to achieve so-called industrial maturity by 2014, i.e. a point at which initial sales can be achieved, for example through partnerships with the pharmaceutical industry. 4,000 new jobs are due to be created in the BioRN cluster by 2018, regardless of any influx of new companies. In the long term, the BioRN cluster would also like to climb to become a European leader in the field of medical biotechnology in its position as a leading German biotechnology location.
The title "BioRN Leading-Edge Cluster" refers to the five collaborative projects funded by the BMBF. The name "BioRN Cluster" goes beyond this and designates the conglomeration of companies and research establishments that are active in the field of medical biotechnology and are located within a radius of 30 km around the cities of Heidelberg, Mannheim and Ludwigshafen. These companies do not have to belong to any of the five collaborative projects, but define themselves through their geographical location and content focus.
Over 100 extremely capable partners from the worlds of business, science and politics are involved in the cluster, driving forward the progress of cell-based and molecular medicine. The largest accumulation of biotechnology companies is situated in the vicinity of academic research and education establishments, including the University of Heidelberg, the University Clinic of Heidelberg, the German Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ), the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) and Mannheim College. The cluster and its innovative potential are characterised by 60 small and medium-sized biotechnology companies together with the three major diagnostic and pharmaceutical companies Roche Deutschland Holding GmbH, Merck Serono GmbH and Abbott GmbH & Co. KG.
With the BioRN Academy, the cluster aims to recruit talented graduates from the field of life sciences and train them to become highly qualified executives.
Visit biorn.org for more details.
