What's going on at the biotechnology center in Martinsried
Did you know that Planegg, a small town on the outskirts of Munich, is home to one of the most advanced centers of biotechnology in Europe? In 1996 Munich was chosen as a special “Bio Region” in a competition sponsored by the German Federal government’s Ministry of Education and Research. Although there are other biotechnology centers in Bavaria—one in Regensburg and a third in Erlangen—Munich is by far the biggest and best developed. Most companies are situated in the Martinsried area of Planegg, which lies just a few kilometers south of Munich. For many people the term biotechnology is confusing. Does it refer to “Dolly the sheep” or those long-life North American tomatoes, or is it about the search for advances in medical science? The answer, in fact, is all of the above. Biotechnology is a general term used to refer to the exploration and use of biological processes and organisms in the development or manufacture of a product or technological solution. Dolly’s laboratory cousins, easy-to-peel bananas and cures for SARS come under this category, as does genetic engineering, which manipulates the DNA of bacteria in order to develop new products and creates some of those infamous GMO’s that are currently banned by the European Union. You can be sure that the companies in Planegg aren’t toiling over odorless-broccoli and vitamin-rich chocolate, though. Most specialize in diagnostics and therapeutics, working to cure difficult or non-treatable illnesses. Cancer is a main focus and the Federal and Bavarian governments are keen to have these companies develop new cures. Since its inception biotechnology has grown at a remarkable rate. In 1996 the BioTech-Region Munich started out with 34 companies employing a staff of 300. In only seven years it has grown to encompass 100 biotechnology companies that provide work for over 3,000 people. Winning the “Bio Regio” competition was a boon to the nascent biotechnology industry in Munich, especially when the Federal government donated a total of DM 50 million (approx € 25 million) directly to biotech companies making their home in Martinsried. What really makes the region unusual, however, is that it doesn’t only consist of biotech companies, but also scientific research institutes, such as the Max-Planck-Institutes for Biochemistry and Neurology. This has helped the region to earn a worldwide reputation as a unique hub that links development and practical application of scientific knowledge. Law firms, consultants and banks have been encouraged to establish subsidiaries in the area. If talk of biotechnological research conjures up images in your mind of crackling Bunsen burners and foaming test tubes, a visit to one of the companies located in Martinsried will probably be a disappointment. The laboratories are often spartan in the extreme. When Lord Sainsbury, British Under-Secretary of State for Science and Innovation, visited Martinsried in 1999, he spent a morning talking with researchers and the management of local companies. A couple of petri dishes revolving on a large metal disc hidden away behind thick glass, which he was later taken to look at, seemed almost of secondary importance. A film of the visit made in English by Bavarian Television grappled to show interesting footage but simply ended up with a head shot of Sainsbury explaining the reason for his trip. The German public, however, does not seem to be put off by the complexity and inaccessibility of biotechnology as a subject, as a recent experiment in Bremen shows. Two months ago the Bundeszentrale für Politische Bildung (Federal Center for Political Culture) set up a mock shop in the city, called Chroma Soma, which sold genetic “products.” Chroma Soma offered, for example, “book-a-baby,” which not only gave women the chance to choose a date for a possible pregnancy, but also to influence their baby’s genetic traits and eradicate potential abnormalities. In fact this item, as all others, were only mock-ups, designed to test people’s reaction to genetic technology. Nonetheless the public flocked to the shop to find out more. Thomas Krüger, president of the Federal Center for Political Culture, was himself “amazed so many people visited Chroma Soma.” Though the work being done in Martinsried may be only indirectly related to the type of genetic products Chroma Soma feigned to sell, the same curiosity displayed in Bremen is welcomed by the Max-Planck-Institutes for Biochemistry and Neurology in Martinsried, which are opening their doors to the public for a day, on November 22. If you are interested in finding out more about their work, you can visit the institutes at Am Klopferspitz 18a, from 9 am, or call (089) 85 78 28 24 for more information.