Clinical Pharmacology
For many years, the Dr. Margarete Fischer-Bosch Institute for Clinical Pharmacology (IKP) and the Robert-Bosch-Krankenhaus (RBK) have been devoted to the improvement of personalized medication therapies. Genetic changes in human DNA that are relevant to treatment success and to the occurrence of diseases represent the core focus of research in these two institutions, which are owned by the foundation. Researchers at the Pharmacology Institute have attained international success and recognition for their contributions to the study of leukemia in children, breast cancer, and chronic inflammatory bowel diseases.
In this context, Jan Wehkamp, M.D., is this year's winner of the career prize of the Ernst-Jung-Stiftung für Wissenschaft und Forschung. The prize carries a purse of € 180,000. Jan Wehkamp's research focuses on defensins, antibiotics that occur naturally in the body and whose absence is believed to be one of the fundamental causes of chronic illnesses like Crohn's Disease. Wide variations in the effectiveness of drugs in different individuals – from insufficient effectiveness through undesirable effects to toxic reactions - remain a major problem which scientists at the IKP / RBK are helping to solve. In recent years, their research projects have continued to focus on pharmacogenomics and the molecular foundations of the formation and treatment of breast cancer.
In the field of pharmacogenomics, the most advanced methods of molecular medicine are used to study the genetic processes of drug metabolism and transport which are relevant to the effectiveness of drug therapies. Researchers are increasingly realizing that genetic factors that influence disease (its causes, progress, and prognosis) are very important and may provide a partial explanation for the great individual variations in the effectiveness of drug therapy. The quality of the research at the two facilities is guaranteed by a scientific advisory council consisting of acclaimed physicians, pharmacologists, and biologists.
In this context, Jan Wehkamp, M.D., is this year's winner of the career prize of the Ernst-Jung-Stiftung für Wissenschaft und Forschung. The prize carries a purse of € 180,000. Jan Wehkamp's research focuses on defensins, antibiotics that occur naturally in the body and whose absence is believed to be one of the fundamental causes of chronic illnesses like Crohn's Disease. Wide variations in the effectiveness of drugs in different individuals – from insufficient effectiveness through undesirable effects to toxic reactions - remain a major problem which scientists at the IKP / RBK are helping to solve. In recent years, their research projects have continued to focus on pharmacogenomics and the molecular foundations of the formation and treatment of breast cancer.
In the field of pharmacogenomics, the most advanced methods of molecular medicine are used to study the genetic processes of drug metabolism and transport which are relevant to the effectiveness of drug therapies. Researchers are increasingly realizing that genetic factors that influence disease (its causes, progress, and prognosis) are very important and may provide a partial explanation for the great individual variations in the effectiveness of drug therapy. The quality of the research at the two facilities is guaranteed by a scientific advisory council consisting of acclaimed physicians, pharmacologists, and biologists.
