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ABNOBA GmbH is an independent, medium-sized, research-based pharmaceutical manufacturer based in Pforzheim, Germany. The partners of ABNOBA GmbH are exclusively non-profit organisations. The profits from our company are therefore particularly channelled into cancer research.  Oncology patients are the focus of our activity. ABNOBA GmbH is one of the world's leading and most innovative companies in the field of herbal medicinal products for oncology.

Pharmaceutical research

In contrast to other mistletoe products, the standardised manufacture of abnobaVISCUM is performed using a patented pressing procedure. Using this manufacturing process to produce the pressed juice ensures that the entire range of plant ingredients is transferred to the extract. The plant extract contains 75% of the plant material used. The various concentration strengths of abnobaVISCUM are produced by means of dilution.

Plant material from both summer and winter harvests is used. These two raw materials are processed separately to pressed juice and are subsequently mixed in another patented procedure. Investigations have shown that various pharmacologically active substances are present in the plant to different extents, depending on the season. For example, particularly large quantities of polysaccharides are found in the white mistletoe berries, which are only harvested with the winter harvest.

This particular form of extracting abnobaVISCUM affects the formation of liposomes in abnobaVISCUM. Liposomes are cell-like structures in or to which one can include or attach active substances. Liposomes can thus enable targeted transport of the active substances to the "site of action", i.e. the tumour. The medical term for this process is "drug targeting".  Liposomes and the liposomes  contained in abnobaVISCUM are among the subjects of our current research, which characterises the liposomes and investigates their effect on the activity and tolerability of the medicinal product. 

Researchers

 

  Dr. Gero Leneweit

  Graduate Physicist
  Scientist-in Charge and coordinator of the project for Abnoba GmbH
  Lecturer at KIT 
  Head of Carl Gustav Carus-Institut
  (institute for cancer research in Niefern-Öschelbronn/Germany)
  Visiting researcher in Utrecht and Uppsala 
 

  Dr. Christoph Heyder

  Graduate Biotechnologist
  Researcher at Carl Gustav Carus-Institut
  (institute for cancer research in Niefern-Öschelbronn/Germany)
  Researcher and employee of ABNOBA GmbH for the project
  Visiting researcher in Utrecht and Uppsala 

 

  Dr. Alberto Dessy

  Postdoc Biomaterials
  Until 2013 Researcher at University Pisa/Italy
  Since May 2013 Researcher of the EU-project
  Researcher and employee of ABNOBA GmbH for the project
  Visiting researcher in Utrecht

 

  Dr. Bárbara Santos des Miranda

  PhD in Chemistry
  Postdoc in Groningen/Holland
  Head of ABNOBA-laboratory (2016-2018)
  Researcher and employee of ABNOBA GmbH for the project


 

  Maria Betânia Carreira de Matos 

  MSc Biomedical Engineering, University of Coimbra
  Researcher and employee of ABNOBA GmbH for the project
  PhD candidate in Utrecht University 



 

  Dr. Ellen Hildebrandt

  Bioengineer
  Researcher and employee of ABNOBA GmbH for the project
  Visiting researcher in Utrecht 
  PhD at KIT


 

  Dr. Illya Fedotenko 

  Doctor in Chemistry
  Postdoc at ABNOBA (2015-2017)




 


The research leading to these results has received funding from the People Programme (Marie Curie Actions) of the European
Union’s Seventh Framework Programme FP7 (2007–2013) under REA grant agreement no. 324275 (project acronym Decent AID)