State-of-the-art diagnostics and production
The IOZK is equipped with two laboratories. A state-of-the-art manufacturing laboratory (GMP) with clean room technology is available for the production of the patient's own vaccine IO-VAC®. Another focal point is the laboratory for research and special immunological diagnostics.
Qualified employees and a special clean room laboratory, in which foreign particles can be excluded as interference factors, are two basic prerequisites for differentiated research and individual immunotherapy. While we develop the patient-specific vaccine IO-VAC® in our production laboratory, the diagnostics laboratory is used for research and special immunological analyses.
The manufacturing laboratory (GMP) must be absolutely sterile. This is achieved by a positive pressure system with material and personnel airlocks. A continuous flow of air to the outside prevents impurities from entering the rooms via the air and contaminating the cell cultures. Together with high-quality equipment, these elaborate installations ensure that the high purity requirements are met.
The highly qualified and specialized team works in accordance with the provisions of the German Medicines Act and the European GMP guidelines (Good Manufacturing Practice).
To produce the patient's own IO-VAC® vaccine, our employees isolate a subgroup of white blood cells, the monocytes, from the patient's blood. They are differentiated into dendritic cells within five to seven days. The IOZK is the only institution in Europe with a manufacturing license in accordance with §13 AMG for a specific anti-tumor targeted dendritic cell vaccine: dendritic cells derived from monocytes from the patient's blood, loaded with tumor antigens from a lysate of the patient's own tumor cells with immunological danger signals from the Newcastle disease virus.
Complex immunological and molecular genetic analyses are carried out in the IOZK diagnostics laboratory. These provide insights into the immune system and the tumour of the individual patient, which are directly incorporated into the optimization of therapy.
For example, the number and composition of specific subgroups of immune cells can be tested ("quantitative cellular immune status"), the functionality of relevant immune cells ("qualitative cellular immune status") or the antibodies in the blood ("humoral immune status"). Knowledge of the molecular characteristics of a tumor is essential for targeted therapy. In our laboratory, it is possible to detect and analyze tumor components circulating in the blood by means of "liquid biopsy".
