June 29, 2023
Frankfurt-Fechenheim, June 29, 2023. Nancy Faeser, Federal Minister of the Interior and Home Affairs and top candidate of the SPD for the Hesse state elections, together with Dr. Edgar Franke, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Health, visited BioSpring GmbH in Frankfurt-Fechenheim on June 29, 2023. BioSpring is a leading global manufacturer of active pharmaceutical ingredients based on synthetic nucleic acids.
Faeser and Franke toured the production facilities of the Hessian company where BioSpring produces high-tech active ingredients under clean room conditions and is, among other accomplishments, the world's leading manufacturer for molecules that are currently used in genome editing (CRISPR/Cas) and similar applications.
"Our economy in Hesse has great potential— as shown by the strong development of BioSpring. We need to promote new technologies more strongly in Hesse and thus ensure that our economy will also be successful in five, ten, twenty years. That's why we, the SPD, are planning a transformation fund, which means more money for targeted innovations in future technologies. Only in this way will it be possible for Hesse to be ahead again."
The two managing directors and owners Dr. Sylvia Wojczewski and Dr. Hüseyin Aygün explained to Faeser and Franke the background and possible applications of the therapeutic nucleic acid molecules they produce. "We are very pleased about both the visit of the Federal Minister of the Interior and the interest in the forward-looking topic of high-tech drug production in Hesse," said Managing Director Dr. Hüseyin Aygün. "Medical biotechnology is a key technology of the present and the future. It is therefore important that the framework conditions for these future technologies are right so that companies can continue to create jobs and add value in Hesse and Germany in the future," Dr. Wojczewski further emphasized.
Nancy Faeser and Dr. Edgar Franke were shown the outstanding medical importance of the novel drugs produced by BioSpring for gene therapy as well as cell therapy, which offer completely new treatment options for a variety of diseases. These include neurological diseases, as well as cancer and metabolic diseases, which until now could not be treated at all or only with great difficulty using conventional agents. BioSpring is the global market leader for the production of the main component of the so-called "gene scissors" (CRISPR/Cas), which is used in cell and gene therapy.
During a tour, Faeser and Franke were able to gain an impression of the high quality standards required for the production of active ingredients.
From left to right: Stefanie Minkley, Nancy Faeser, Dr. Sylvia Wojczewski, Dr. Edgar Franke, Dr. Hüseyin Aygün
Photo: Die Profifotografen (Ulrich Schepp).