Uğur Şahin and Özlem Türeci
Honorary citizen of the state capital Mainz
The physicians, scientists, and founders Uğur Şahin and Özlem Türeci come from the field of cancer medicine and research. They recognized the uniqueness of each patient's tumor as a cause for the failure of many cancer therapies. Since the mid-1990s, their research has focused on how to harness the full potential of the human body's immune system to fight cancer. They initially concentrated on developing individualized cancer therapies at Saarland University and the University of Mainz.
As part of their research, Sahin and Türeci adapted various technologies for therapeutic use, including antibodies, cell therapies, and mRNA. As early as the late 1990s, they recognized the great potential of mRNA to address fundamental challenges in cancer medicine. At that time, the mRNA molecule was not yet potent and stable enough to be used effectively as a drug.
In more than 20 years of basic and translational research, Sahin and Türeci developed a deep understanding of the immune system and optimized a variety of structural components of mRNA with extreme precision. This enabled them to significantly increase the intracellular stability and translation efficiency of mRNA. As a result of this fundamental research, mRNA administered in small amounts was able to induce a strong, long-lasting immune response for the first time, enabling its use in clinical trials against cancer. With the results of this work published in 2006, they emerged as the winners of the first Go.Bio competition of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research in the same year, which led to the joint founding of BioNTech in 2008.
In the following years, the two researchers succeeded in further improving the efficiency of mRNA by discovering strategies to specifically induce dendritic cells in lymphatic tissue to take up the mRNA. These cells are the "high-performance trainers" of the immune system and enable particularly strong immune responses to be induced. Thanks to the development of suitable lipid formulations as a means of transport for mRNA, the two scientists and their team achieved whole-body mRNA uptake in dendritic cells, enabling them to stimulate a large number of immune cells to attack only the defined cancer cells. These groundbreaking advances in research formed the basis for the successful clinical use of mRNA.
To realize their vision of personalized cancer therapies, Sahin and Türeci developed a groundbreaking manufacturing process to provide personalized mRNA vaccines in just a few weeks, based on the genome analysis of each tumor, computer-aided vaccine design, and an optimized process. As a result, Sahin and Türeci created a platform with their mRNA technology that is extremely potent and customizable and enables rapid production of tailored therapies within a few weeks.
In recent years, BioNTech has made continuous progress in the clinical development of cancer therapies. Several mRNA-based cancer therapies have successfully completed the first phase of clinical trials and are already in advanced studies. In 2020, Sahin and Türeci were able to draw on their deep knowledge of the immune system and their mRNA technology, which has been developed and refined over decades, to develop the world's first mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine.
In the coming years, Sahin and Türeci's team will continue to work intensively on new therapies and vaccines against cancer and infectious diseases, with the aim of bringing them from Mainz to people around the world. BioNTech plans to develop its first cancer therapies to market maturity over the next five years. In addition, the company is researching vaccines against malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV and is committed to creating sustainable production opportunities in low-income countries.
Justification for the honorary citizenship of university professor Dr. Özlem Türeci
By awarding honorary citizenship to University Professor Dr. Özlem Türeci, the state capital of Mainz is recognizing her outstanding contribution to the development of Mainz into an internationally recognized research and biotechnology location for immunotherapies and vaccines.
The internationally renowned physician and scientist in the field of immunology and cancer research is a pioneer in targeted approaches to cancer immunotherapy. She began her research work at Mainz University Medical Center more than twenty years ago, where she also teaches at the Helmholtz Institute for Translational Oncology. With responsibility for patients, trust in science, the courage to break new ground, and great determination, she pursued her goal of helping people in a very concrete way. She achieved this through her research work and the close connection between basic research and the manufacture of medical products. Based on her decades of groundbreaking research in the fight against cancer, she succeeded in developing and manufacturing a highly effective vaccine against COVID-19 in record time.
Her extraordinary achievements have been recognized with the highest honors.
University professor Dr. Özlem Türeci is a world-class scientist and an innovative entrepreneur. She promotes international research through scientific networks and in teaching. With her innovative ideas and outstanding achievements, she has brought Mainz to the attention of the global public.
Justification for the honorary citizenship of University Professor Dr. Ugur Sahin
By awarding honorary citizenship to University Professor Dr. Uğur Şahin, the state capital of Mainz is recognizing his outstanding contribution to the development of Mainz into an internationally recognized research and biotechnology location for immunotherapies and vaccines.
The physician and scientist gained international renown in particular for his pioneering research in the field of individualized cancer immunotherapy. He began his research activities at Mainz University Medical Center more than twenty years ago, where he also teaches experimental and translational oncology. Driven by the desire to ensure the best possible treatment for patients, he sought ways to translate research findings directly into application. Based on his groundbreaking scientific discoveries in the fight against cancer and the close connection between industry and research, a vaccine against COVID-19 was produced in record time.
His extraordinary achievements have been recognized with the highest honors.
University professor Dr. Ugur Sahin is a globally recognized scientist and innovative entrepreneur. He also promotes international research in scientific networks and in teaching. With his forward-looking ideas and outstanding achievements, he has brought Mainz to the attention of the global public.