Precision oncology has become part of everyday cancer care. The molecular profile of a tumour can be accurately mapped and a wide range of targeted drugs are available for treatment. However, it is an enormous challenge to effectively link the two areas to ensure that therapy is truly personalised. The oncology decision-support system developed by Oncompass Medicine Hungary Kft. uses artificial intelligence to analyse genetic and clinical data, and then assigns the drugs and active substances that are expected to produce the best results in a given case.

In a breakthrough in the fight against the coronavirus epidemic, researchers from Pharmacoidea Kft., Szeged have unravelled the secret of the increased infectivity of the dreaded Delta variant, which triggered a new wave of epidemics in 2021. In the project funded by a HUF 350 million grant from the “Investment in the Future” programme and implemented in university-research institute-enterprise cooperation, Dr Tamás Letoha and his research team have successfully elucidated the mechanism of infection. This allows the development of molecularly targeted yet simple strategies to reduce the spread of newer variants and effectively treat the diseases they cause.

Zoltán Nusser, Széchenyi and Bolyai Prize winning neurobiologist and member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (HAS) leads the Laboratory of Cellular Neurophysiology at the Institute of Experimental Medicine of HAS. His research was supported by a Momentum (Lendület) grant and an ERC Advanced Grant in the past five years. From 2018, the team continues its work with funding from the Frontline programme of the NRDI Office. His research focuses on the understanding of synaptic communication between nerve cells of the central nervous system.

Owing to their efficiency and environmental friendly technology, reverse osmosis-based water purification units have become indispensable elements of modern industrial water treatment technologies. The lifespan of these units, however, is not long enough, though it can be successfully extended through continual innovations. Hidrofilt Kft. also contributes to this objective with its project, which has earnt the company a HUF 400 million fund disbursed by the NRDI Office under the call for proposals “Support of business RDI activities” (VÁLLALATI KFI_16).

Modern medicine relies more and more on knowledge acquired in molecular biology and genetics. Therefore, the research into molecular markers revolutionising the diagnosis of diseases has also become extremely timely both for academic basic research and for pharmaceutical research. In order to harmonise the efforts of discovery research and industrial pharmaceutical developments, the Molecular Biomarker Research and Service Centre of Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE Biotechnology HEICC) was established, about the goals and achievements of which, we interviewed Professor Imre Kacskovics, head of Department of Immunology of Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE).

Professor László Gránásy and his team are engaged in modelling the formation of polycrystalline materials, a research they were granted funds for early in 2018 under the “Frontline” – Excellence Programme developed by the NRDI Office. The goal, after having fully understood the crystallisation process, is to use the results in biological systems.