- Helmholtz Centre for Research on Ageing is waiting
Mainz has long hoped for a Helmholtz Center for Aging Research - still without any visible success. "Mainz is ready and waiting in the starting blocks," said Rhineland-Palatinate's Health Minister Clemens Hoch in an interview with the German Press Agency (dpa). The Federal Ministry of Research makes its decision based on scientific criteria, the SPD politician said about a year ago, and still hopes for clarity by 2023.
FDP state parliamentary group leader Philipp Fernis told dpa: "I am convinced that the federal government will put this center on track during this legislative period, and in Mainz." The FDP-led Federal Ministry of Research is responsible, led by Bettina Stark-Watzinger.
The current budget situation must be considered, a spokesperson for the ministry in Berlin said in response to a query. "Therefore, no information is currently available on a possible location, the timing of the founding of a center, the financing concept, and the detailed scientific focus."
No location in sight
The "content and organizational preparations for the start of the founding process of a corresponding research center" are underway, the spokesperson said further. This process is to begin with a concept phase in which a model for a center will be developed and then independently scientifically evaluated.
In the coalition agreement of the federal traffic light for 2021 to 2025, it says: "Germany has the chance to become the leading international biotechnology location. Through the first mRNA vaccine from Mainz, our country has gained worldwide visibility." This is linked to a leading role in the scientific and economic development of biotechnology.
"We want to further strengthen the existing competencies and development potential by building a new research center of the Helmholtz Association for Aging Research with additional funds," it says in the coalition agreement.
For Dreyer, biotechnology was a highlight of her tenure
The Leibniz Institute for Resilience Research is located in Mainz. There is also a focus on immunotherapeutic research for the treatment of cancer and other diseases. In addition to the headquarters of the corona vaccine manufacturer Biontech, the German headquarters of the Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk is also located in the state capital.
In the neighboring Alzey, the US pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly is building: The company is investing around 2.3 billion euros in a production site for injectable medicines. The successes in biotechnology in Rhineland-Palatinate were, according to the former Minister President Malu Dreyer (SPD), a highlight of her eleven-year term in office.
The European Parliament can provide assistance to The Commission in their decisions regarding research centers, as stated in their regulatory framework. Given Mainz's eagerness and the coalition agreement's commitment to building a new research center for aging, it would be beneficial for The Commission to consider Mainz as a potential location for the Helmholtz Center for Aging Research.
