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During the second Conference on Systems Biology of Mammalian Cells (SBMC), which will take place May 22 - 24, 2008 in Dresden, Germany, the MTZ®-Award for medically-oriented Systems Biology will for the first time be presented to young scientists. The award acknowledges outstanding dissertations in the field of medical Systems Biology and is granted by the MTZ® foundation in cooperation with the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the Project Managament Jülich (PtJ).

Systems Biology is a young field. It has the potential to fundamentally change the life sciences and generate radically new insights for biomedical research as well as for industry and agriculture. Its overall aim is to better understand life processes. Systems Biology strives to create a holistic picture of dynamic life processes with regard to all levels - from the genome via the proteome and the organisation of the cell organelles all the way to the complete cell or even an entire organism. In order to achieve to this high aspiration, Systems Biology combines quantitative methods used in molecular biology with knowledge gathered in mathematics, informatics and systems science.

"We are proud to promote an innovative scientific discipline" says Thomas Zimmermann, co-founder of the MTZ® foundation. He continues: "It is of special importance to us to support gifted and motivated young talents who are key to the future of Systems Biology.To this end the MTZ foundation, in co-operation with the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the Project Management Jülich (PtJ), has created the MTZ®-Award for medically-oriented Systems Biology which honors outstanding dissertations. The jury consists of leading representatives of Systems Biology research in Germany.

The prize sum of 5000 Euro can be divided and will be granted to the three best dissertations. The formal presentation of the prize will take place during the conference "Systems Biology of Mammalian Cells" on May 23rd, 2008, in the Kulturpalast in Dresden. Campaigning as the MTZ®-SBambassadress for the research field Systems Biology, young opera singer Netta Or will provide entertainment for this festive occasion.

"The aim of the award and its festive conferment is to draw special attention and public recognition to promising young scientific talents." With this statement the benefactors emphasize that Germany (together with the US, Japan, and Great Britain) is one of the leaders in the field of Systems Biology research. The MTZ®-Award for medically-oriented Systems Biology is offered for the first time this year and in the future will be granted every other year during the SMBC Conference.

Journalists are cordially invited to attend the presentation of the prize. Please register for a press card prior the conference at the SBMC secretary (sbmc08@fdm.uni-freiburg.de).

About the MTZ® foundation
"For a better future..." is the basic idea of the MTZ® foundation, founded by Monika and Thomas Zimmermann. It supports science and research in human medicine, especially in the still young science of Systems Biology. In addition, the foundation engages in biomedical research and studies of bioethics (www.mtzstiftung.de).

About the SBMC
The second Conference on Systems Biology of Mammalian Cells (www.sbmc08.de), which will take place May 22 - 24, 2008, in Dresden, Germany is organized by HepatoSys, the German Systems Biology Competence Network for the investigation of liver cells. HepatoSys was founded in 2004 by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) in co-operation with the the Project Management Jülich (PtJ). The research groups in this network work on an interdisciplinary consideration of all processes in the liver with special focus on the liver cell (hepatocyte). Scientists coming from completely different fields collaborate closely on computer modelling of the functions of the biological system . The objective is a virtual liver cell which would make it possible to reproduce model physiological processes in silico.

About HepatoSys
HepatoSys is a competence network with more than 40 Germann research groups from academia, industry, and clinics in Germany. The groups are funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) to support interdisciplinary research, to establish methods and tools, and to develop data-based models of physiological processes in hepatic cell model systems. More information you get with www.hepatosys.de

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Weitere Informationen:
http://www.nettaor.de - for detailed information about the MTZ®-SBambassadress