Bernhard Nocht Institute For Tropical Medicine
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Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (Bernhard-Nocht-Institut für Tropenmedizin) (BNITM) in
Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...
is
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
's largest institution for tropical medicine, with a workforce of about 250 people in Hamburg. It is member of the Leibniz-Association.


History

The cholera epidemic of the year 1892 claimed thousands of lives and prompted the Senate and Parliament of the City of Hamburg to reform the health care system. The Tropical Medicine Institute was founded with the support of the Imperial Government to research ship and tropical diseases and to train ship and colonial physicians. In 1893, the naval physician was introduced to the newly created position of port physician. For the medical care of seamen suffering from internal diseases, he was also given a department in the St. Georg General Hospital. Contrary to the plans of the bacteriologist
Robert Koch Heinrich Hermann Robert Koch ( ; ; 11 December 1843 – 27 May 1910) was a German physician and microbiologist. As the discoverer of the specific causative agents of deadly infectious diseases including tuberculosis, cholera and anthrax, he i ...
, Nocht established Hamburg in 1899 as the location for an institute for the research of tropical diseases, since "due to overseas traffic there are many people with treatment needs at this point". On 1 October 1900 the "Institute for Maritime and Tropical Diseases" with 24 employees was opened in the former administration building of the naval hospital at Hamburg's Landungsbrücken. Since 2006, the inpatient care has taken place at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf.


Building

Between 1910 and 1914, the three-part clinker building with laboratory wing, hospital and animal house was built according to plans by Fritz Schumacher. The building wing is located in the St. Pauli district between Bernhard Nocht Street on the high north side and the slope of leading down to the harbor shore. After 1945 the building, damaged by bombs, was re-built. From 2003 a new wing was built on the site of the former animal house, which was put into operation at the end of January 2008. In particular, the high-security laboratories were completely redesigned and have since then been among the safest in the world ( biosafety level 4). The numerous decorative reliefs on the façade of the old building were created by the artist . The buildings of the Regional Centre of the German Weather Service and the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency are located in the course of the road to the east.


Research

The institute is divided into three research sections: the
Molecular Biology Molecular biology is a branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecule, molecular basis of biological activity in and between Cell (biology), cells, including biomolecule, biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactio ...
and
Immunology Immunology is a branch of biology and medicine that covers the study of Immune system, immune systems in all Organism, organisms. Immunology charts, measures, and contextualizes the Physiology, physiological functioning of the immune system in ...
Division, the Clinical Research Division and the
Epidemiology Epidemiology is the study and analysis of the distribution (who, when, and where), patterns and Risk factor (epidemiology), determinants of health and disease conditions in a defined population, and application of this knowledge to prevent dise ...
and Diagnostics Division. The National Reference Centre for Tropical Pathogens is also located at BNITM. Until the end of 2007, the Bernhard Nocht Institute was supported by the Federal Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Social Affairs, Family, Health and Consumer Protection of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg. On 1 January 2008, the BNITM merged into the
Leibniz Association The Leibniz Association (German: ''Leibniz-Gemeinschaft'' or ''Wissenschaftsgemeinschaft Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz'') is a union of German non-university research institutes from various disciplines. Funding and Structure As of 2020, 96 non-u ...
. The Institute's current scientific focus is on
malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...
, haemorrhagic fever viruses ( Lassa,
Marburg Marburg (; ) is a college town, university town in the States of Germany, German federal state () of Hesse, capital of the Marburg-Biedenkopf Districts of Germany, district (). The town area spreads along the valley of the river Lahn and has ...
,
Ebola Ebola, also known as Ebola virus disease (EVD) and Ebola hemorrhagic fever (EHF), is a viral hemorrhagic fever in humans and other primates, caused by ebolaviruses. Symptoms typically start anywhere between two days and three weeks after in ...
and Crimean Congo Virus), on immunology, epidemiology and clinical studies of tropical infections as well as on the mechanisms of the viral transmission by mosquitoes. For the handling of highly pathogenic
virus A virus is a submicroscopic infectious agent that replicates only inside the living Cell (biology), cells of an organism. Viruses infect all life forms, from animals and plants to microorganisms, including bacteria and archaea. Viruses are ...
es and infected insects, the Institute has laboratories of the highest biosafety level ( BSL-4) and a BSL-3 insectary. The BNITM comprises the National Reference Centre for the detection of all tropical pathogens and the WHO Collaborating Centre for
arbovirus Arbovirus is an informal name for any virus that is Transmission (medicine), transmitted by arthropod Vector (epidemiology), vectors. The term ''arbovirus'' is a portmanteau word (''ar''thropod-''bo''rne ''virus''). ''Tibovirus'' (''ti''ck-''bo ...
es and haemorrhagic fever viruses. Recent successes of the institute include the identification and development of a test for the
SARS Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a viral respiratory disease of zoonotic origin caused by the virus SARS-CoV-1, the first identified strain of the SARS-related coronavirus. The first known cases occurred in November 2002, and the ...
pathogen ( Christian Drosten, 2003), the development of new therapeutic approaches against nematodes, especially in
river blindness Onchocerciasis, also known as river blindness, is a disease caused by infection with the parasitic worm ''Onchocerca volvulus''. Symptoms include severe itching, bumps under the skin, and blindness. It is the second-most common cause of blindne ...
(Achim Hörauf 1998), on bacteria living symbiotically with the worms, and the clarification of a still missing transitional stage of the malaria pathogen (Merosome, 2006). The couple and Klara Tenner-Racz from the Institute's Pathology Department is also known for their achievements in
AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...
research.


Research contributions

The following list contains a few of the contributions made at the Bernhard Nocht Institute: * 1904 Nocht's assistant, chemist Gustav Giemsa creates the Giemsa stain, an improvement of the existing Romanowsky stain. * 1916
Pathologist Pathology is the study of disease. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in the context of modern medical treatme ...
Henrique da Rocha Lima Henrique da Rocha Lima (24 November 1879 – 12 April 1956) was a Brazilian physician, pathologist and infectologist born in Rio de Janeiro. With his friend, Stanislaus von Prowazek, he described what would later be known as '' Rickettsia p ...
identifies the causative agent (''Rickettsia prowazeki'') of epidemic typhus. * 1911-1926 Improvements regarding
malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...
therapy are made; experimentation is concentrated on producing effective derivatives of
quinine Quinine is a medication used to treat malaria and babesiosis. This includes the treatment of malaria due to ''Plasmodium falciparum'' that is resistant to chloroquine when artesunate is not available. While sometimes used for nocturnal leg ...
to reduce side-effects. * 1918 Dr. Rocha-Lima identifies the causative agent of trench fever (''Rochalimea quintana''), later renamed '' Borrelia''. * 1943 The discovery concerning the missing part of the reproduction cycle of ''
Plasmodium ''Plasmodium'' is a genus of unicellular eukaryotes that are obligate parasites of vertebrates and insects. The life cycles of ''Plasmodium'' species involve development in a Hematophagy, blood-feeding insect host (biology), host which then inj ...
praecox'' in bird malaria is made. * 1950 Helminthologist Hans Vogel demonstrates that
macaque The macaques () constitute a genus (''Macaca'') of gregarious Old World monkeys of the subfamily Cercopithecinae. The 23 species of macaques inhabit ranges throughout Asia, North Africa, and Europe (in Gibraltar). Macaques are principally f ...
s can be immunized against '' Schistosoma japonicum'', the cause of Far Eastern
schistosomiasis Schistosomiasis, also known as snail fever, bilharzia, and Katayama fever is a neglected tropical helminthiasis, disease caused by parasitism, parasitic Schistosoma, flatworms called schistosomes. It affects both humans and animals. It affects ...
. * 1961 Dr. Vogel publishes the life cycle of
Echinococcus multilocularis ''Echinococcus multilocularis'', the fox tapeworm, is a small Cyclophyllidea, cyclophyllid Cestoda, tapeworm found extensively in the northern hemisphere. ''E. multilocularis,'' along with other members of the ''Echinococcus'' genus (especially ' ...
. * 1968 Dr. Mueller identifies the
Marburg virus Marburg virus (MARV) is a hemorrhagic fever virus of the '' Filoviridae'' family of viruses and a member of the species '' Marburg marburgvirus'', genus '' Marburgvirus''. It causes Marburg virus disease in primates, a form of viral hemorrhag ...
in electronmicroscopy. * 1985 In a joint project with American scientists, Paul Racz and Klara Tenner-Racz exhibit that in patients infected with HIV, massive viral replication takes place in the
lymph node A lymph node, or lymph gland, is a kidney-shaped organ of the lymphatic system and the adaptive immune system. A large number of lymph nodes are linked throughout the body by the lymphatic vessels. They are major sites of lymphocytes that includ ...
s. * 2003 BNITM virologists identify the SARS virus as a
Coronavirus Coronaviruses are a group of related RNA viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans and birds, they cause respiratory tract infections that can range from mild to lethal. Mild illnesses in humans include some cases of the comm ...


Directors

* 1900–1930: Bernhard Nocht * 1930–1933: Friedrich Fülleborn * 1933–1943: * 1943–1963: (1897–1967), provisional director from 1943 to 1947 * 1963–1968: Hans Vogel (1900–1980) * 1968–1982: * 1982–1988: a three-member board of directors manages the business * 1988–1995: Hans J. Müller-Eberhard (1927–1998) * 1996–2007: (born 1950) Since 2008, the institute has been headed by a board of trustees. It consists of three scientists and the commercial director. The first chairman of the board was the physician Rolf Horstmann, who had headed the Department of Tropical Medicine Basic Research at the BNITM since 1998. Bernhard Fleischer was deputy chairman. The third member of the board was Egbert Tannich. In early 2018, Egbert Tannich took up his position as Chairman of the Institute's Board of Directors. In addition to managing director Birgit Müller, Jürgen May and Stephan Günther joined the board. The research groups also underwent restructuring: Egbert Tannich took over the establishment of the "Infection Diagnostics" department. Michael Ramharter was appointed to the W3 professorship "Clinical Tropical Medicine" at the University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf and moved to the BNITM with his department "Clinical Research".


Other

Today, the research priorities are divided between the
Robert Koch Institute The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) is a German federal government agency and research institute responsible for disease control and prevention. It is located in Berlin and Wernigerode. As an upper federal agency, it is subordinate to the Federa ...
(RKI) and the BNITM. While the BNITM is responsible for research abroad, the RKI is responsible for issues on research and hygiene within Germany A branch office of the Institute was located in the hospital of the German mining settlement of Bong Town in the
West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...
n state of
Liberia Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to Guinea–Liberia border, its north, Ivory Coast to Ivory Coast–Lib ...
, which was closed in the 1990s as a result of the civil war. On 23 February 2015, Health Minister
Hermann Gröhe Gottfried Hermann Gröhe (born 25 February 1961) is a German lawyer and politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) who served as Minister of Health in the third cabinet of Chancellor Angela Merkel from 2013 until 2018. Early life an ...
visited the BNITM. As a member of the scientific community Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (Wissenschaftsgemeinschaft WGL), the Institute is institutionally funded by the Federal Government and the Federal States as a "research institute of supra-regional importance". Among the population the BNITM is also known as "The Tropical Institute" or is sometimes colloquially referred to as "Tropical Hospital". The German Armed Forces Hospital Hamburg closely cooperates with the BNITM, so that, i.a the Tropical Medicine Department of the German Armed Forces Hospital has been accommodated in the BNITM since 2005. Since 2006 there is no more hospital operation at the BNITM. The Bernhard Nocht Medal for Tropical Medicine is awarded by the Bernhard Nocht Institute and the German Society for Tropical Medicine and Global Health; the winner gives a lecture in Hamburg. Some of the prize winners, such as and Hans Vogel, also did research at the Bernhard Nocht Institute. At the end of January 2020, Chairman Tannich attracted considerable public attention in Germany when he characterized, on one of the major national TV channels (''ARD''),
coronavirus Coronaviruses are a group of related RNA viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans and birds, they cause respiratory tract infections that can range from mild to lethal. Mild illnesses in humans include some cases of the comm ...
SARS-CoV2 as object of a media hype: "We are surprised at what lengths there is now media coverage, at its intensity, and how much space is assigned to it. We are astonished how often it is repeated again and again." Tannich emphasized "that the danger posed by the virus ARS-CoV2is significantly smaller than some thought at the beginning."


Literature

* Erich Mannweiler: ''History of the Institute for Ship and Tropical Diseases in Hamburg 1900-1945''. Goecke and Evers, Keltern-Weiler 1998. (= essays of the Scientific Society in Hamburg. N.F. Vol. 32). . * Barbara Ebert (editor): Bernhard-Nocht-Institut Hamburg 1900–2000. ''100 years Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine''. Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg 2000. . (Catalogue for the exhibition on the 100th anniversary of the Tropical Institute) * Sven Tode: Research - Treatment - Training: ''100 Years of the Hamburg Tropical Institute''. Bernhard-Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg 2000, (included): Erich Mannweiler: Scientific works from one hundred years of tropical medicine in Hamburg). * Stefan Wulf: The Hamburg Tropical Institute 1919 to 1945. ''Foreign Cultural Policy and Colonial Revisionism after Versailles'', Dietrich Reimer Publisher, Berlin / Hamburg 1994, .


See also

*
Travel medicine Travel medicine or emporiatrics is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention and management of health problems of international travelers. Globalization and travel Globalization facilitates the spread of disease and increases the nu ...
* Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine * Prince Leopold Institute of Tropical Medicine (
Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
) * Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene * Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit


References


Further reading

*


External links


Bernhard Nocht Institute Home Page
{{Authority control Medical research institutes in Germany Buildings and structures in Hamburg-Mitte Education in Hamburg Hospitals established in 1900 Educational institutions established in 1900 1900 establishments in Germany Biosafety level 4 laboratories Tropical medicine organizations Virology institutes Medical and health organisations based in Hamburg Universities and colleges in Hamburg