They got their start not in the legendary garage, but rather at an incubator on the university campus – and they are extremely successful: Last fall alone, three spinoffs from Freie Universität received large injections of funding from investors to expand their businesses, which are already doing well. They received support from profund, the startup support organization of Freie Universität Berlin, as they took their first steps toward reaching the market.

What controls the structures and functions of the human brain? And how can such knowledge be used for the study and treatment of neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, autism, or Parkinson’s disease? These kinds of questions have fascinated biochemist Stephan Sigrist (47) for many years now. “This is my life’s work, and it will probably always keep me busy, since we are constantly discovering new pieces of the puzzle,” he says.

It starts out with knee aches and pains when climbing stairs, and later on even a short walk becomes a painful ordeal. Arthritis of the knee is one of the most common degenerative disorders of the musculoskeletal system.