Everything seemed to fall into place at just the right time when, some years ago now, two students happened to meet in a laboratory at the University of Tübingen. Together, they would go on to change the potential of brain stimulation for the long-term. Both were studying medicine and both were working intensively on real-time electroencephalograms (EEGs) and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Today, husband-and-wife team Dr. Brigitte Zrenner and Dr. Christoph Zrenner are not just parents to four children, they are also scientists who have launched another great project – their company sync2brain GmbH.

The idea – how did the product and company come to be?

The Zrenners had been working on an idea for a number of years. Dr. Brigitte Zrenner, a specialist in neurology and psychiatry, conducts research on the translational development of individualised brain stimulation protocols and on the mechanisms of pathophysiology in major depressive disorders and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Neurologist Dr. Christoph Zrenner researches brain-state-dependent brain stimulation and uses real-time electroencephalograms (EEGs) to investigate oscillatory brain-states with the goal of identifying “temporal targets” for neuromodulatory interventions. In brain stimulation, the aim is to find the perfect point in time that will determine how effective the planned treatment will be. Together, the researchers struck on the idea of developing special hardware and software and then marketing it as a product. sync2brain was born.

The Zrenners are actually following in something of a family tradition. The Medical Innovations Incubator, which is part of the Tübingen-based Stiftung für Medizininnovationen (Foundation for Medical Innovations) and helps start-ups in the medical technology sector on their journey to success, was established by Prof. Eberhart Zrenner. Evidently, Prof. Zrenner, who is a former member of the German Science and Humanities Council, Senior Professor of ophthalmology at the University of Tübingen and himself a company founder, has passed on his entrepreneurial genes to his son Christoph. As the father and son see it, carrying out basic research and then developing your results into products are two activities that go hand in hand. Brigitte and Christoph Zrenner don’t see their personal relationship as an obstacle. In fact, it is a bonus – being a team at work and at home and pursuing the same goals means that these parents can support each other perfectly as they raise their four young children.

The first step – setting up a company on the basis of an inspired idea – was taken in 2019. The newly formed company now needed to be nurtured and a product placed on the market. Fortunately, the team at sync2brain crossed paths with Dr. Ramona Samba at just the right time. Holding a doctorate in chemistry, Dr. Samba had been researching microelectrode arrays that are used to record and stimulate nerve cells and measure neurotransmitters. Alongside her scientific career, she also studied management at Steinbeis School of Management and Technology and St. Gallen Business School and was head of a division at NMI Technologietransfer GmbH in Reutlingen. The specialist expertise and business acumen she brought to the table were precisely what the young company needed for its next steps. In 2020, she helped the company submit a successful application to the German government’s EXIST funding programme, which financed her appointment as CEO.

The fact that Dr. Samba was able to take over the running of the company proved to be a stroke of luck for the two founders, as she is now “on her own” with the growing team at its home in Tübingen. Shortly after founding their business, Brigitte and Christoph Zrenner took up an offer to work at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) in Toronto, Canada. The Zrenners are now expanding their studies on brain interventions using TMS at one of the biggest research centres for clinical studies in psychiatry. However, the physical distance between Tübingen and Toronto has had no impact on the development of their business back home. Ultimately, business partners no longer need to be in the same building to run a company together. They are also shattering all the usual stereotypes associated with working in a start-up – never being at home, living in the lab, having no children or relationships, being totally devoted to “the cause”. Dr. Samba, who herself has three children, strikes the right balance and sees “being the boss” as only a good thing. She decides how important her parental commitments are and doesn’t need to ask permission to take time off. She is also happy to clear up misconceptions about the mythical “genius loner”, so often pictured working tirelessly in their garage on their idea for global success. The right mix for a successful start-up consists of scientists who have visionary ideas paired with practical people who can get things done and take care of organisation and management.

The need – who benefits from the idea?

At least 350 million people around the world suffer from depression. Many forms of this disorder are incurable, and conventional psychotherapeutic drugs sometimes have severe side-effects. In a patient with depression, the left forebrain “locks” into a state of hypoexcitability, which means that a pulse at this area of reduced activity – when initiated at the right time – can optimally stimulate the nerve cells. This stimulation can be provided without any need for anaesthetic or surgical intervention. Patients, who wear an EEG cap fitted with electrodes during the treatment, feel nothing. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) can help in virtually all cases where there is an imbalance in the brain. If a patient has suffered brain damage due to a stroke, for example, they will have to carry out repeated exercises – usually during physiotherapy – so that their brain can learn to reorganise itself. TMS can help activate the patient’s brain and put it in a state that is more conducive to building new networks, thus making it easier for the patient to complete the programme of exercises. TMS has actually been used as a treatment for years and is listed as an approved method in guidelines for treating psychological disorders. The team at sync2brain believes that an optimised mix of drugs, rehabilitation, talking therapies and TMS offers a genuine solution for many patients.