News archive

The notion that some level of microbial exposure might reduce our risk of developing allergies has arisen over the last few decades and has been termed ‘the hygiene hypothesis'. Now, an article published in Science Immunology by researchers from Karolinska Institutet challenges this hypothesis by showing that mice with high infectious exposures from birth have the same, if not an even greater ability to develop allergic immune responses than 'clean' laboratory mice.

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet who studied SARS-CoV-2 variant BA.2.86, found that the new variant was not significantly more resistant to antibodies than several other variants that are circulating. The study also showed that antibody levels to BA.2.86 were significantly higher after a wave of XBB infections compared to before, suggesting that the vaccines based on XBB should provide some cross-protection to BA.2.86.

In a new study from Karolinska Institutet, the researchers found that combining information from blood markers and genetics reveals distinct subgroups of patients with myositis, which may help to improve disease classification and treatment. The study was published in EBioMedicine.

This year's KLOK award goes to the Optometry program, which together with the St. Erik Eye Hospital has developed a clinical training clinic where students from several educational programs can broaden and deepen their knowledge in an interprofessional learning environment.

Tips from Grants Office regarding current calls

Swedes with lower income and education were at greater risk of deteriorating mental health during the pandemic. This is shown in a study conducted by researchers from the University of Gothenburg in collaboration with Professor Mats Lekander at the Department of Clinical Neuroscience.

Karolinska Institutet, in partnership with universities in Sub-Saharan Africa, has for the last three years implemented an impactful training programme on innovation for managers within the health sector. “We really need these kinds of efforts to achieve sustainable health. The programme empowers the participants to work together in addressing complex challenges,” says Dr. Rawlance Ndejjo, lead of one of programme's modules.

Bernard and Barbro Osher donate USD 2,100,000 (approx. SEK 23 million) to the Osher Center for Integrative Health at Karolinska Institutet. The donation follows an earlier donation in 2005 from the same donors.

The FIELD (Fellows In Gender Equal Career Development) program begins in February 2024 and runs until October 2024. The program offers mentorship and seminars to enable you to promote gender equal opportunities in career development at KI.

As of January, next year, a new term of office for KI's Deans will begin. Deans have a line assignment and are appointed by the President. The role is undergoing change and development - an important task for the new Deans will be to participate in this process. As a Dean, you are part of the Faculty Board. It is the university management's intention to clarify the Dean's assignment in KI's line organization.

On September 19, Annika Bergquist was appointed Professor of Gastroenterology, focusing on hepatology, at the Department of Medicine, Huddinge (MedH). Annika is head of the Gastroenterology and Rheumatology Unit at MedH.

Medical student Julie Cheung from Karolinska Institutet (KI) recently won first prize at the prestigious Global Undergraduate Awards thesis competition in the category of Medical Sciences.

Mania is a possible but rare side effect of treatment with antidepressant medication in adults, but little has previously been known of this risk in depressed children and adolescents. A newly published paper in JAMA Psychiatry investigated this, finding no evidence of mania/hypomania induced by antidepressants by 12 weeks after treatment initiation. However, caution is necessary in treatment for children with more severe depression or where a parent has bipolar disorder.

The Swedish Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology annually awards the best doctoral thesis of the year. 2023 the award goes to Ritah Bakesiima, who completed her dissertation at the Department of Women's and Children's Health last year. Her research studies the barriers to contraception among adolescents, and enlightens the importance of peer counselling in increasing contraceptive uptake.

The strategic partnership agreement, signed between Karolinska Institutet and University of Tokyo aims to increase mobility of students and researchers, joint research projects and faculty development programs such as pedagogic training and research supervision.

When the Times Higher Education (THE) in Great Britain publishes its annual university ranking, KI is ranked 50th among 1,904 institutions in the world and ranked 16th in Europe.

This is a short report from the project team working on the implementation of KI RIMS. The posts are aimed at those who are interested in the work of adapting the product Elements from Symplectic to KI's requirements and conditions and want to follow the development process.

Bing Chat Enterprise is a new, AI-powered chat tool. The service is now available in a preview version included at no extra cost in KI's Microsoft 365 licence.

Thanks to the research conducted by Christian Rück and others there is currently research on all compulsive related disorders. He is now venturing into a perhaps even more difficult and important task: Suicide prevention.

We are happy to introduce new colleagues at the Department of Laboratory Medicine. Welcome everyone!

The course aims to give doctoral students an opportunity to reflect on the importance of academic research and how this can lead to societal change.

Westins Buss

As part of an initiative with Imperial College London, Karolinska Institutet aims to stimulate doctoral student networking and interaction between KI doctoral students and doctoral students at Imperial College.

To facilitate new and existing contacts between post doctoral and doctoral students as well as increase research collaboration with the University of Edinburgh, KI’s Internationalisation Board is pleased to announce the availability of limited competitive funds for a lab visit.

To facilitate new and existing contacts between researchers and doctoral students as well as increase research collaboration with King’s College London, KI’s Internationalisation Board is pleased to announce the availability of limited competitive funds for a lab visit.

A group of researchers at Karolinska Institutet, among other universities, are involved in a multinational project awarded 4 million US Dollars to investigate the link between neurodevelopmental conditions and neurodegenerative diseases. The award is funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) and the National Institute Of Neurological Disorders And Stroke (NINDS).

Anna Wedell, professor at Karolinska Institutet, has been awarded the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA) Gold Medal 2023 for her efforts in precision medicine. This gold medal has been awarded since 1921 for outstanding achievements in technology, economics, business and society.

The seasonal flu will soon hit the country. The management has decided to offer all employees of the University Dental Service and the Department of Dentistry the opportunity to be vaccinated against seasonal flu free of charge.

The FIELD (Fellows In Gender Equal Career Development) program begins in February 2024 and runs until October 2024. The program offers mentorship and seminars to enable you to promote gender equal opportunities in career development at KI.

University of Bergen in collaboration with researchers at Karolinska Institutet have been awarded a significant grant funded by Horizon Europe with €7 million during 2024-2028 in recognition of their dedication to target Epstein-Barr virus to treat and prevent Multiple Sclerosis.

According to a new international study, cleft palate surgery at the age of six months provides better conditions for speech and language development compared to surgery at twelve months. The results were published in the New England Journal of Medicine by researchers from Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska University Hospital, among others.

Olof Stephansson's research group receives Alvarenga's prize 2023 for the article: "Risk of postpartum hemorrhage with increasing first stage of labor duration" with the motto "How long it takes to give birth can affect the risk of bleeding". The prize is awarded by the Swedish Society of Medicine (Svenska Läkaresällskapet).

Franziska Hetrodt's research project is nominated for the best research report of the year by the Swedish Society of Cariology (SFFC)

The Centre for Health Crises has received funding from the Swedish government to increase and support collaboration across the country’s universities on the topic of health crises. Initially, the Centre completed an online mapping of ongoing activities and existing health crises competences at a majority of the universities. We have also recruited Caroline de Groot, who is coordinating the work and is in the process of reaching out to key groups and individuals to learn more.

The new policy for leadership and employees at KI wants to convey what is required of both managers and employees to create the organization we want.

Childhood-onset type 1 diabetes (onset <age 18) and neurodevelopmental disorders, including attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, and intellectual disability, globally represent substantial health challenges. The conditions also pose substantial challenges to the individuals, their families, and healthcare systems.

Professor Qiang Pan-Hammarström at Karolinska Institutet is one of six new members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Among other things, she has researched immunodeficiency diseases and worked to find treatments for covid-19.

Family members and close friends of people with COVID-19 have elevated symptoms of depression and anxiety, a study from Karolinska Institutet published in The Lancet Regional Health – Europe reports. According to the researchers, the results of the study indicate a possible unmet public health need.

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease, often with onset during childhood, that requires lifelong insulin therapy due to the loss of pancreatic beta-cells.

We’re now a few weeks into the term, and our students - both freshers and those who have returned after the summer break – have been welcomed to Karolinska Institutet. We were once all at the start of our student careers – we need to remember this, to inspire the coming generation and include them in an enjoyable student life.

The Research School in Health Science 2023 kick-off event was a great success, bringing together supervisors, new doctoral students, and students from the 2021 cohort. Held on September 5th, this event marked a milestone for the research school.

Lisa Strömmer is the new expert coordinator, in emergency surgery, at the Centre for Health Crises. She looks forward to, among other things, develop existing courses and work to make sure that emergency surgery as a competence is maintained in crisis preparedness, health crises and as a part of the total defense (Totalförsvaret).

The end of August and the beginning of September marks the start of the academic year and Karolinska Institute’s (KI) campuses are once again filled with students. KI welcomed more than 2,000 new students to the undergraduate and global master's programmes starting this autumn semester 2023. This year, the new students were not only welcomed during the welcome days in Aula Medica as the introduction programme for new students has been extend.

The air is buzzing with anticipation. Floral displays, long gowns and evening dress, and almost 900 chairs waiting for the graduands and their guests. It is the 15 September, and time to celebrate the graduation of 154 of KI’s new doctors in Stockholm City Hall.

Sten Lundin set his apartment on fire and was convicted of arson. It turned out that he had bipolar disorder and the care he got helped him on feet again. "Life can sometimes turn around. I want everyone to know that", says Sten Lundin.

She was deprived of liberty for over ten years. "I feel a great deal of sadness that it took so long before I received proper care", says Jenny.

The Nordic Congress of Gerontology (NKG) is arranged every second year in the Nordic countries and next year Sweden will be hosting the event. The 27th edition will be held at Karolinska Institutet on 12–14 June 2024. It is anticipated that 800 people and scholars from different parts of the world will take part, offering a diverse array of distinctive perspectives on the challenges and opportunities linked to population ageing. Registration will open on 2 October 2023.

Who is at the highest risk of committing violent acts - and who is not? Forensic psychiatrist Jonas Forsman's researches involves an instrument that can, in a best case scenario, simplify the assessment of most forensic psychiatric patients.

Anette Johansson conducts research on what separates psychotic people who commit crimes from psychotic people who do not.

7.5 years That is the average treatment time for a person who has been sentenced to forensic psychiatric care. This is 2.5 years longer than what previous figured has lead us to believe.