News archive

The students have left for summer, and the study year 2023/2024 is now in its final phase, with exam corrections and summing up activities. A sincere thank you to everyone who has contributed to MBB’s teaching activities during this period.

Seven new research projects, four of which are led by researchers at Karolinska Institutet, will investigate how sick leave due to mental illness can be reduced among workers and white-collar workers in the private sector. It is part of the new R&D programme "The road to mental health in working life: Preventive, rehabilitative and strengthening efforts", which is funded by Afa Insurance and Alecta.

Older people with type 2 diabetes who are treated with GLP-1 agonists have a decreased risk of developing dementia, according to a new study from Karolinska Institutet published in the journal eClinicalMedicine.

CIMED's review of the applications for the 2025-2027 project grants and clinical research months has now been completed and a decision on distribution of funds has been made by CIMED’s Board of Directors.

Nine researchers from around the world have published a summary of the most recent progress in diagnosing and treating cluster headache, as well as understanding the development of the disease. The review article was recently published in Lancet Neurology.

In a debate article, President of Karolinska Institutet Annika Östman Wernerson and other leading representatives of the board of the Association of Swedish Higher Education Institutions call for continued and strengthened activities for the researcher, doctor, KI alumnus and Swedish citizen Ahmadreza Djalali. Since 2016, Djalali has been imprisoned on fabricated charges in Iran, in the prison that the Prime Minister recently described as hell on earth.

We congratulate researchers at MedH, including BioNut, who have been awarded CIMED project grants and clinical research months for the period 2025-2027.

“Ageing in a transforming world” was the theme of the 27th Nordic Congress of Gerontology (ageing research), hosted by Karolinska Institutet on 12–14 June. Drawing over 800 delegates from 44 countries to Aula Medica, the now international conference was opened by Queen Silvia, who talked about the importance of the research to dignity in ageing.

How do carers reason when deciding to treat patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD) under compulsory care? Is compulsory care ethically defensible? A new thesis by psychiatrist Antoinette Lundahl tries to answer these questions and concludes that there is much to indicate that compulsory care does not help patients with BPD and can even increase the risk of suicide.

Researchers at the Institute of Environmental Medicine (IMM) have published two studies on the connection between depression and cardiovascular disease. The first study explores the physiological mechanisms behind the link between general depression and cardiovascular disease. The second examines the increased risk of cardiovascular disease in women affected by perinatal depression. The results emphasize the importance of understanding and treating depression to prevent serious physical illness.

Femke Hormann has been awarded a prestigious Junior Research Grant by the European Hematology Association (EHA). The grant totals € 150 000 over three years.

In first-time mothers requiring vacuum-assisted delivery, a lateral episiotomy (angled cut) in the tissue between the vaginal and anal opening more than halves the risk of obstetric anal sphincter injury, a severe form of perineal trauma between the vulva and anus. This according to a randomised clinical study led by researchers at Karolinska Institutet and Stockholm’s Danderyd Hospital, the results of which are published in The BMJ.

The Swedish Heart-Lung Foundation has been supporting research into diseases of the heart and lungs in various ways since 1904, in part through generous research grants. This year, the foundation is celebrating its 120th anniversary, one of the high points of which is the creation of a new large research grant. Three of the six research teams to be awarded the foundation’s Jubilee Grant work at Karolinska Institutet.

The StratNeuro Retreat 2024, held from June 3rd to June 5th at the picturesque Djurönäset Hotel, was a resounding success. With over 250 participants, this retreat offered an exceptional opportunity for networking, scientific exchange, and relaxation in a stunning location.

The KI Housing office is closed on Friday, June 21, for the celebration of Midsummer Eve. If you have any urgent maintenance issues when the office is closed, we ask you to use the on-call service for your area.

KI researcher Rickard Sandberg has been elected as a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Academy of Sciences in the Medical Sciences category. In his research, he has developed new methods for studying genes in individual cells.

Fang Fang, professor in epidemiology at the Institute for Environmental Medicine in Solna, is awarded the prize for her outstanding efforts in epidemiology, as a researcher in neurodegenerative diseases, especially ALS.

Eleven years ago, KI researcher Beatrice Uusma published her book The Expedition: A Love Story exploring the fate of Andrée’s balloon expedition to the North Pole at the end of the 1800s. This August, she and a group of researchers from the Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research and the University Museum of Bergen will be returning to Vitön (Kvitøya) for more answers about the ill-fated expedition. Bea Uusma, at KI’s Medical History and Heritage Unit, tells us more.

The Swedish Medical Society has decided to appoint Catharina "Cia" Ihre Lundgren as the new president of the Swedish Medical Society, SLS. She takes office on July 1, 2024 and succeeds Tobias Alfvén, who is leaving the post after four years as president.

At the occupational and environmental medicine spring meeting on May 30, three researchers from the Institute of Environmental Medicine (IMM) received awards for Best thesis, Innovative research and Life time achievement.

Professor Jonas F Ludvigsson has been awarded H.M. The King's Medal of the 8th size in the Order of the Seraphim ribbon for outstanding research contributions in paediatrics and inflammatory bowel diseases. At the same time, Professor Göran K Hansson receives H.M. The King's Medal of the 12th size in the Order of the Seraphim ribbon for leading contributions to Swedish academia.

NVS-PUF V, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden, welcomes all doctoral students and researchers at KI, and other interested parties, to a webinar series focusing on Health Literacy. The webinars will consist of lectures and discussions between lecturers and participants, and some self-studies will be conducted prior each webinar. In English, and certificate of participation possible.

A recent study by researchers at Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska University Hospital, published in the International Journal of Surgery, shows that survival rates after surgery have significantly improved over the years, even though patients have become sicker and older. One contributing factor is the continuous development of perioperative care, which encompasses patient management before, during, and after surgery.

Ljubica Matic and Anton Razuvaev from the Vascular Surgery Group at the Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery, Karolinska Institutet, have been awarded with the Swedish Heart-Lung Foundation 120 years Jubilee grant for their project that aims to reveal novel mechanisms and develop therapeutic targets and biomarkers for personalised treatment in lower limb peripheral arterial disease.

This week, Karolinska Institutet, reached an agreement on a new exciting multiyear partnership with Carl Bennet AB in support of academic collaboration between Karolinska Institutet and Universitas Airlangga in Surabaya, Indonesia. President Annika Östman Wernerson signed the agreement with Carl Bennet outlining a four year program, totalling 8 million Swedish kronor.

On June 3rd and 4th, international vascular surgeons, scientists and trainees gathered in the Sune Bergström Auditorium to present and discuss translational vascular research. This was the third time the Vascular Surgery group at the Department of Molecular and Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, hosted the meeting, in 2020 in a virtual format, in 2022 and this year in the welcoming venue of Bioclinicum.

Hi Jasper Holleman, doctoral student at the Division of Clinical Geriatrics. On June 18 you will defend your thesis "Novel biomarkers associated with stress : from normal aging to Alzheimer's disease ". What is the main focus of the thesis?

Craig Wheelock has been appointed as a “Fellow of the European Respiratory Society”.

Hi Johanna Mayer, doctoral student at the Division of Neurogeriatrics. On June 17 you will defend your thesis "The role of autophagy in Aβ and tau metabolism in Alzheimer’s disease ". What is the main focus of the thesis?

Christabel Khaemba is a doctoral student at Karolinska Institutet, with a PhD project entitled “Active Safety Surveillance of Drugs Used in Lymphatic Filariasis Control Programme in Kenya.” Currently, she serves as the Principal Regulatory Officer and Head of Pharmacovigilance at the Pharmacy and Poisons Board, Kenya’s national medicine regulatory agency.

Roughly three times as many male athletes are banned for doping as female. A new doctoral thesis from Karolinska Institutet shows that one possible reason for this is that the doping tests in use fail to take account of women’s varying hormone profile. Instead, an alternative is proposed that includes a blood test and a limit value that allows doping tests for both elite athletes and casual sportspersons.

In this spring's call for grants for international postdocs in medicine and health, the Swedish Research Council approved 9 out of 42 applications. Of these nine, four, Daniel Helldén, Klara Lenart, Yunbing Shen and Miranda Stiernborg, are researchers at KI. In total, almost SEK 36 million was granted for the period 2024–2027.

Miranda Stiernborg, researcher in molecular biology at the Translational Psychiatry group, Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery, receives an international postdoc grant of SEK 3.9 million from the Swedish Research Council to study recurrent urinary tract infections in women.

When Inger Kull was a new nurse in the early 1980s, researchers were looking for risk factors. Today she is a professor and prefers to talk about health factors. Thirty years of research on the Bamse-children have provided answers to many questions, but not the most difficult: Why do children develop allergies?

On May 25, the Swedish Institute (SI) hosted a diploma ceremony at Stockholm's City Hall, celebrating its scholarship recipients. Among the scholars were seven students from Karolinska Institutet (KI) on site.

Robin Zenlander from the Gastroenterology and Rheumatology Unit at the Department of Medicine, Huddinge, is defending his thesis titled "Biomarkers in hepatocellular carcinoma", on 13 June, 2024. Main supervisor is Per Stål (MedH).

New research reveals that scar formation after spinal cord injuries is more complex than previously thought. Scientists have identified two types of perivascular cells as key contributors to scar tissue, which hinders nerve regeneration and functional recovery. These findings, published in Natural Neuroscience, are also relevant for other brain and spinal cord injuries and could lead to targeted therapies for reducing scarring and improving outcomes.

The SciLifeLab board has appointed Professor Jan Ellenberg as the new director. Alongside this role, Professor Ellenberg will also be appointed as a professor at Karolinska Institutet and affiliated professor at Stockholm University and KTH (Royal Institute of Technology). He succeeds Professor Olli Kallioniemi, who has served as SciLifeLab director since 2015.

That was the title of the KI-Lifestyle4Health open seminar on June 3rd, 2024. The answer, as perhaps expected, was yes, but participants also got the opportunity to listen and discuss research-based examples and practical trials.

Last week of May four researchers from Ukraine came to Karolinska Institutet for a week of research exchange and collaboration. They are part of the Doc-Stud-Ukraine project funded by the Swedish Institute, focused on supporting Ukrainian PhD students and young researchers to contribute effectively to health systems strengthening, particularly for children and adolescents in deoccupied territories in Ukraine.

Hi there Jonatan Gustavsson! You have recently defended your thesis entitled "Determinants of age-related brain iron accumulation and links to neurocognitive functions". Could you tell us a little more?

This spring, the Vinnova-founded Competence Center, NextGenNK underwent a comprehensive five-year evaluation. The evaluation report, presented on 30 May, praised the center and recommended five more years of funding for NextGenNK.

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet, in collaboration with Sophiahemmet University and LongLife Active AB, have developed an AI-assisted mobile health app with the potential to promote lifestyle behaviours.

Today, 5 June, we celebrate World Environment Day. Fittingly, the 2024 report from the Planetary Health Report Card (PHRC) was completed a couple of weeks earlier. Since its publication in May, the KI students who led the work can proudly present improved grades for the medical programme and one new programme in the report: the physiotherapy programme.

Last Thursday and Friday brought more excitement than ordinary weekdays and we have the graduating students to thank for it. It was time for the graduation ceremonies for all KI’s study programmes.

On June 3rd, the Theranostics Trial Center (TTC) was inaugurated as a new section within the Department of Nuclear Medicine and Hospital Physics, Medical Diagnostics Karolinska (MDK) with an academic base within the Department of Oncology-Pathology at Karolinska Institutet.

While mentally stimulating activities and life experiences can improve cognition in memory clinic patients, stress undermines this beneficial relationship. This is according to a new study from Karolinska Institutet published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association.

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet and the University of Innsbruck have developed a simpler and more effective screening method for cervical cancer than the method used today. A comprehensive study published in Nature Medicine shows that the test detects significantly more cancers and precancerous stages.

Some 40,000 Swedes live with severe asthma, a disease that causes considerable suffering. Thanks to grants from the Swedish Heart-Lung Foundation, KI researcher Jenny Mjösberg has discovered a specific cell that is thought to play a major part in non-allergic asthma. Further examination of these cells can help to optimise the use of drugs and reduce suffering for people with severe asthma. She has now been awarded the Heart-Lung Foundation’s grand research grant to continue her research.

Welcome to Ida Karlsson's defense of the thesis ”A problem-solving intervention for employees on sickness absence due to common mental disorders: effects, ethics and process” on June 14.