News archive

A new study shows that women lose more years of life after a heart attack than men. A 50-year-old woman with a large heart attack loses an average of 11 years, while an 80-year-old man with a small heart attack loses an average of 5 months of life. The study was led by researchers at Karolinska Institutet and Danderyd Hospital and the results have been published in the journal Circulation.

Researchers at the Center for Infectious Medicine at the Department of Medicine, Huddinge have developed a new strategy that can make cell therapy against cancer work longer in patients. The results are published in the journal Cell Stem Cell.

Nobel laureate and former president of Karolinska Institutet, Bengt Samuelsson, passed away at the age of 90. Bengt Samuelsson was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1982, along with Sune Bergström (1916–2004) and John R. Vane (1927–2004), for their discoveries related to prostaglandins – hormone-like substances that regulate several important processes in the body. Bengt Samuelsson also served as president of Karolinska Institutet from 1983 to 1995.

Research published in the Lancet Global Health describes the crucial role that pulse oximeters have in risk-stratification in both hospital and primary care or outpatient settings. Carina King, Associate Professor at the Department of Global Public Health has had a leading role in the newly published viewpoint.

We welcome Ryan Lyu to our lab for a visiting study. Ryan is a second year Master student at Nanjing University. He will stay with us for 3 months. During this time, he will mainly participate in the project to explore how epigenetic modulators control liver cholesterol metabolism linked with atherosclerosis. We hope Ryan will have a fruitful study trip and enjoy his stay in Sweden. Welcome Ryan!

Researchers at the Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics at Karolinska Institutet characterize a novel GTPase involved in ribosome production in mitochondria. The study, published in Nature Communication, provides new insights into the process that enables mitochondria to produce energy.

The National Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention (NASP) at Karolinska Institutet and Region Stockholm has compiled a summary of activities carried out during the 2023 operational year.

New findings from an international collaborative project highlight the pivotal role of TRP14 in health and disease.

On June 25, 2024, the National Board of Health and Welfare released the latest suicide statistics for 2023. These figures are compiled and analyzed annually by the National Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention (NASP) at Karolinska Institutet and Region Stockholm, covering national to local levels. The latest data is an increment in the overall Swedish suicide rate, from the historic low-point in year 2020, yet the overall downward trend since 2000 persists.

Air pollution could be responsible for 7 out of 100 deaths in India, and mortality is high even at levels well below national limit values. This is according to a new study published in The Lancet Planetary Health by researchers at Karolinska Institutet and others. The researchers point to the need for comprehensive measures and stricter air pollution guidelines in India.

The health risks of welding particles and the consequences of sick leave in mental illness are topics for two of the six research projects that have now been granted a total of SEK 18 million by Afa Insurance. Three of the six projects are run by researchers at KI.

A recently published study has compared a new surgical method with the current standard treatment for primary management of cervical cancer.

Professor Bob Harris, academic vice-president of doctoral education, has been awarded the Federation of European Biochemical Societies (FEBS) Education Award. This is the first time that the prize has been awarded.

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have developed nanorobots that kill cancer cells in mice. The robot’s weapon is hidden in a nanostructure and is exposed only in the tumour microenvironment, sparing healthy cells. The study is published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.

From July 1 to August 9, KI Housing will have limited staff on duty. The response time may therefore be longer.

Csaba Adori, neurobiologist at the Department of Molecular Biosciences, Stockholm University, and affiliated to the Department of Neuroscience at Karolinska Institutet, receives the award for his outstanding work in 3D imaging of the body’s tissues.

On May 23rd the KI Alumni Office hosted this year's alumni day, offering a focused program at The Cell, located in the newly opened building Forskaren in Stockholm, with a concluding evening mingle at the Nobel Prize Museum.

A new study shows weak associations between psychiatric symptoms and selected inflammatory biomarkers in patients with chronic pain. The study found that sickness behavior contributed more to explaining psychiatric comorbidity.

A new study from Karolinska Institutet shows that 45 genes may play a crucial role in the prognosis of patients with adrenal cancer. The findings, published in the journal ESMO Open, give hope for a better diagnostic tool than is currently available.

Steven N Kabwama, a PhD student in the research group GlobalChild Health and the SDGs attended the Global Health Security Conference that was held between 18th – 21st June 2024, Sydney Australia. He presented a poster on maintaining essential health services in Uganda that is part of hes doctoral research.

Fanna Ndow Norrby had never smoked or used snus when she was 30, but then she started using nicotine pouches. Here she talks about her journey in and out of addiction.

Principal Satu Harnesk has noticed an increase in snus use among students. But when she tries to talk about the health aspect, it is difficult to get through.

Anna-Karin Trångteg works as a tobacco cessation counsellor at a youth clinic. Here she explains how the young people she meets view different types of nicotine addiction.

The use of new nicotine products such as white snus and e-cigarettes has increased significantly among young people in Sweden. Marketed as tobacco-free, these products often contain high levels of nicotine and are flavoured in ways that attracts new target groups. But what do we really know about the risks?

Karin Garming-Legert researches mucosal changes in the mouth. She explains that those who use white snus nicotine pouches sometimes exhibit a different type of oral alteration not previously seen.

Tanja Tomson and her colleagues have developed a support tool for healthcare professionals whose patients want to quit nicotine.

Considering the urgent need to address emerging health crises, the Rwanda Food and Drug Authority (FDA) has intensified efforts to strengthen regulatory activities, particularly in the area of clinical trial monitoring. The Rwanda FDA has collaborated with regional and international partners on important partnerships aimed at building capacity for clinical research and promoting ethical conduct.

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.