News archive

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.

A study conducted by researcher Juan Du's research group at the Karolinska Institutet sheds light on the capabilities of our gut microbes and their metabolites. The findings reveal potent inhibitory effects on the growth of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and suggest interactions and signaling between gut microbes and pathogens.

On June 6-7, the KI Housing office will be closed due to the Swedish National Day holiday (on June 6).

Researchers from the Clinical Genetics Group at the Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery, Karolinska Institutet, have set up a collaboration with the Centre for Research and Technology in Greece to make publicly available resources in biology and cancer more accessible to the research community. The teams are developing a first-of-its-kind cancer knowledge graph, as part of the SciLake Project involving partners across Europe.

Together with researchers from University of Oxford, researchers at Karolinska Institutet have demonstrated that a subclass of stem cells that are dedicated to the production of platelets replenish platelets through a distinct and shorter pathway than other stem cells. This is presented in a study published in the journal Nature Immunology.

David Marlevi, Associate Senior Lecturer in Medical Science at the Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery, Karolinska Institutet, is one of nine young prominent researchers elected to the Young Academy of Sweden.

Researchers from Karolinska Institutet have in collaboration with the University of Eastern Finland and Lund University a new publication in Genome Biology, demonstrated that targeting cell cycle and cell fate regulatory programs blocks non-genetic cancer evolution in acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

How can we help decision-makers during health crises, by developing rapid and useful decision bases, built on research and proven experience? With this question in mind, the Centre for Health Crises gathered a group of curious participants in Aula Medica on Thursday 29 May for a full-day workshop on creating rapid response briefs for decision-making in health crises.

Anna Nilsson has been appointed Professor at KBH and will take up the position on July 1, 2024. Her journey began by chance when she ended up in pediatric oncology during her early years as a pediatric resident. She enjoyed working in the department, which was then called '8an', and over time her interest in research was awakened.

Michael Wells has been appointed research group leader at the Division of Neonatology, Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Health as of 1 June. His main research interests lie in intervention and implementation research with a focus on social and family policy outcomes. His work revolves around Swedish reproduction and child health, especially the support given to parents, with a focus on fathers of infants.

In a recent ceremony held at Karolinska University Hospital, Professor Angelica Lindén Hirschberg, a distinguished gynecologist and researcher, was awarded the prestigious prize for exemplary research contributions to patient welfare.

The Swedish Chemicals Agency (KemI) has launched a new network for the safe handling of nanomaterials. The network is based on the national platform for safe handling of nanomaterials which was hosted by IMM.

Riitta Möller is awarded the prize for her great commitment to students and pedagogical development.

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have developed a new method for detecting malignant melanoma. A new type of patch equipped with microneedles can identify the biomarker tyrosinase directly in the skin, according to a study published in Advanced Materials.

Welcome to Anna-Maria Lampousi´s defense of the thesis ”Diet, genetic susceptibility, latent autoimmune diabetes in adults, type 1 and type 2 diabetes” on June 4th.

Having a profession that one enjoys on multiple levels is crucial for most people. Regardless of the reason for retraining, many of KI’s students switch to a new line of work through their education here. This is the case for Anna Edsjö, who is in her third term of the occupational therapy program.

The brain's flexibility and ability to cope with loss of neurons or other lesions in the brain is called cognitive reserve. In a fifteen-year follow-up study, researchers at the division of Aging Research Center (ARC), Karolinska Institutet, suggest that lifelong cognitive reserve helps maintain late-life cognitive health by delaying cognitive transition in the preclinical stages of dementia. The results of their findings were recently published in Alzheimers & Dementia.

Welcome to Paulina Werners defense of the thesis ”Exploring allergic and irritant contact dermatitis : biomarkers, mechanisms, and allergen uptake".

The harmful combination of abdominal obesity and reduced muscle strength, also known as sarcopenic obesity, is already present in primary school children. This is shown by a new study among eight-year-olds, conducted at Karolinska Institutet.

Society's preparedness to deal with crises and disasters needs to be constantly developed and adapted to changes in the world around us. As preparedness depends on up-to-date medical expertise, the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare has established a number of knowledge and research centres for crisis preparedness around the country, located at universities, authorities or equivalent with links to clinical activities.

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have identified an interesting potential future therapeutic target in primary headache disorders. They have found increased amounts of a gene associated with cluster headache, MERTK, and its ligand Gal-3, in tissue from cluster headache patients. The study was recently published in The Journal of Headache and Pain.

Lizzy has done a great job in the ISP seminar. She is now officially a PhD student in the group. Well done Lizzy! We are looking forward to working with you. We hope you will embrace the challenges and enjoy the adventure in the next 4 years. Good luck!

Welcome to Jeffrey Casely-Hayfords' defense of the thesis ”Should i stay, or should i go: teachers’ motivation to stay at their workplace” on June 10.

As the first research unit in the Nordic region, the Center for Infectious Medicine at the Department of Medicine, Huddinge (MedH), has acquired the MACSima™, a technology that enables high-plex immunofluorescent imaging and spatial biology. The new technique acquires microscopy data for a multitude of parameters without harming the sample and will empower cutting-edge research.

Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska University Hospital are launching another tripartite collaboration, this time with Elekta. The aim is to join forces in the field of cancer with a focus on radiation therapy and precision medicine.