News archive

Ozempic and other GLP1 agonists are associated with a reduced risk of developing cirrhosis and liver cancer in people with type 2 diabetes and chronic liver disease, according to a nationwide study from Karolinska Institutet published in the journal Gut.

Hannes Hagström at the Gastroenterology and Rheumatology Unit, Department of Medicine, Huddinge, receives the Rising Star Award 2024, from the United European Gastroenterology (UEG).

Mattias Lissing from the Gastroenterology and Rheumatology Unit, at the Department of Medicine, Huddinge (MedH) is defending his thesis: "Liver transplantation, cancer risk and comorbidity in acute porphyria" on 20 October 2023. Main supervisor is Staffan Wahlin (MedH).

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.

Reflux disease manifests as acid regurgitation and heartburn and is a known risk factor for oesophageal cancer. However, a new study published in The BMJ by researchers at Karolinska Institutet now reports that the majority of patients do not have a higher risk of cancer. A large-scale study from three Nordic countries shows that the cancer risk is only elevated in patients whom gastroscopy reveals to have changes in the oesophageal mucosa.

Cholesterol-lowering statins might protect patients with ulcerative colitis from developing and dying from colorectal cancer. Statin treatment was also associated with a lower risk of death regardless of cause in patients with ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease. This is according to a study by researchers at Karolinska Institutet published in eClinicalMedicine.

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have developed a molecular method able to detect whether or not bacteria respond to antibiotics within minutes. The findings are presented in the journal Nature Microbiology and the researchers now hope to develop a simple test for doctors to use.

Aristeidis Grigoriadis, from the Gastroenterology and Rheumatology Unit at the Department of Medicine, Huddinge (MedH) will defend his thesis "Magnetic resonance imaging as a tool for diagnosis, evaluation and prognosis in patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis" on February 17, 2023. Main Supervisor is Annika Bergquist (MedH).

B cells are critical to the proper functioning of the immune system. However, researchers at Karolinska Institutet have shown that they can sometimes do more harm than good, as their numbers greatly increase after bowel damage, preventing the tissue from healing. The results, which are presented in the journal Immunity, can be of significance to the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease.

A randomized study, known by the acronym NordICC – Northern - European Initiative on Colorectal Cancer - shows colonoscopy screening reduces the risk of colorectal cancer by 18 percent. The reduction is much smaller than experts previously assumed. The NordICC study is now published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).

During the Annual pediatric IBD meeting in Örebro on September 29-30, Jonas F Ludvigsson received this year’s honorary award "the Gut Feeling" SPGHN, the Swedish Association for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, amidst the cheers of the audience. The prize is awarded after voting by pediatricians in Sweden.

In a new study published in the journal Hepatology, a research group at Karolinska Institutet shows that people with fatty liver disease are expected to live almost three years shorter than the general population.

Emil Pieniowski at the research group Colorectal Surgery, Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery, will defend his thesis "Aspects of low anterior resection syndrome : prevalence, risk factors and treatment" on April 22, 2022. Main Supervisor is Mirna Abraham Nordling.

A research group at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden has analysed how certain immune cells known as innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) develop into mature cells that play a part in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The findings could pave the way for more effective treatments against IBD, a disease that causes considerable suffering and that is linked to an increased risk of colorectal cancer. The results are published today in the journal Science Immunology.

Using a technique called spatial transcriptomics, researchers at Karolinska Institutet have analysed the gene expression in the mouse colon and created a map showing where in the tissue individual genes are expressed. When they superimposed previously known human transcription data onto the map, the researchers gained new insights into inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The study is published in the journal Nature Communications.

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have analysed and described in detail the immune cells residing in the human bile duct. The findings may pave the way for new treatment strategies against disorders of the bile duct, which are often linked to immunological processes. The study is published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have succeeded in mapping the neuron types comprising the enteric nervous system in the intestine of mice. The study, which is published today in the scientific journal Nature Neuroscience, also describes how the different neurons form during fetal development, a process that follows different principles to brain neurons.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, NAFLD, affects nearly one in four adults in Europe and the U.S. Earlier research has demonstrated an increased risk of death in patients with NAFLD and advanced fibrosis or cirrhosis. Now, researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and Massachusetts General Hospital in the U.S. show that mortality increases with disease severity, but even mild fatty liver disease is linked to higher mortality. The findings have been published in the scientific journal Gut.

Antibiotics use, particularly antibiotics with greater spectrum of microbial coverage, may be associated with an increased risk of new-onset inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and its subtypes ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. That is according to a study by researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and Harvard Medical School in the U.S., published in the journal The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology. The association remained when patients were compared with their siblings.

In a population-based cohort study from Sweden and Denmark of patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) during 1969-2017 and matched reference individuals from the general population, Ola Olén, Jonas F Ludvigsson and colleagues found that IBD patients had an increased risk of small bowel cancer.

Millions of people around the world use acid suppressants called proton pump inhibitors for conditions like heartburn, gastritis and stomach ulcers. Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden now report how the long-term use of these drugs could increase the risk of developing dementia. Their results are published in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia.

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have identified a molecular pathway that when silenced could restore the normal function of immune cells in people with fatty liver disease. The findings could lead to new strategies for treating the condition, which is a major health risk for people with obesity. The study is published in the scientific journal Science Translational Medicine.

Myriam Aouadi and Camilla Svensson have been awarded the European Research Council’s Consolidator grant 2019 for research on the role of macrophages in liver disease and how autoantibodies contribute to chronic pain, respectively.

While blood samples can reliably identify people with a low risk of developing severe liver disease, better methods are needed in primary care for identifying people in most need of care. These are some of the conclusions of a large registry-based study by researchers at Karolinska Institutet published in the esteemed journal Gastroenterology.

In a new register-based study, Swedish and Danish researchers show that common drugs for Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), so called TNF-α inhibitors, are not linked to increased risk of serious infections in children. Previous studies have shown an increased risk in corresponding adult patients. The results are published in The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology.