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Unit for Metabolism and the Patient Research Centre

Research at the unit focuses on studying lipid metabolism and developing new treatments for common public health diseases such as overweight/obesity, diabetes, and lipid disorders. The department collaborates locally, nationally, and internationally with groups in metabolic research and has a world-leading role in studies of human adipose tissue.

The unit is divided into a wet lab section called the “Lipid Laboratory” in the , KI Campus Flemingsberg and a clinical research section called the “Patient Research Centre,” whose facilities are integrated with the Endocrinology Clinic at Karolinska University Hospital in Huddinge.

The Patient Research Centre serves as a core facility within the Strategic Research Program in Diabetes.

For more information about the research at the Department of Endocrinology, Lipid Laboratory, and Patient Research Centre, refer to the research groups’ pages.

Contacts:

• Mikael Rydén, Professor, Senior Physician, Head of CeRM
• Niklas Mejhert, Associate Professor, Senior Researcher
• Alastair Kerr, MD, Researcher

Cardiometabolic Unit CME/CMU

The Cardiometabolic Unit (CMU) is a research constellation conducting innovative research and education in the cardiometabolic field. The unit is affiliated with the Department of Medicine, Huddinge, and the Department of Laboratory Medicine at ̽����ѡ and is closely integrated with specialized health care.

Read more about the Cardio Metabolic Unit.

Contact:

• Paolo Parini, Professor, Senior Physician, Unit Head

Unit for Diabetes Complications

Professor Stefano Romeo was recently recruited from the Sahlgrenska Academy and leads this unit, which focuses on diabetes complications such as fatty liver and heart failure. The research has a clear genetic emphasis, and Professor Romeo has, among other achievements, identified several genetic variations associated with an increased risk of fatty liver.

Contact:

• Stefano Romeo, Professor, Senior Physician

Unit for Reproduction

This unit is led by Professor Luca Jovine and studies the molecular basis of the interaction between egg and sperm during fertilization. This research is directly relevant for understanding human infertility and identifying potential new methods for non-hormonal contraception.

Parallel investigations examine a set of proteins similar to those found in the egg’s outer layer but with entirely different biological functions. This work has implications for treating urinary tract infections—the most common bacterial infection in humans—as well as kidney and vascular diseases.

Contact:

• Luca Jovine, Professor, Unit Head

ANOVA

ANOVA is an academic specialist center for clinical evaluation and treatment based on scientific principles in the fields of andrology, sexual medicine, and trans medicine. The center belongs to Karolinska University Hospital but also conducts research in a variety of areas in collaboration with, among others, the Department of Medicine, Huddinge, at ̽����ѡ.

Contacts:

• Katarina Görts Öberg, MD, Psychologist, Unit Head
• Mats Holmberg, MD, Senior Physician

Unit for Molecular Medicine

This unit aims to apply basic biochemistry to solve ̽����ѡ and biological problems and, in the long term, to develop new treatments for human diseases.

Examples of the unit’s work include:

• Developing a fully synthetic lung surfactant preparation for treating respiratory insufficiency in premature infants, taken to successful clinical phase II trials in collaboration with a pharmaceutical company.
• Pioneering molecular mechanistic studies of a molecular chaperone, recently shown to have potent activity in mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease, with hopes of transitioning to human studies in the coming years.
• Discovering how spider silk proteins form fibers, leading to the production of recombinant miniature spider silk proteins and the spinning of artificial silk.

Much of this research has been carried out in close, long-standing, and productive collaborations with groups at KI and other universities and companies.

Contacts:

• Jan Johansson, Professor, Unit Head
• Axel Abelein, Docent, Assistant Professor
• Anna Rising, Senior researcher