GRANTS. Marcela Pekna and Ulf Smith both gained approval for their application to the Torsten Söderberg Foundation. Marcela Pekna received SEK 3 million for her research on a new treatment strategy for brain damage due to birth asphyxia and stroke, and Ulf Smith received just over SEK 2 million for his project on new markers and mechanisms in Type 2 diabetes.
The Torsten Söderberg Foundation promotes scientific research in primarily economy, medicine and jurisprudence. Over the course of the year, the Torsten Söderberg Foundation gave just over SEK 10 million to different research projects at the University of Gothenburg, and half of these funds are thus going to two projects at the Sahlgrenska Academy.
Marcela Pekna and her group are working in the sector of clinical neuroscience, and are investigating the role of the brain’s complement system in repairing itself following damage caused by lack of oxygen, either due to a stroke or events during birth.
“The complement system is part of our immune response that protects us against dangerous bacteria. Our research group was the first in the world to show that the complement system also has another function in the central nervous system, namely that it stimulates the creation of new nerve cells, both in a healthy brain and following a stroke,” says Marcela Pekna, who points out that the grant from the Torsten Söderberg Foundation is of strong significance for the group’s opportunities to continue its research.
Molecules stimulate brain plasticity
One of the molecules released when the complement system is activated is known as C3a. Marcela Pekna’s research group has previously shown that newborn mice that had this molecule injected into their brains one hour after birth asphyxia had better learning abilities than mice that had been given a placebo.
“We were recently able to show that C3a stimulates the creation of new nerve fibers and links between nerve cells following a stroke, and that mice that were given C3a nasal drops recovered faster following a stroke than mice given a placebo,” says Marcela Pekna, whose research could lead to a treatment given several days after a stroke has occurred.
“Even if C3a is given an entire week after a stroke, we still see positive effects, and thereby the potential for almost all stroke patients to benefit from this treatment, particularly when combined with rehabilitation.”
As C3a is a large molecule that is expensive to produce, the research group will now develop smaller molecules with the same properties as C3a, and investigate whether these have the same positive effects on recovery after stroke and other brain damage. The group has several key research collaborations, both locally in Gothenburg and also with groups in the USA, Australia and New Zealand.
Potential new treatment for Type 2 diabetes
Ulf Smith at the University of Gothenburg’s Institute of Medicine is also happy and grateful for the grant from the Torsten Söderberg Foundation.
“The grant is confirmation that our group is doing prominent and competitive research. We will carry out diabetes research studies at the Lundberg laboratory, where we have the skills required for the research,” he says and continues:
“We will further develop our research results against new potential treatment for Type 2 diabetes and its complications.”
Ulf Smith and his colleagues have identified mannose in the blood as a new and powerful marker for the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, a result which was published in Cell Metabolism last year.
“It’s not known whether mannose is just a new biomarker or is of pathogenetic significance, but our studies will indicate this at a later date. We are planning to map this and begin a clinical study with the administration of mannose,” says Ulf Smith.
The research group has also identified a protein released by adipose tissue and which has shown to have very interesting effects with close links to insulin resistance, inflammation and Type 2 diabetes. They will now clarify its molecular mechanisms and how we can inhibit the protein’s negative effects.
Ulf Smith is senior professor, and has a longer appointment as research head at the Lungberg laboratory for diabetes research, within the Department of Molecular and Clinical Medicine at the Institute of Medicine. He has several other research grants and comprehensive international collaborations. He coordinates a number of projects including one financed by IMI, a joint initiative by the EU and the organization combining the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) and is also a member of the European Commission Scientific Panel for Health which works to create research strategies within Horizon 2020 and the future Framework program.
TEXT: ELIN LINDSTRÖM CLAESSEN
