DISTINCTION. Fredrik Bäckhed, a professor at the University of Gothenburg, is among those awarded the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences’ Gold Medal this year for his outstanding microbiological research. He regards the award as recognition of the importance of the entire field and of the work his research team has conducted for many years.
“It is delightful to be named one of the recipients, particularly since the explanatory statement highlights the importance of communicating with the public,” says Bäckhed, who is a professor of molecular medicine at the Institute of Medicine and has a special interest in the role of gut microbiota in metabolism.
Importance of communication
He notes that the team is spending more and more time on research communication, but during the past year lectures and other in-person meetings have declined due to the pandemic. Now Bäckhed and his colleagues are developing a special website with information about the field, which addresses both the public as a whole and health care professionals who want to know more about the relationship between microbiota and various diseases.
“We think it’s important to counter the spread of ‘fake news’ and to tell people who help fund the research what their money provides. Taking the long view, we also hope that our community outreach can spark interest among young people in the natural sciences and research,” says Bäckhed.
Currently, he devotes much of his spare time to working on a popular science book on microbiota to be published next year.
Toward interventions
At the University of Gothenburg, Fredrik Bäckhed heads one of the world’s foremost teams conducting research on gut microbiota and its link to disease and health. After initially focusing on mapping changes in microbiota in various diseases, researchers in the field are now increasingly shifting towards searching for ways to use the knowledge of gut bacteria to treat or prevent disease. In Bäckhed’s case, much of the focus is on type 2 diabetes. In a study published in the journal Cell Metabolism, the team described findings indicating that gut microbiota undergo early changes in the development of type 2 diabetes, which paved the way for future treatments. The research has previously led to establishment of two companies, and the research team is now working on a prototype for a new type of probiotics, among other things. https://www.gu.se/en/news/gut-microbiota-provide-clues-for-treating-diabetes
The full explanatory statement:
“Professor Fredrik Bäckhed is awarded the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences’ Gold Medal for his outstanding microbiological research on the relationship between the bacterial flora of the intestine and human metabolism and health, combined with developing production technologies to produce the gut bacteria and methods for new treatments, and for actively conveying the knowledge to the public.”
The 2020 Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences’ Gold Medalists are honored for outstanding achievements within engineering, economics, business and industry, and society. Professor Fredrik Bäckhed shares the honor with the other recipients: Honorary Doctor Marcus Wallenberg, Civil Engineer Åsa Bergman and Professor Kristina Edström.
This year, the Academy’s Ceremonial Meeting will be held online, and the 2020 medalists will receive their medals at next year’s meeting.
You can view the online Ceremonial Meeting here: https://www.iva.se/hs2020
TEXT: ELIN LINDSTRÖM
