GRANTS. A total of 44 researchers receive research funding as the Swedish Research Council has now announced its decisions in both medicine and health, as well as research competence in primary care. Over 150 million SEK is allocated to various projects. The largest grants go to Maria Åberg and Hanna Hebelka Bolminger, each receiving 7.4 million SEK.
Seven researchers at the beginning of their research careers receive establishment grants, providing them with six million SEK each to develop their research lines and expand their groups.
Dean Agneta Holmäng is very pleased that so many researchers from Sahlgrenska Academy receive establishment grants:
“We are pleased with the new generation! Project grants are at about the same level as last year, and unfortunately, we did not receive any consolidation grants, but we look forward to these as our younger researchers establish themselves”, says Agneta Holmäng.
Effective relief of anxiety
Parallel to the grant decisions in medicine and health, the Swedish Research Council also publishes decisions for research competence in primary care, where several researchers at Sahlgrenska Academy also had their applications approved. Maria Åberg is a professor of general medicine and also works as a specialist physician at Närhälsan Sisjön primary care center 30 percent of her time. She is very pleased with the VR grant of 7,430,362 SEK, which she sees as recognition for primary care research in Gothenburg.
The project will evaluate a new treatment concept in primary care for patients with anxiety disorders, where patient control and participation are the focus. Two evidence-based interventions are compared in a study design called cluster-RCT. Ten healthcare centers in the region will be randomized to let patients choose between the two methodologies, and ten matched healthcare centers will be randomized to only offer care according to standard procedures.
“The treatment aims to reduce the severity of anxiety, healthcare consumption, sick leave, and prevent pain and high blood pressure”, says Maria Åberg:
“If a cost-effective intervention in primary care can alleviate anxiety and contribute to improved physical health and reduced sick leave, it can have a significant positive impact both at the individual level and from a societal perspective. If our research yields positive results, these new treatment options could change guidelines and practices in primary care for the treatment of anxiety disorders.”
Fewer liver biopsies for children
Hanna Hebelka Bolminger, adjunct lecturer in the Department of Radiology, receives 7.4 million SEK. It is the Swedish Research Council’s grant for research time, enabling her to combine clinical service at Sahlgrenska University Hospital with half-time research over the next four years. The aim of the research is to improve the diagnosis of liver disease in children and reduce the need for tissue sampling by evaluating markers in images taken with ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
Chronic liver disease in children is a growing health problem. The prevalence of pediatric fatty liver disease is estimated to be between five and ten percent in the general population globally, and among children with obesity, the prevalence is up to 35 percent.
“To accurately diagnose and treat children with liver disease, it is necessary to characterize the liver in detail. Biopsies are the current reference method, but they are invasive and require anesthesia in children. Therefore, it would be very desirable to develop non-invasive methods to improve diagnosis”, says Hanna Hebelka Bolminger, who is also a senior physician at Queen Silvia Children’s Hospital:
“Every week, my colleagues and I meet children with various liver diseases, which means that the project is well integrated into clinical everyday life. My clinical service is a prerequisite for conducting the current project, and research is a prerequisite for implementing new methods in the clinic in an adequate manner”, says Hanna Hebelka Bolminger.
In the project, ultrasound-based markers are compared with liver biopsy for about 400 children with liver disease, who are also compared with corresponding markers in a large control cohort. The researchers will also investigate whether image-based biomarkers can improve the monitoring of liver disease and treatment effect over time, compared to conventional ultrasound and clinical estimates.
Genetics behind miscarriage
Pol Solé Navais, researcher in obstetrics and gynecology, is one of the seven junior researchers receiving six million SEK each in establishment grants from the Swedish Research Council. His research is about the genetic causes behind miscarriage. Not all fetuses with an abnormal chromosomal number lead to miscarriage, while many fetuses with a normal chromosomal number do.
“My project aims to explain these observations by shifting the focus from large chromosomal abnormalities to genetic variants with small effects that are usually observed in the population. Ultimately, I expect the project to improve molecular diagnostics in miscarriage”, says Pol Solé Navais.
Together with other researchers, he will decipher how the fetal genetic material contributes to miscarriage by integrating registry data from the Nordic countries, genotypes from hundreds of thousands of individuals, and transcriptomics from single cells.
“I see my project as a step towards a better understanding of the genes, signaling pathways, and biological processes crucial for life in the uterus. Personally, I find it exciting to follow how my scientific questions develop and mature in this field, and if any of our findings can be translated into improved clinical practice”, he says.
Person-centered remote care
The number of frail elderly seeking care at emergency departments has increased and now constitutes an estimated 40 percent of patients. Inger Ekman, professor of nursing science, receives 3.6 million SEK for a project that aims to improve care through a person-centered intervention for this group. The project involves a variety of researchers and patient co-researchers. By establishing collaboration between the elderly individual, their personal health team, and both informal and formal care providers, they hope to delay the negative consequences of frailty.
A key component of this intervention is an innovative digital platform. Special attention has been paid to the inclusion of individuals who might otherwise risk digital exclusion. The intervention is expected to lead to a reduction in hospital admissions for frail elderly individuals. Preliminary analyses also indicate that the method has the potential to be cost-effective compared to conventional care.
“The funding from the Swedish Research Council is of great importance because it confirms that the project has been judged to have good scientific quality”, says Inger Ekman.
She believes that the project marks an important step towards optimal care for the elderly population in our country. With this newly granted funding, we look forward to witnessing the positive changes and improvements that this initiative can bring.
Alzheimer’s screening
Michael Schöll, professor of molecular medicine specializing in neuroimaging, received both project funding in medicine and health and funding in the call for research competence in primary care for the same extensive project on screening for Alzheimer’s disease. However, he will need to choose one of these two grants.
The study is a large collaboration between Närhälsan in the Västra Götaland Region, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, the University of Gothenburg, and several industrial partners who together are pioneering work in digitization and infrastructure for large-scale clinical research projects.
“We will test a healthcare scenario for screening for Alzheimer’s disease where we also examine the value of new biomarker modalities such as digital cognitive tests performed at home and the new blood-based biomarkers”, says Michael Schöll, who is very pleased with the grants from the Swedish Research Council:
“Partly because it really enables our most ambitious study to date, and partly because it shows that the Swedish Research Council supports research at the intersection called clinical implementation research.”
BY: ELIN LINDSTRÖM & LOVISA AIJMER
THE WHOLE LIST – THEY RECEIVED GRANTS FROM THE SWEDISH RESEARCH COUNCIL
Note that the list may contain inaccuracies – official information from the Swedish Research Council!
Maryam Ardalan (etableringsbidrag)
Primära cilier avslöjar nya biomarkörer för autism hos förtidigt födda barn
6 000 000 kronor
George Birchenough
Analys av bägarceller och slemreglerande dynamik i cervix för att förhindra för tidig födsel
4 800 000 kronor
Jan Borén
Triglyceridrika lipoproteiner och kardiovaskulär sjukdom
2 900 000 kronor
Ewa-Lena Bratt
Faktorer av betydelse för kontinuerlig uppföljning av unga med kroniska sjukdomar
2 400 000 kronor
Läs mer om projektet på Institutionen för vårdvetenskap och hälsas webb.
Emma Börgeson
En precisionsmedicinsk metod för användning av lipoxiner som läkemedel för att minska inflammation och obesitas-relaterade sjukdomar
4 800 000 kronor
Andrei Chagin
Ny teknik leder till dramatisk minskning av antalet genmanipulerade möss
2 166 667 kronor
Rossella Crescitelli (etableringsbidrag)
Hur reglerar exosomer mikromiljön i cancer
6 000 000 kronor
Inger Ekman
Välbefinnande med och för äldre sköra personer genom personcentrerat digitalt stöd (VOPe)
3 600 000 kronor
Artin Entezarjou
ChatGPT och AI i primärvården: utforskning av uppfattningar och attityder bland kliniker och patienter för att förbättra kommunikation, patientinvolvering och vårdkvalitet
2 000 000 kronor (forskningskompetens primärvården)
Kristina Eriksson
IKKepsilons roll vid herpesvirusorsakad meningit
2 400 000 kronor
Helena Filipsson Nyström
Påverkan av Graves sjukdom i hjärnan: från varför till hur
2 400 000 kronor
Henrik Hagberg
Perinatal hjärnskada
3 600 000 kronor
Dominique Hange
Den nya internetgenerationen: IKBT för äldre med mild till måttlig depression – en pragmatisk randomiserad kontrollerad studie i primärvården
3 000 000 kronor (forskningskompetens primärvården)
Jörg Hanrieder
AMYCHRON – Amyloid Chronology för att förstå Aβ Pathogenicitet i Alzheimers sjukdom
4 800 000 kronor
Gunnar C Hansson
Biokemi och funktion hos muciner och relaterade molekyler i lungsjukdomar
5 400 000 kronor
Hanna Hebelka Bolminger (Bidrag till forskningstid)
Förbättrad diagnostik med nya bildbaserade biomarkörer för icke-invasiv karakterisering av lever hos pediatrisk population
7 400 000 kronor
Margareta Hellgren
Kontinuerlig glukosmätning hos patienter med nydebuterad typ 2 diabetes, ett effektivt sätt att nå kontroll på blodsockret eller ett slöseri med pengar?
3 000 000 kronor (forskningskompetens primärvården)
Anetta Härtlova
Hur Parkinson-kinaset LRRK2 reglerar det endo-lysosomala och medfödda immunförsvaret
2 400 000 kronor
Elisabet Jerlhag Holm
Nya läkemedel vid alkoholberoende, med fokus på mag-hjärn-peptider
2 400 000 kronor
Marie Lagerquist
Identifiering av signaleringsmekanismer bakom östrogenets benskyddande effekter med singel-cell analyser
4 800 000 kronor
Max Levin
Immunmekanismer för exceptionell respons på immunterapi vid metastaserat melanom
2 400 000 kronor
Mattias Lorentzon
Betydelsen av tarmfloreproducerade grenade aminosyror för sarkopeni, osteoporos och frakturrisk
4 800 000 kronor
Anna Martner
Translationella studier av NOX2-enzymet och MDSC vid cancer
2 400 000 kronor
Jonas Nilsson
Prekliniska och kliniska studier av cellterapi för patienter med terapiresistenta melanom
4 800 000 kronor
Abhishek Niroula (etableringsbidrag)
Molekylära signaturer bakom sexbias i klonal hematopoies och blodcancer
6 000 000 kronor
Thomas Nyström (inom utlysningen för naturvetenskap och teknik)
Kartläggning av intraorganell kommunikation mellan proteinkvalitetskontroller i mitokondrier, cellkärna, och cytoplasma för att dechiffrera cellulärt åldrande och celldöd
3 900 000 kronor
Michael Olausson
Experimentella och kliniska studier av organtransplantation med organ från donatorer avlidna efter okontrollerat cirkulationsstillestånd
4 800 000 kronor
Ruth Palmer
Utforska ALK nedströms signaleringsaktivitet för en förbättrad målterapi och framtida behandling av neuroblastom
4 800 000 kronor
Stefano Romeo
precisionsmedicin för att behandla fetleversjukdomar
4 800 000 kronor
Patrik Rorsman
Cellulär koppling i langerhanska öar: betydelse vid typ-1 diabetes
4 800 000 kronor
Annika Rosengren
Effekter av tidig fetma och diabetes typ 2 genom vuxenliv och åldrande
4 800 000 kronor
Anna Rudin
Immuncheckpoint molekyler: betydelse vid reumatoid artrit och vid iatrogen inflammatorisk artrit
2 400 000 kronor
Michael Schöll
REAL AD – En realistisk screeningmetod för tidig Alzheimers sjukdom
2 400 000 kronor (medicin & hälsa) eller 5 685 120 kronor (forskningskompetens primärvården)
Han
Karolina Sjöberg Jabbar (etableringsbidrag)
Tarmens slemlager – ett skydd mot bakterier och kardiometabol sjukdom?
6 000 000 kronor
Åsa Sjöling (Naturvetenskapliga fakulteten)
Karakterisering av nya virulensfaktorer involverade i membranstress-respons hos enterotoxigena E. coli
2 400 000 kronor
Pol Sole Navais (etableringsbidrag)
Bortom kromosomavvikelser: kartläggning av genomiska mekanismer vid missfall
6 000 000 kronor
Johan Spetz (etableringsbidrag)
Utnyttjande av brister i celldödssignalvägar för att förutsäga och förbättra immunsvar mot cancer
6 000 000 kronor
Ka-Wei Tang (etableringsbidrag)
Angripa Epstein-Barr virus icke-kodande RNA som upprätthåller cancer signaturer
6 000 000 kronor
Ville Wallenius
Jejunal ketonproduktion fungerar som fett-sensor – ny mekanism i tunntarmen med koppling till glukoskontroll med diabetes i sikte
3 600 000 kronor
Christine Wennerås
Persisterande latent infektion med Neoehrlichia mikurensis kan leda till malign transformation av B-celler och autoimmunitet
2 400 000 kronor
Elisabet Wentz
Anorexia nervosa – två stora utmaningar: primär prevention och förhindra ett kroniskt förlopp
2 400 000 kronor
Ulf Yrlid
Utveckling av terapeutiska motmedel och förbättrade vacciner mot kolera
2 400 000 kronor
Johan Zelano
Individualiserad epilepsibehandling baserad på långtidsrisk för behandlingssvikt och biverkningar
2 400 000 kronor
Maria Åberg
Moving on! Can a tailored treatment in primary care setting reduce symptoms, healthcare consumption, sick leave and prevent pain and hypertension in individuals with anxiety disorders?
7 430 362 kronor (forskningskompetens primärvården)
Lena Öhman
Utveckling av precisionsmedicin för patienter med inflammatorisk tarmsjukdom; Translationella studier av tarmens mikromiljö och värdimmunitet
4 800 000 kronor
