CONSTRUCTION INFORMATION. Akademiliv provides information on the construction of Natrium on Medicinareberget for the period weeks 51-02 (December 15 – January 15). The current information about constructions on Medicinareberget is distributed with special mailings and in Akademiliv every four weeks. As far as the information mailings are planned, you will receive these mailings with information January 18, February 15, March 15, April 12, May 10, June 7 and August 16.…
Digital PhD day on crisis and research
DOCTORAL STUDENTS. This year’s PhD Day concerned how a global crisis affects health and research. During the lunch break, doctoral students had an opportunity to share their experiences of the pandemic with Vice Dean Martin Lagging, who is responsible for PhD studies at Sahlgrenska Academy. PhD Day had been scheduled for this spring but had to be postponed due to the pandemic. Hosts for the completely online event were Salma…
No mortality increase with paclitaxel-coated balloons and stents in peripheral arterial disease
NEW STUDY. An interim analysis from the Swedish Drug-Elution Trial in Peripheral Arterial Disease (SWEDEPAD) has now been presented. It shows that, for patients with lower limb occlusive arterial disease, paclitaxel-coated balloons and stents do not bring about the rise in mortality previously reported. The study, led by the University of Gothenburg and published in The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), is expected to resonate internationally. Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is common, especially in older people, and causes poor blood…
Henrik Sjövall: Farewell for now – professional development in the time of the Coronavirus
COLUMN. The pandemic has brought about a major digital transformation in teaching. This has even had an impact on how we run the supplementary program for physicians with a medical degree from outside of the EU. In this column, Henrik Sjövall details his experiences of the measures put in place due to COVID-19. Regular readers of Akademiliv may recall that I have been working on the supplementary program for physicians…
More support for induction at 41 weeks’ pregnancy, especially for first time mothers
NEW STUDY. There is growing evidence that pregnant women who go beyond term, especially first time mothers and their infants, will benefit from induction of labour at 41 weeks, instead of expectant management with subsequent induction of labour at 42 weeks if labour will not start spontaneously. This is clearer now that researchers from Sweden and the Netherlands have appraised results from three previous investigations. The present study, an individual…
Thank you and farewell, from Silvana Naredi
GREETING. During her six-year tenure as vice dean for education, Silvana Naredi has both met and worked with many different colleagues. She wants to extend her thanks to all of you, as she is stepping down from this position. To all the lecturers, administrators, study counsellors, accountants, public relations officers; to all who have been on the committee on education, the budget group, the steering committee for KTC, the committee…
Pregnant women feel more vulnerable during the coronavirus pandemic
NEW STUDY. Pregnant women, and in many cases also new parents, think more about the coronavirus and feel more affected and worried about it than other groups. This is shown by research results from the University of Gothenburg, which have now been presented in both a report by the SOM Institute and in a scholarly article. The results come from the Swedish Pregnancy Panel (PregDem) study and from the SOM…
More than 300 participants at the First National Junior Faculty conference
JUNIOR RESEARCHERS. This November, the National Junior Faculty (NJF) held its first nationwide digital conference. The aim was to identify barriers for young researchers early in their academic careers and to start conversations about possible solutions and improvements. “This conference gave us the opportunity to raise issues that are important to junior researchers like ourselves. It also provided insight into what reality really looks like and the opportunity to work…
Carmen Carciulo awarded starting grant for her osteoarthritis research
YOUNG RESEARCHER. The Swedish Research Council awarded starting grants in medicine and health to eight young researchers from the University of Gothenburg, giving them SEK 6 million each in research funding. The Institute of Medicine took the opportunity to ask one a few questions: postdoc Carmen Carciulo, whose research examines why women develop osteoarthritis more often than men. Hi, Carmen, congratulations on your starting grant from the Swedish Research Council.…
A break in the trend: COPD declines in Sweden
Sweden has seen a sharp decline in the number of people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Severe cases have reduced by more than half in 15 years, according to a large new study. The primary explanation is that fewer people smoke. COPD is a major global health problem and is estimated to cause approximately 3,000 premature deaths annually in Sweden alone. “It’s fantastic news that we now have evidence…
Short report from the General Academy Meeting
FACULTY DIALOGUE. On November 26, the autumn’s general academy meeting was held, focusing on construction issues and the pandemic. The meeting was given completely digitally and a film was available here in Akademiliv until 9 December. This autumn’s general academy meeting for staff at Sahlgrenska Academy took place on November 26. The meeting was opened by Dean Agneta Holmäng who welcomed everyone, followed by Pro Dean Henrik Hagberg who gave…
Nine GU-researchers listed among the world’s most highly cited – Johan Bengtsson-Palme newcomer
DISTINCTION. The seven researchers at the University of Gothenburg, who were ranked among the top one percent of most highly cited researchers last year, have maintained their prestigious position in this year’s ranking: Kaj Blennow, Fredrik Bäckhed, Joakim Larsson, Henrik Nilsson, Karl Swedberg, Valentina Tremaroli, and Henrik Zetterberg. This year Johan Bengtsson-Palm joins the list in the Cross-Field category. Clarivate Analytics, the analytics firm that owns the Web of Science,…
Specific bacterium in the gut linked to irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
NEW STUDY. Researchers at the University of Gothenburg have detected a connection between Brachyspira, a genus of bacteria in the intestines, and IBS — especially the form that causes diarrhea. Although the discovery needs confirmation in larger studies, there is hope that it might lead to new remedies for many people with irritable bowel syndrome. The pathogenic bacterial genus, Brachyspira, is not usually present in human gut flora. A new…
Global Burden of Disease: Improvements needed in regional data from Sweden
NEW STUDY. Researchers at Sahlgrenska Academy continue to participate in the Global Burden of Disease project, which maps the development of health in the world. This year’s report contains several positive pieces of news but also points to other areas that have fallen behind. And for Sweden, the researchers highlight the need for better regional data. In October, the new issue of Global Burden of Disease 2019 was published in…
New decision by the Vice-chancellor: Stricter restrictions for being on campus
VICE-CHANCELLOR DECISION. In line with the Government’s decision to lower the limit for general meetings to eight people, the Vice-chancellor has today revised the autumn semester’s policy decision. This means that employees’ and students’ presence on university’s premises must be very restrictive. The main rule is continued distant working and digital teaching. “Many of us are now worried about the increased spread of infection and are wondering what more we…
Research grants from the Swedish Research Council in medicine and health total SEK 150 million
THE SWEDISH RESEARCH COUNCIL’S MAJOR CALL FOR PROPOSALS. Researchers at the University of Gothenburg will receive a total of SEK 150 million from the Swedish Research Council in the 2020 call for medicine and health research proposals. Eight young researchers are receiving starting grants, and 30 researchers are receiving project grants. In total, just over 15 percent of the available funds in the medicine and health call go to researchers…
A total of almost SEK 70 million from the Swedish Cancer Society
GRANTS. Twenty-seven researchers at the University of Gothenburg have together received just over SEK 68 million for various research projects from the Swedish Cancer Society. Claes Gustafsson, a professor at the Institute of Biomedicine, has received SEK 6 million over three years for his project, where he hopes to create a solid biochemical understanding of how the genome is expressed in mitochondria, the part in the cell that produces the…
The gut microbiota forms a molecule that can contribute to diabetes progression
NEW STUDY. It is the bacterial changes in the gut that increase the levels of imidazole propionate, the molecule that makes the body’s cells resistant to insulin in type 2 diabetes. This result emerges from a European study, that confirm previous studies from the University of Gothenburg. In previous research led by Fredrik Bäckhed, Professor of molecular medicine at the University of Gothenburg, demonstrated that diabetes can be linked to…
Good long-term effects of continuous glucose monitoring
NEW STUDY. New data on continuous glucose monitoring for people with type 1 diabetes, over a significantly longer period than before, are now available. A University of Gothenburg study shows that using the CGM tool, with its continuous monitoring of blood sugar (glucose) levels, has favorable effects over several years. The technology of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) is superseding that of the classic portable blood glucose meters, which require a…
Construction information Medicinareberget: The demolition work in Medicinarelängan is picking up speed again
CONSTRUCTION INFORMATION. Akademiliv provides information on the construction of Natrium on Medicinareberget for the period weeks 47-50 ( November 16 – December 11). The current information about constructions on Medicinareberget is distributed with special mailings and in Akademiliv every four weeks. The semester’s last construction information will come on Monday 14 December. In regards of covid-19, there is currently no impact on the progress of the projects, but developments can…