People | Nils-Göran Larsson Group

Read more about the Nils-Göran Larsson group and its staff, as well as the PI's background.

About Nils-Göran Larsson

My interest in mitochondrial biology started in 1987 when I began my PhD studies of pathogenic mtDNA mutations causing mitochondrial disease in humans. In the early 1990s, it became evident to me that most key scientific issues in the mitochondrial field were poorly understood and that further progress would require basic scientific experimental approaches. I therefore decided to get proper training in biochemistry and mouse genetics and went to Stanford University as a HHMI Physician Postdoctoral Fellow in 1994.

When I returned to Sweden in 1997, I started my own research group at Karolinska Institutet and developed a series of powerful mouse models to study the in vivo role of mtDNA expression in normal physiology and disease pathophysiology. I also became interested in the role of mitochondrial dysfunction in ageing and in 2004 my group reported ground-breaking experimental evidence that increased mtDNA mutation levels have the capacity to induce premature ageing in the mouse.

In 2008, I was recruited as one of the founding Directors to the new Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing in Cologne, Germany, which provided an excellent infrastructure for my continued studies on the role of mitochondrial dysfunction in ageing. Between 2008 and 2015, I remained affiliated to KI and kept a small research group here. In 2016, I was recruited back to have KI as my main working place and became the head of the Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics. Since 2019, I have been an external member of the Max Planck Society.

Nils-Göran Larsson

Professor/senior physician

Group members

Want to become part of our research group?

Postdoc candidates interested in our research are welcome to contact Nils-Göran directly.

Alumni

In total, 16 of my former associates (9 women and 7 men) have independent scientist positions ranging from assistant to full professor:

Alumni
Name Current position
Caroline Graff Professor, Genetic Dementia Research, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
Chan Bae Park Associate Professor, Medical Sciences, Ajou University, Seoul, Korea
Maria Falkenberg Professor, Medical Chemistry and Cell Biology, Göteborg University, Sweden
Jose P. Silva Assistant Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Miami, USA
Aleksandra Trifunovic Professor (Full professor, German W3 level), Genetics, Cologne University, Germany
Anna Wredenberg Assistant Professor and Clinical Consultant, Metabolic Diseases, Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
Fredrik Sterky Assistant Professor, Laboratory Medicine, Göteborg University, Sweden
James B. Stewart Associate Professor (Independent research group leader, German W2 level), Mitochondrial Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing, Cologne, Germany
Marie Lagouge Researcher Level 2 at the CNRS (National Center for Scientific Research), Paris, France
Arnaud Mourier Researcher Level 1 at the CNRS (National Center for Scientific Research), Bordeaux, France
Metodi Metodiev Researcher Level 1 at the INSERM (French Institute of Health and Medical Research), Paris, France
Benedetta Ruzzenente Associate Professor, Université Paris Descartes - Paris 5, Paris, France
Inge Kühl Researcher Level 2 at the CNRS (National Center for Scientific Research), Paris, France
Min Jiang Assist Professor, West Lake Institute, China
Nina Bonekamp Research Group Leader, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
Elisa Motori Junior Group Leader, CECAD, Cologne Univ, Cologne, Germany
SB
Content reviewer:
Sara Lidman
30-08-2023