Dermatology and Venereology research
The skin and the mucous membranes constitute our main protective interface against the environment and are highly dynamic organs with critical biological functions. Skin diseases are prevalent and include a wide range of disorders, some of which are among the most common diseases in our society such as eczema, psoriasis and skin cancer.
Dermatological research is facing similar challenges as other areas in biomedicine. While the genetic basis for several rare diseases have been unravelled during recent years, we still struggle to comprehend basic biology and pathology of the common diseases. Understanding underlying mechanisms will facilitate the development of more specific therapies and at best even cure, which is the ultimate goal of research. In recent years, we have experienced a promising development towards more powerful and targeted treatments in dermatology, a result of successful basic and clinical research in combination.
Dermatological research thrives from multidisciplinary networking and interactions; we study all ages from infants to the elderly and fundamental processes like inflammation and cancer. As our protective shield, skin will respond to all insults from the environment, be it microbial or toxic. We work with an organ that can be easily inspected and accessed. and skin is in fact ideal for developing experimental models to study basic biology.
Venereology research is a core area ranging from clinical epidemiology to preclinical work on disease mechanisms and pathology. The epidemiology of venereal diseases is dynamic with profund implications in clinical medicine and this is an area with high potential for successful prevention with the development of effective vaccines.
At the Karolinska Institutet, dermatology and venereology holds a solid position both in research and education. Large genetic and epidemiologic projects have been formed around chronic inflammatory skin diseases, skin cancer is studied in collaboration with international cancer networks and occupational and environmental dermatology is progressive.
Projects in Dermatology and Venereology
Read more about Projects in Dermatology and Venereology in this summary
Researchers and Research areas
ResearcherResearch area
Mona StåhlePsoriasis, Inflammation, Genetics, Wound Healing
Maria BradleyAtopic eczema - genetics and epidemiology
Bernt LindelöfEpidemiology of skin tumours
Pernilla NikamoGenetics of psoriasis
Klas NordlindNeurocutaneous interaction
Lars NorlénSkin barrier
Andor PivarcsiMicroRNA in skin cancer and inflammation
Enikö Pivarcsi SonkolyThe role of microRNA in skin inflammation
Carl-Fredrik WahlgrenAtopic eczema, Hereditary angioedema
Ning Xu LandénMicroRNAs in wound healing
Research Groups
Research Group Enikö Sonkoly
PhD students
Stanley Sing-Hoi Cheuk
Kristina Dahlman Ghozlan
Emma Johansson
Maria Karlsson
Britta Krynitz
Josefin Lysell
Louise Lönndahl
Elisa Martini
Florian Meisgen
Axel Svedbom