Dermatology and Venereology research

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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

Researcher	Research area
Mona Ståhle	Psoriasis, Inflammation, Genetics, Wound Healing
Maria Bradley	Atopic eczema - genetics and epidemiology
Liv Eidsmo	Skin immune mechanism in psoriasis
Bernt Lindelöf	Epidemiology of skin tumours
Pernilla Nikamo	Genetics of psoriasis
Klas Nordlind	Neurocutaneous interaction
Lars Norlén	Skin barrier
Andor Pivarcsi	MicroRNA in skin cancer and inflammation
Enikö Pivarcsi Sonkoly	The role of microRNA in skin inflammation
Carl-Fredrik Wahlgren	Atopic eczema, Hereditary angioedema
Ning Xu Landén	MicroRNAs in wound healing