News Signal Transduction

Eye implant may be used to treat diabetes
18 October, 2023 
Researchers at Karolinska Institutet and KTH Royal Institute of Technology have developed a microscale device for implantation in the eye, which presents new opportunities for cell-based treatment of diabetes and other diseases. The study is published in the journal Advanced Materials.

New strategy to preserve insulin-producing cells in diabetes
30 March, 2022 
High blood glucose is responsible for several complications in type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have identified a new antidiabetic substance that preserves the activity of insulin-producing beta cells and prevents high blood glucose in mice. The study is published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

The Crown Princess visits Rolf Luft Research Center at MMK
22 November, 2021 
On November 9, 2021, the Rolf Luft Research Center for Diabetes and Endocrinology, Karolinska Institutet, was visited by the Crown Princess Victoria. Ongoing research on diabetes was presented to her and a visit to the laboratory was also included. 

Could islet transplantation to the eye help stabilise the glucose levels of people with type 1 diabetes?
28 September, 2021
Led by Professor Per-Olof Berggren at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden, a Phase 1 clinical trial is intended to reveal whether islet transplantation to the anterior eye chamber of people with type 1 diabetes could help restore insulin secretion to maintain glucose levels. The Novo Nordisk Foundation has awarded Karolinska Institutet up to DKK 10 million for the project.

Metabolic derangements caused by a high-fat diet may be possible to eliminate
12 March, 2021
Intake of a high-fat diet leads to an increased risk for obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and fatty liver. A study in mice from Karolinska Institutet shows that it is possible to eliminate the deleterious effects of a high-fat diet by lowering the levels of apolipoprotein CIII (apoCIII), a key regulator of lipid metabolism. The study is published in the journal Science Advances.

Findings about hair-like structures on cells inside vessels may be relevant for diabetes treatment
4 December, 2020 
A new study from Karolinska Institutet and the Helmholtz Diabetes Research Center shows that primary cilia, hair-like protrusions on endothelial cells inside vessels, play an important role in the blood supply and delivery of glucose to the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreatic islets. The findings are published in eLife and may be relevant for transplantation therapies in diabetes, as formation of functional blood vessels is important for the treatment to be successful.

KI receives over SEK 440 million from Swedish Research Council for medical research
9 November, 2020 
The Swedish Research Council has awarded five-year grants totalling SEK 442,680,000 to 110 researchers at Karolinska Institutet. All in all, the SRC is awarding almost SEK 1 billion to 247 researchers in the fields of medicine and health.

Calcium channels play a key role in the development of diabetes
23 December, 2019
Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have deciphered the diabetogenic role of a certain type of calcium channel in insulin-secreting beta cells. The researchers believe that blockade of these channels could be a potential new treatment strategy for diabetes. The study is published in the scientific journal PNAS.

New clues to the link between ALS and type 2 diabetes
9 December, 2019 
Patients with ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) often suffer from type 2 diabetes. This phenomenon has since long remained mechanistically enigmatic. Now, researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have identified a molecular mechanism linking these two diseases. The study is published in the scientific journal PNAS.

New eye monitoring system developed to monitor islet transplantation
26 November, 2019 
A collaboration between Professor Per-Olof Berggren from the group Signal Transduction and researchers in the Republic of Korea has led to the development of a soft, smart contact lens to monitor the intraocular pressure and applied it for noninvasive monitoring in association with the intraocular islet transplantation in diabetes.

Multimillion grant from SSF
5 September, 2019 
Two researchers at Karolinska Institutet, Per-Olof Berggren and Birgitta Henriques-Normark, receive a total of SEK 68 million in grants from the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research, SSF. The Med-X research program is an interdisciplinary initiative in medicine and technical science. The purpose is to provide new solutions for clinical needs.

Novel findings explain indirect regulation of glucose homeostasis
16 August, 2019 
The hormone secreting part of the pancreas, the islets of Langerhans, has a unique cyto-architecture that allows functional interrelationships between the different cell types. Somatostatin is secreted by the delta cell and is an effective inhibitor of the insulin secreting beta cell and the glucagon secreting alpha cell. According to a novel study from Karolinska Institutet, published in the journal Nature Communications, the delta cell can thereby indirectly affect glucose homeostasis.

Transplanted cells reveal early signs of type 1 diabetes
15 May, 2019 
By the time type 1 diabetes is diagnosed, most of the insulin-producing beta cells have already been destroyed. Now, using an innovative transplantation technique, researchers at Karolinska Institutet and University of Miami Miller School of Medicine have been able to intervene to save the beta cells in mice by discovering early signs of the disease. The study is published in Diabetologia, the scientific journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD).

ERC grant for research on insulin-producing cells
28 March, 2019 
The ERC Advanced Grant is one of the most prestigious funding programmes for research in Europe. Per-Olof Berggren, professor of experimental endocrinology at Karolinska Institutet, is now awarded this grant for the second time.

Per-Olof Berggren elected member of the Korean Academy of Science and Technology
31 May, 2018 
Per-Olof Berggren, Professor of Experimental Endocrinology and Research Group Leader of the group Signal Transduction at the Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery has been elected member of the Korean Academy of Science and Technology, KAST.