Department of Neuroscience
The Department of Neuroscience conducts broad research on the brain and nervous system, integrating studies from cellular mechanisms to cognition and behaviour to better understand neurological and psychiatric conditions. Alongside its research, the department plays a key role in undergraduate teaching and doctoral education in neuroscience.
Photo: Erik FlygNew recruitment of Assistant Professor at NEURO
The Department of Neuroscience at Karolinska Institutet offers an exceptional environment for an ambitious early-career scientist to launch an independent research programme. Our department span molecular, genetic, systems, and cognitive neuroscience, providing rich opportunities for collaboration across levels of biological organisation and across species, from molecules to behaviour in animal models and humans.
You will join a vibrant international community of leading neuroscientists, with access to state-of-the-art core facilities, strong PhD and postdoctoral programmes, and a culture of scientific rigour and openness.
Photo: Liza SimonssonInterested in doctoral education at NEURO?
Find out how to become a doctoral student at the Department of Neuroscience, routines for admission of doctoral students and information for current PhD students. We provide a dynamic research environment for national and international PhD students.
Photo: Sweetpanda/flickrBody donations
Body donations are an invaluable resource for medical education and development. Most people in Sweden who wish to donate their bodies can do so and thereby benefit medical education and science.
Photo: Liza SimonssonWork with us
Find all available positions at our department!
Interviews and portraits
Will migraine ever be cured?
Anna Sundholm answers a listener's question in episode #176 of KI's podcast Medicinvetarna (in Swedish).
New study brings hope to patients with chronic pain
Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have developed a new comprehensive mapping of genetic activity for understanding the causes of chronic pain. The study, published in Nature Communications, opens way to more efficient non-addictive treatment for chronic pain and potentially headache disorders.
Exploring the mechanisms of sensory perception
It is through our sensory perception that we experience our environment and bodily sensations. François Lallemend is studying the mechanisms underlying these perceptions in the hope of finding new treatments for sensory impairment. Meet one of the new professors of Karolinska Institutet who will participate in this year's installation ceremony at Aula Medica on 3 October.
Can you stop a bleed?
Listen to the interview with Mattias Günther in episode #140 of Medicinvetarna (in Swedish) and learn how to reduce deaths from severe bleeding - and how best to protect yourself.
Dongan Wang has been appointed Foreign Adjunct Professor
Dongan Wang, Professor at Department of Biomedical Engineering of City University Hong Kong, has been appointed Foreign Adjunct Professor at Department of Neuroscience at KI during 2024-2026. His research focuses on biomaterials, tissue engineering, regenerative medicine and molecular pharmaceutics. He has a special interest in functional biomaterials for tissue engineering and therapeutic cell delivery; nucleic acid delivery for therapeutic engineering; and engineered biomimetic tissue platforms for in vitro drug evaluation.
Studying neuronal activity in real-time
The prefrontal cortex is the centre for advanced cerebral function – it is here our impressions of the world are formed, plans forged and decisions made. By studying the real-time activity of neurons, Marie Carlén maps the functions of the prefrontal cortex.
What can we learn from the Neanderthals?
“From Neanderthals to pandemics”, a lecture series in collaboration with UR Samtiden. In one of the episodes, Hugo Zeberg explains which risk factors may have an impact on why some people get seriously ill with COVID-19. All lectures are in Swedish and available at UR Play.
Curious about intelligence
Torkel Klingberg is a professor of neurology at the Karolinska Institutet and is interested in how our various circumstances – our genes, socioeconomic circumstances and length of education – can affect how our cognitive abilities develop.
Why do we get headaches?
Many of us get headaches from time to time, without it causing too much trouble. But for those who suffer from migraines, or worse from cluster headaches, it may imply a severe disability. Andrea Carmine Belin’s research focuses on the genetics behind cluster headache, a condition sometimes referred to as “suicide headache”.
She wants to decode the brain
Sherlock Holmes was an idol when she was a child and her mother suggested the research profession early on. But it was not a straight path to science for Marie Carlén. Today she leads advanced studies on the part of the brain that shapes us as individuals.
Björn Meister awarded the Pedagogical Prize 2022
Björn Meister at the Department of Neuroscience is awarded the 2022 prize for his long-standing commitment to teaching at several of Karolinska Institutet's educational programmes.
Do you carry neandertal genes?
Hugo Zeberg's research focuses on different gene variants, inherited from the Neanderthal, and how they affect fertility and the risk of being infected by various diseases. Listen to episode #67 of Medicinvetarna to find out more (in Swedish).
He also answers the question whether humans have developed genetically at all since the Stone Age, in episode #76.