Ulrika Marklund

My major research interest has always been centered around the development and function of neural cell types. During my PhD, I studied transcriptional determinants of specific neurons including the dopaminergic and serotonergic cells of the brain. I thereafter transitioned my research focus to the “Brain in the gut” – the Enteric Nervous System, during a postdoc at National Institute for Medical Research in Mill Hill, London, UK. Since 2013, I have led my own research group at the Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics.

My research team focuses on neural cell diversity in the Enteric Nervous System (ENS). By determining the variety of ENS cell subtypes, the functions they normally serve and their developmental specification we aim to improve diagnostic and therapeutic principles for gut disorders. The lab addresses these basic but critical questions by transcriptome analysis coupled with viral-based activity/gene manipulations primarily using the mouse model.