NextGenNK

NextGenNK Director Hans-Gustaf Ljunggren presented on NK cell–based immunotherapies during the inauguration of the Karolinska ATMP Center on August 25, 2025, sharing experiences from past and upcoming clinical studies.

Professor Niklas Björkström at the Department of Medicine, Huddinge (MedH), Karolinska Institutet, is awarded the Eric K. Fernströms prize for younger, especially talented and promising researcher for "his outstanding research on natural killer (NK) cells in humans."

Karl-Johan Malmberg, Professor, and co-director of NextGenNK, has been honored with the prestigious King Olav V's Cancer Research Prize for his groundbreaking work on how the body's own cells can detect and eliminate cancer.

Klas Kärre, Professor Emeritus of Molecular Immunology at the Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology, has been elected as an international member of the US National Academy of Sciences.

Professor Rolf Kiessling at Karolinska Institutet has been selected as the recipient of the 2025 CIMT Lifetime Achievement Award for his groundbreaking discovery of natural killer (NK) cells, which has significantly advanced our understanding of the immune response to viruses and cancer cells.

On January 22, 2025, NextGenNK and CCRM Nordic hosted a mini-symposium at Karolinska Institutet, Campus Flemingsberg, focused on Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (ATMP). The event aimed to foster collaboration between academia, hospital, and industry, highlighting advancements in ATMP development in Sweden.

UIDP, a global association of leading companies and universities visited KI on December 6th, 2024. Among other activities, UIDP took part in listening to a presentation by NextGenNK Director Hans-Gustaf Ljunggren, during its year-long effort to directly address the need to strengthen and modernize university-industry partnerships through bold approaches that dramatically increase impact from collaborative innovation.

The National ATMP Research School is now open for applications, with a deadline of January 20th, 2025. The program offers three participation options: co-funded PhD positions, affiliated PhD positions, and standalone course enrollment. 

On November 25-26th, 2024 ATMP Sweden organized the 5th annual ATMP Sweden conference in Malmö. NextGenNK co-directors Evren Alici and Karl-Johan Malmberg, and board member Veronique Chotteau participated.