About Us

By forming an integrated research environment in diabetes and metabolism the Strategic Research Programme in Diabetes at Karolinska Institutet (SRP Diabetes) has become a Swedish knowledge hub in this area. The programme translates results between experimental and clinical science to improve the care and treatment of people with diabetes. SRP Diabetes came out very well in the international evaluation in 2015 (number one in life sciences) and the programme has since received continued support by the government through the SFO initiative.

Aims

The overall goal of SRP Diabetes is to improve both prevention and treatment of diabetes by forming a strong, integrated research environment in the diabetes field, rich in collaboration, communication, and scientific exchange.

Specifically, the programme aims to:

• Develop and support common technical platforms for researchers at KI and UmU. These platforms include Metabolic Phenotyping Centre for Diabetic Animal Models, a Centre for Clinical Metabolic Research in Diabetes, a Beta Cell in-vivo Imaging / Extracellular Flux Analysis (SeaHorse) and support for Spatial transcriptomics at BIC (Solna) and at Flemingsberg.
• Support for critical instrumentation to group leaders
• Support the next generation of scientist: postdoctoral fellowship program
• Increase interactions between the research teams of the programme by supporting collaborative projects and arranging common symposia, meetings and seminars
• Support undergraduate and graduate education within the research areas connected to the programme
• Increase translational research by supporting collaborative projects between experimental and clinical researchers
• Facilitate international contacts
• Support interactions with the biotech and pharmaceutical industry
• Support innovation and commercial utilization by liasing with Karolinska Institutet Innovations
• Increase public awarness and inform about current diabetes related research

The programme coordinate laboratories possessing substantial expertise and unique technical resources, thus affording a natural point of contact for collaboration within the diabetes area, both for researchers within Karolinska Institutet and Umeå University as well as with external researchers.

Management Group

Mission of the Management Group

According to the Committee for Research at KI (Kommittén för forskning) each SFO at KI must have a steering committee (Management Group). The steering committees are to develop and strengthen research, doctoral education, and education at KI within the research area and serve as a unifying force for researchers within the subject area. SFOs are institution-wide, and the steering committees consequently have an institution-wide mission. The steering committees are to work together with KI's line organization, including departments and heads of departments, to fulfil the purpose of the strategic research areas, while also contributing to realizing KI's vision and overall strategies.

The steering committee makes decisions on the allocation of funds distributed by the faculty board. The work of the steering committee includes to make decisions on and organize open, broad, and inclusive calls for, for example, research projects, research infrastructures, and research positions. The steering committee should also organize activities such as conferences, retreats, and seminars for researchers in the field, preferably both nationally and internationally.

An important part of the steering committees' mission is cooperation, such as interactions with industry and society. The steering committee should therefore organize activities that are open to the public and collaborate with authorities, healthcare, and industry where relevant. The steering committees of the different SFOs can coordinate their activities to achieve greater impact.

The steering committees must annually submit a scientific and financial report, the latter with the support of the host institution, in a format decided by the Committee for Research.