ERC Grant for research on new method to diagnose and treat inflammatory bowel disease

With a hammock and well-deserved vacation just weeks away, the Faculty of Pharmacy strikes with the hottest event of the summer: The book competition 2021. Three lucky colleagues will win a literary masterpiece that will position them as the beach's intellectual giants.

With RISK-HUNT3R, the European Union is gathering forces to develop strategies and animal-free models for improved risk assessment of chemicals. "This is an area we are passionate about," says Per Artursson, in charge of the Faculty of Pharmacy's engagement in the consortium.

SciLifeLab is a national research infrastructure in life sciences with Uppsala University as one of four host universities. Today, SciLifeLab conducts operations at most major Swedish universities.

10-year-jubilar U-FOLD is the receiver of the Nordic Drugs Grand Prize 2021 for conducting research, providing education and raising awareness that has contributed large, positive and national significance to the fields of addiction.

The Behavioral Facility at Uppsala University assists researchers in behavioral sciences in planning, executing and analysing preclinical animal studies. Demand for the platform's services is extensive, but the facility staff identifies additional scientific potential.

In the spring of 2021, the Swedish Higher Education Authority (UKÄ) conducted a university-wide evaluation in Uppsala. As one of only six environments, the third-cycle education in medicine and pharmacy was selected for in-debth scrutiny – and it is a highly active operation that greeted the review panel, states Anders Backlund, Deputy Dean for Research Training.

“Being able to work as a master's student at Testa Center was an incredibly positive experience that continues to generate value even in my current career,” says Triinu Linkgreim, today a researcher at Swiss biotech company Celonic AG.

With a new method, researchers at Uppsala University want to teach our immune system to identify tumors and create the T cells to destroy them. "It is inspiring to see something so innovative originate in Sweden," says Kristian Sandberg, head of SciLifeLab's Drug Discovery and Development Platform.

Which of your research results have the potential to solve a problem in a new way? Take UU Innovation’s self-test to see whether what you are developing in your research has the potential to create value for others as well.

Congratulations Anne-Lie Svensson, Senior lecturer at the Department of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, who is awarded the Uppsala University Distinguished Teaching Award 2021 for her commitment to constantly developing teaching and creating good conditions for learning.

“Receiving the students' award after this challenging year feels extra great, says Lecturer Christina Wedén who, together with Ulrika Rosenström and Viktor Rognås, receive the Pharmaceutical Student Union's 2021 pedagogical awards.

“All of us students, alumni and employees benefit from committed networking”, states Elin Svedin, chair of Alumni Association Farmis, which in May launched the new digital inspiration series Industry Profiles.

By exploring the aggregation properties of different amphiphilic molecules in microgels, Yassir Al-Tikriti, PhD student at the Faculty of Pharmacy, aims to provide tools and knowledge of importance for future cancer therapies and antidepressants.

“This is a unique opportunity for me”, states Anton Norberg, one of the six highly motivated master students selected by SweDeliver for a summer internship and the opportunity to experience drug delivery science at its very best.

Janssen Pharmaceutica (BE) joins SweDeliver as a new industry partner. With international leading expertise in SweDeliver's research fields, Janssen Pharmaceutica will be an important and dedicated partner to the center.

Just a minute ... Stanko Skrtic, new chair of SweDeliver, whose first impressions of the national competence center – with Faculty of Pharmacy as academic hub – best sums up: great capacity, genuine job satisfaction and high expectations.

In February, Joachim Gullbo, alumnus of Uppsala University’s Faculty of Pharmacy, saw his PhD thesis from the late 1990s result in a new cancer drug in the USA. "A fantastic feeling," he states from his current home in California.

Just a minute… Sofia Kälvemark Sporrong, Professor of Social pharmacy, who in late April was appointed first vice chair of The Swedish Pharmacists Association, a union she became a member of just two months earlier.

It is obvious that the political ambition to put an end to violence against women must also include a scientifically grounded and far-sighted drug policy, writes Fred Nyberg, Professor em. in Biological Research on Drug Dependence.

Uppsala University now offers all employees a site license for Mentimeter: the web application that provides the opportunity to include interactive elements in your presentations and lectures.

Monday 14 June the Faculty of Pharmacy invites to webinar Digitalization, medicine and pharmacy – How well does our education meet future needs? Join online and contribute to the development of pharmaceutical educations to meet future needs.

On Thursday 16 September, the Swedish Pharmaceutical Society and IF's foundation for pharmaceutical research invite you to a webinar with future explorations and retrospective aspects on how Sweden will regain its leading position in the world of pharmaceuticals.

Tuesday 27 April Testa Center will host Lunch webinar Testa Center for Academia – How can Testa Center benefit my academic ambitions? The Agenda is aimed at students, researchers and everyone with an interest in the fields of biopharma and general medicine.

With a new test environment for zebrafish, researchers at Uppsala University and SLU have developed a sophisticated tool for mapping multiple behavioral variables in a single test situation. Now the group presents its first results.

Welcome to the premiere of Alumni Association Farmis digital inspiration series Profiler i branschen. Our first guest is Bengt Julander, pharmacist and healthcare profile. Join via Zoom Thursday 6 May.

Funding is now available for two postdoc exchanges, one hosted by the Faculty of Pharmacy or Fauculty of Medicine at Uppsala University, and one by a department at the SLU Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science.

The ongoing COMMUNITY study at Danderyd University Hospital shows that every tenth employee who has had COVID-19 still experience problems that affect their quality of life negatively after eight months.

Can BCG vaccine protect us against covid-19? On Thursday 22 April, Ulrika Simonsson, Professor of Pharmacokinetics, will present her work in the international research consortium currently exploring a vaccine to fight the ongoing pandemic. Welcome to join online!

The number of Swedes with some form of gambling disorder is today so large that the government defines it as a public health problem. Now research at Uppsala University shows differences in the brain's reward network between rats that make strategic decisions and those that make the most risky options.

Mary Jeanne Kreek, world-renowned researcher, clinically active professor in the field of addiction at Rockefeller University, NY, and honorary doctor at Uppsala University's Faculty of Pharmacy passed away on the night of Sunday 28 March 2021.

With the upcoming launches of his award winning method to analyse protein activity in cells and a new artificial enzyme, Ola Söderberg, Professor of Pharmaceutical cell biology, aims to provide game changing tools to the fields of cancer research and cell biology.

Welcome to join the new course Advanced cancer biology, 7–11 June, covering important topics in the field of tumor biology. The course is primarily aimed at PhD students, postdocs and researchers. Apply no later than 14 April 2021.

Who among the Faculty of Pharmacy's many alumni do you think best deserves the Alumnus of the Year 2021 award at Uppsala University? You are welcome to nominate your candidate no later than 2 May.

Erik Fredholm, pharmacist in Region Örebro, has seen his working days change along the spread of the coronavirus. Three months have passed since he last took a break. At the moment he estimates that it will take another three months before his next visit to the coffee room.

In the QS World University Rankings, Uppsala University is ranked no. 37 in the world for studies in Pharmacy & Pharmacology. "This proves that our work at Uppsala University gives results, and also gives us important inspiration for the future," says Mathias Hallberg, Dean of the Faculty of Pharmacy.

As academic hub in the competence center SweDeliver, the Faculty of Pharmacy is consolidating its already advanced position in drug delivery. In the autumn of 2021, a new step is taken with a series of four courses that respond to the field's extensive need for future competence.

In September 2021, Uppsala University will launch the new course Drugs in the Environment, developed in collaboration with the Swedish MPA's Knowledge Center for Drugs in the Environment. The initiative unites a number of leading organisations in order to provide Sweden with long-term tools to meet a rapidly escalating challenge.

The Pharmaceutical Doctoral Student Council (FDR) is the Pharmaceutical Student Union's PhD student council, representing the PhD students at the Faculty of Pharmacy in committees and boards. Our focus is to ensure that all PhD students can complete their studies in a good working environment and under good employment conditions. Now FDR is looking for new board members 2021/22.

The Oscar Prize, one of Uppsala University's most prestigious awards, is given to a young researcher "whose scientific writing is the most deserving and offers the greatest promise of continued academic writings at the University ". Welcome with your nomination no later than March 25.

4-10 March 2021 the SciFest science festival welcomes pupils and adults from all over Sweden to take part in lectures, shows and hands on activities. Of course, the Faculty of Pharmacy's researchers will be online to provide insights into how a drug is developed and utilised.

Olof Eriksson, researcher in translational imaging, is awarded a Project Grant of SEK 1,303,000 from Diabetes Wellness Sweden for his project GPR44 as a PET marker for measuring beta cell mass in human.

Teachers and teaching teams at the Faculty of Pharmacy can now apply for project funding for renewal of education and pedagogical development. The call is for the financial year 2022, but grants may be used from autumn 2021.

96 percent of those who develop antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 still carry them after nine months shows research at Danderyd University Hospital, Uppsala University and KI. The results are based on the third phase of the COMMUNITY study, examining long-term immunity after covid-19.

The path of the drug from laboratory to patient is long and every year non-optimised medication use costs both human lives and astronomical amounts. Now, Björn Wettermark, Professor of Pharmacoepidemiology, is forming the multidisciplinary clusters than can help turn the tide.

July 6-8, the Faculty of Pharmacy will be at the center of European pharmaceutical research when Uppsala University hosts the ULLA Summer School, a meeting place that brings together the future leaders in international pharmacy. "I am convinced that we will create a unique experience," says Andrea Benediktsdottir of the organising committee.

With the discovery of two new biomarkers, Olof Eriksson, researcher in translational imaging, may lead the way to the scientific breakthrough that will enable curative drugs and personalised treatments for diabetes.

In 2021, the Faculty of Pharmacy is expanding its already wide range of freestanding courses. This year’s news includes Drugs in the Environment, Biologicals and Introduction to Nanomedicine - themes that respond well to society's challenges.

This spring semester, SweDeliver and NextBioForm invite to online lunch seminars. Welcome to experience frontline research with a focus on industrial challenges in drug delivery and the development of biologically based drugs.

In the summer of 2021, SweDeliver will give five students the opportunity to conduct research on site at one of our industrial partners. Each project will extend over six weeks and constitute a platform for future recruitment of advanced students and PhD students to our competence center.

By exploring the physical stability of particles during pulmonary drug delivery, Sohan Sarangi, PhD student at SweDeliver and the Faculty of Pharmacy, is providing important knowledge about optimising the amount of drug delivered to the lungs.

Seven teachers at the Faculty of Pharmacy have already been admitted as Distinguished University Teachers (formerly Excellent Teacher) at Uppsala University. The Board of the Disciplinary Domain now welcomes all teachers at our faculty to apply for the title – that includes a salary increase corresponding to that of a docentship.

Just a minute… Per Andrén, Professor of Mass Spectrometry Imaging, that with the installation of a new FTICR instrument heads of one of the world's leading facilities for Mass Spectrometry Imaging.

In 2017, Uppsala University launched a Complementary Programme and a Proficiency test for newly arrived pharmacists. Today, the participants account for one in four applications for Swedish pharmacist licenses. "Everyone is extremely motivated," says Shima Momeni, coordinator at the Faculty of Pharmacy.

At Testa Center, researchers and teachers at the Faculty of Pharmacy have access high-quality laboratory environments. Here they meet the infrastructure and expertise required to take their innovations and students to new heights.

Which teacher at the Faculty of Pharmacy has made the most outstanding contributions in undergraduate education? Nominate your candidate for the Uppsala University Distinguished Teaching Awards 2021 no later than 18 March.

To treat Parkinson's disease with L-Dopa will gradually deteriorate in effect and cause involuntary movements. In a new study, researchers at Uppsala University link this to a dysregulation of L-Dopa metabolism throughout the brain.

Only weeks after the coronavirus reached Sweden, blood samples were taken from more than 2,000 employees at Danderyd Hospital. Today, a selection of the country's leading researchers collaborate with this unique material within the COMMUNITY study to extract new knowledge needed to fight covid-19.

Friday 15 January at 09.15 Caroline Alvebratt, PhD student at the Department of Pharmacy, will defend her dissertation with focus on new methods to predict the release and absorption of orally administered drugs. Welcome to participate online via Zoom.

Sooraj Baijnath, researcher of Medical Mass Spectrometry Imaging, is the winner of the Bioanalysis Rising Star Award 2020. “It has been overwhelming to see the amount of support I have received globally,” says Sooraj Baijnath.

The Christmas gift competition is over and three co-workers can end this strange year in the best possible way. With the WHO's assurance that Santa, despite his considerable age, is immune to all viruses, we dare to promise that the gifts will be delivered in time before holiday leave.

Thursday 17 December at 1 PM, Vasiliki Koutsouveli, PhD student at the Department of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, will defend her thesis focusing on the ecophysiological and evolutionary aspects of sponge species from Antarctica and the deep sea. Welcome to participate online via Zoom.

In a new study, researchers at Uppsala University have been able to show differences in how Rituximab, a monoclonal antibody drug, interacts with the blood of healthy individuals compared to patients with chronic lymphatic leukaemia. This has awakened hopes that this analysis method could pave the way for important breakthroughs in immunotherapy research and treatment.

Just a minute… Alexandra Teleki, researcher in drug development, who receives 2 million euros from the European Research Council to develop a new method to diagnose and treat inflammatory bowel disease in children.

Post docs, PhD:s & Students in the field of pharmacy can now apply for scholarships for, among other things, research courses and congresses. Apply no later than 31 January 2021.

With glühwein and a well deserved vacation just weeks away, the Faculty of Pharmacy strikes with the hottest event of the year: The X-mas gift competition 2020. Three lucky winners will receive an extra present in their stockings that will make them the department's most admired employees the entire 2021.

Ebba Bergman and Phil Harrison, PhD students at the Department of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, are winners of the Adipocyte Cell Imaging Challenge – AI Sweden and AstraZeneca's challenge to create a solution to avoid using staining when testing new drugs on cell cultures.

"Our ambition is to apply the method to humans in the foreseeable future," says Greta Hultqvist, researcher at Uppsala University, who with a new protein transporter has succeeded in stopping and reversing the development of Alzheimer's disease in mice.

With the task to optimise each patient's drug situation, the clinical pharmacists have in a short time become a welcome reinforcement in the Regions' care teams. At Uppsala University, Sweden's only Master's Programme in Clinical Pharmacy is offered, and the demand for the students' competence is high.

At Testa Center, researchers and students at Uppsala University have access to modern equipment for drug and bioprocess development. In this webinar, recorded during Innovation Week 2020, experiences and examples of the work performed are presented. (webinar in Swedish)

Erik Jansson, researcher at the Department of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, explains in a new film from the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research his work of increasing our knowledge of the body's signaling system between brain and cells.

Sara Mangsbo, researcher at the Faculty of Pharmacy, receives the 2020 SITC Team Science Award for her work contributing to new cancer treatments.

“Our Scientific Advisory Board expressed that SweDeliver is moving in the right trajectory, providing a unique ecosystem with great potential to exceed the needs of all stakeholders,” states Christel Bergström, Center director at Sweden's new competence center for Drug delivery.

Daniel Globisch and Ola Spjuth, researchers at Uppsala University's Faculty of Pharmacy, are granted a total of SEK 6.6 million in the Swedish Research Council's call Natural and engineering sciences. The grants are to be received during 2020–2024.

Just a minute… Elin Svedin, who in the spring of 2020 graduated from Uppsala University's Master of Science Programme in Pharmacy and now takes over as chairwoman of the Alumni Association Farmis.

March 18th, Uppsala University switched to distance teaching and examination. Eight months later, the BMC seminar halls and corridors still offer desolate experiences. How does this affect teachers and students, Anja Sandström, Deputy dean for first and second cycle education at the Faculty of Pharmacy.

Over the past decade, more and more biopharmaceuticals have been developed for anti-cancer immunotherapy. Sara Mangsbo is actively contributing to their development with her research group, and has also started three companies. She was recently awarded the Uppsala University Innovation Prize, Hjärnäpplet, for her ability to combine research and entrepreneurship.

Maria Karlgren and Christine Wegler, researchers at the Faculty of Pharmacy, receive awards for their work contributing to reduce the number of animal studies and increased knowledge about drug disposition in the liver and small intestine.

Per Artursson, Olof Eriksson, Hans Lennernäs and Ola Spjuth, researchers at Uppsala University's Faculty of Pharmacy, have been granted a total of SEK 16.68 million in the Swedish Research Council's call Medicine and Health. The grants will be received during 2020–2024.

Getting patients to take their drugs correctly is one of healthcare's biggest and oldest challenges. Now experts from 39 European countries are joining forces in the ENABLE project to make a difference. "We have good conditions for success," says Björn Wettermark, Professor of Pharmacoepidemiology.

With a focus on lifelong learning, SweDeliver's young researchers participate in a selection of activities within the Work package Training and Career Development. First on the schedule is a series of digital lunch seminars and a Mentoring program in collaboration with the center's industrial partners

Standing on the shoulders of giants, we will allegedly discover the way forward, so if one would ever cross our path, it would be a mistake not to try the view. Per Artursson, Professor of Dosage Form Design and Giant of Pharmaceutical Sciences, works at Uppsala Biomedical Centre, and the perspectives offered are undeniably interesting.

“The Disciplinary domain's Diversity report points at great opportunities at the Faculty of Pharmacy, but to take full advantage of them require further analysis,” says Hooshang Bazrafshan, equal opportunities specialist at Uppsala University.

With a new and more accurate computational model for how the drug rosuvastatin (Crestor ®) is taken up and eliminated in the liver, researchers at Uppsala University paves the way for more efficient drug development and future treatment methods.

"Our project is developing in a very positive direction," says Staffan Berg, PhD Student at SweDeliver that, with base at both AstraZeneca R&D and Uppsala's Faculty of Pharmacy, hopes to add new knowledge to one of pharmaceutical research's oldest challenges.

The Uppsala science festival SciFest goes digital. March 1–6, 2021, researchers from Uppsala University and curious schoolchildren and adults from all over Sweden will meet for a variety of lectures, shows and activities. As a researcher at the Faculty of Pharmacy, you can now register your participation.

Using a home-grown filamentous fungus, Mikael Hedeland, professor of analytical pharmaceutical chemistry, managed to expose four medalists guilty of doping at the Olympic Games in Athens. Now he is refining his methods further, opening a facility for mass spectrometry at the Uppsala Biomedical Center.

In the winter of 2020, a novel robotised laboratory for cell profiling will open at Uppsala's Biomedical Centre – a high-tech facility ready to deliver as the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation now invests SEK 3.1 billion in making Sweden a world leader in computer-driven life sciences.

I oktober inbjöd Uppsala universitets Forum för forskning om läkemedels- och drogberoende (U-FOLD) och Svenska Spels oberoende Forskningsråd till Öppen Forskningsdag i syfte att belysa det senaste inom forskningsområdet kring hasardspel. Experter vid flera universitet och högskolor deltar i mötet som du nu kan se online.

Christel Bergström, Professor of Molecular Pharmaceutics, receives SEK 9 million from the Erling-Persson Family Foundation in continued support of the project Personalized medications for children suffering from severe diseases.

With the Nobel Prize-winning technology CRISPR-Cas9, researchers at Uppsala University are creating new components for more efficient drug development with fewer animal experiments.

To contribute to better treatment and reducing the spread of the viral disease hepatitis C is prioritized work at Uppsala University's Faculty of Pharmacy, where researchers praise the 2020 selection of Nobel laureates in physiology or medicine.

“The national competence center SweDeliver has already extended the visibility and appeal of the Faculty of Pharmacy far beyond Sweden's borders. This enhances our ability to recruit top-of-the-line PhD students and postdocs.”, states Göran Frenning, Professor of Pharmaceutical Physics and leader of the Pulmonary Drug Delivery Work Package.

Stellan Sandler, professor of medical cell biology and former Vice-rector at the Disciplinary Domain of Medicine and Pharmacy, is awarded the older Gustaf Adolf Medal in gold for his significant contributions to Uppsala University.

Welcome to What’s on at the Faculty of Pharmacy? We will meet online via Zoom. The program contains current issues, our faculty’s diversity report and popular science presentations. We will end with coffee&quiz at BMC.

A new generation of pharmaceutical experts has received their diplomas and is entering their professional life. Saturday 26 September, the Faculty of Pharmacy held the 2020 graduation ceremony - which this year was four.

At Testa Center, students at Uppsala University receive training in bioprocess- and drug development, while researchers get access to modern equipment in the biotechnological process industry. In this webinar at Innovation Week 2020, students and researchers talk about their experiences at the Testa Center.

Apply no later than 15 October for the Vice-Chancellor’s travel grant for travels April–September 2021. Grants are awarded for travels that most benefit a personal scholarly exchange and is of use to Swedish research.

Eleven years after the deregulation of the pharmacy market, Sweden is facing another comprehensive reform. Now with healthcare in focus. And once again, a distinct pharmaceutical voice is missing in the debate. "It is time for the profession to make themselves heard," says Sofia Kälvemark Sporrong, Professor of Social pharmacy, returning to Sweden and Uppsala University.

At the forefront of one of science's most successful fields. Entrepreneur of the year and ready to give another company a flying start. Sara Mangsbo, researcher in immune-oncology at Uppsala University, follows her own advice and looks far beyond the comfort zone.

“Here, PhD Students and postdocs interact with leading research groups, aspiring start-ups and established companies. It is a dynamic environment that will ensure continued growth in the already dynamic Swedish life science sector.”