"Over the coming years, new insights will be gained into the complex multifactorial mechanisms underlying human health, with consequences for prevention, early detection, treatment and cure. I see FIMM as being internationally one of the key players with a central role in both developing research infrastructures in Finland, and using the facilities for molecular medicine research on highest level." says Professor Palmgren.

"Professor Juni Palmgren brings invaluable expertise to FIMM and she provides a Nordic and European view to maximise the utilization of Finnish cohorts in genetic and genomic epidemiology", says Professor Jaakko Kaprio, Director of the Academy of Finland Center of Excellence in Complex Disease Genetics and at FIMM. "Professor Palmgren's appointment is great news for statistical genetics not only at FIMM, but nation-wide" says Samuli Ripatti, FIMM-EMBL Group Leader.

"There have previously been two other FiDiPro appointments at FIMM, one for Professor Joseph D. Terwilliger (2007-2010) in statistical genetics and another one for Professor Jonathan K.C. Knowles (2010-2014) in personalized medicine. The appointment of Professor Juni Palmgren provides a perfect complementarity with the other FiDiPro appointments and strengthens the ability of FIMM to advance human genomics research" says Professor Olli Kallioniemi, Director of FIMM. "Her experience in infrastructure development will also be invaluable for FIMM, where the planning of four international ESFRI infrastructure programmes (BBMRI, ELIXIR, EATRIS, EU-OPENSCREEN) is currently ongoing."

Helsinki, 16 March 2010 – Today, the Nordic EMBL Partnership for Molecular Medicine officially inaugurates the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM) in Helsinki. Together with the Centre for Molecular Medicine Norway (NCMM, University of Oslo) and the Laboratory for Molecular Infection Medicine Sweden (MIMS, Umeå University), FIMM is part of the Nordic EMBL Partnership for Molecular Medicine. The partnership was initiated in 2007 and is dedicated to research in molecular medicine, investigation of the molecular basis of disease and the discovery of new treatments.

“FIMM is a prime example of an international multi-disciplinary institute combining high-quality science with access to patient materials and links to medical expertise,” says Olli Kallioniemi, Director of FIMM. “Our state-of-the-art technologies enable us to investigate molecular mechanisms of disease using genomics and medical systems biology helping us to bridge from discovery to medical applications.”

The joint research institute is operated by the University of Helsinki, in collaboration with the Hospital District of Helsinki and Uusimaa (HUS), the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) and the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland. FIMM has 150 employees in 11 research and five technology groups. The research groups work on cancer, cardiovascular, neuro-psychiatric and viral diseases. FIMM carries out translational research to explore new diagnostics and treatments and promotes human health via research on personalized medicine.

"EMBL is one of the most prominent institutes in molecular and cellular biology, while Finland and the University of Helsinki have strong expertise in clinical research. This provides an excellent base for building a world-class collaborative molecular medicine institute like FIMM,” says Iain Mattaj, Director General of EMBL.
FIMM will enhance its global profile by international recruitment, new career paths, and collaborations with industry and health care providers.

EMBL Press Release

We all owe a great deal of gratitude to Leena for the work that she did for us at FIMM and at the THL. We will remember the numerous interactions with her over the years. These have left a long-lasting profound impact on all of us. Even though it will be impossible for any single person to replace her, we should all work together to try to make sure that all the numerous activities that Leena started will continue and be taken care of in the future. This was the message that Leena herself wanted me to convey to you when I was visiting her for the very last time less than a week ago.

In lieu of floral tributes, a donation in memory of Academician Leena Peltonen-Palotie would be appreciated (Leena Palotie memorial fund, The Paulo Foundation, Nordea, account: FI91 1562 3000 1320 29, Swift: NDEAFIHH).

Thank you.

Olli Kallioniemi
Director, FIMM

Obituaries

• The official note of her death is announced by the Academy of Finland
  ( in English | suomeksi )
• Nature
• Cell
• Lancet

Jonathan K.C. Knowles, Head of Group Research and Member of the Executive Committee at Hoffman-La

Roche, was appointed professor at the University of Helsinki and the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM) through the Finland Distinguished Professor Programme of the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation (Tekes) in September 2009. The professorship has a fixed term of five years.

Professor Knowles is a global opinion leader in personalised medicine.
“I’ve always been interested in how treatment could be targeted so that each individual patient would get exactly the right kind of care. This is what I worked on for twelve years at Roche – my job was to direct the company’s research towards personalised medicine. When I retired from there, FIMM offered me the opportunity to continue this work from a slightly different perspective," Knowles explains.

He concedes that there would have been other ways to spend his retirement than starting a new job. “After considering the situation, I decided that this is exactly what I want to do. I am also strongly of the opinion that this is how medicine will develop going forward.”

According to Professor Knowles, FIMM and its partners have an excellent opportunity to further the research and development of personalised medicine. “FIMM is a nexus of molecular medicine in Finland, and the University of Helsinki is among the best in Europe in clinical medicine. It has solid research experience and proven competence in this field, and its cooperation with the local hospital district is seamless – FIMM has great potential to become a leading centre in personalised medicine even on a global scale."

In addition to passion for his work, there are personal reasons pulling Professor Knowles to Finland. Before his formidable career in the pharmacological industry, he worked as a researcher for the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland for nearly ten years. “I speak Finnish at home, I'm a Finnish citizen, I like Finland!”

So what will happen in personalised medicine during the next five years?

“We are going to revolutionise the treatment of cancer,” Knowles states without hesitation. One of his five-year goals is developing diagnostic tests which could detect, for example, cancer of the stomach and kidneys from blood samples at a very early stage.

Cancer touches everyone – even if you do not contract the disease, someone close to you will. Professor Knowles had a close encounter with the disease when his brother died of cancer some years ago. “My goal, my passion, is to improve the treatment of cancer."

According to Professor Knowles, research into personalised medicine is at a very interesting stage, and major strides can be expected in the coming years. And this is the case not just for cancer, but many other illnesses, like Alzheimer's disease.

Professor Knowles also hopes that the coming five years will bridge the gap that in Finland still exists between basic research and innovation, as well as science and treatment.
“Finns invest heavily in basic research, and it shows – the research is of a high quality, scientific results are produced and important ideas emerge. But both the scientific acclaim and financial profit go elsewhere because the results are not developed and processed all the way. Society is not getting what it deserves out of the investment. At the same time, there is an increasing gap between rapidly developing medicine and the treatment patients receive. This problem must be solvable in a country as small as Finland – and a solution will be found, if we want it."

Professor Knowles believes that both FIMM and Finns in general should set their sights higher, be bolder. “I don’t mean be more arrogant or boastful, but just have a belief in your own competence. You have to aim high. You may not get there, but it’s worth it to try. Sometimes you succeed. Let’s revolutionise cancer treatment!”

Tavoitteet korkealle – rahkeet riittävät

Hoffman-La Rochen tutkimusjohtaja ja johtoryhmän jäsen Jonathan K.C. Knowles valittiin syyskuussa 2009 professoriksi Helsingin yliopistoon ja Suomen molekyylilääketieteen instituuttiin Tekesin Finland Distinguished Professor Programme -ohjelman kautta. Professuuri on viisivuotinen.

Professori Knowles on henkilökohtaisen lääketieteen johtavia vaikuttajia maailmassa.
”Minua on aina kiinnostanut se, miten pystyttäisiin kohdistamaan juuri oikeanlainen hoito kullekin yksittäiselle potilaalle. Tätä työtä tein Rochellakin kaksitoista vuotta; tehtäväni oli suunnata yrityksen lääketutkimusta yksilöllisen lääkehoidon suuntaan. Kun jäin sieltä eläkkeelle, FIMM tarjosi minulle tilaisuuden jatkaa tätä työtä hiukan eri näkökulmasta”, Knowles sanoo.

Hän myöntää, että eläkepäiviä olisi toki voinut viettää muullakin tavalla kuin siirtymällä uuteen työhön. ”Asioita pohdittuani tulin kuitenkin siihen tulokseen, että juuri tätä minä haluan tehdä. Olen myös vahvasti sitä mieltä, että nimenomaan tämä on se tie, jolla lääketiede kehittyy eteenpäin.”

FIMMillä on Knowlesin mukaan loistava mahdollisuus yhteistyökumppaneidensa kanssa edistää yksilöllisen lääketieteen tutkimusta ja kehittymistä. ”FIMM on molekyylilääketieteen keskittymä Suomessa, ja Helsingin yliopisto on Euroopan parhaita kliinisessä lääketieteessä. Täällä on tutkimusta ja osaamista tällä alalla ja myös yhteistyö sairaalan kanssa on saumatonta – FIMMillä on kansainvälisestikin katsoen kaikki mahdollisuudet nousta henkilökohtaisen lääketieteen johtavaksi keskukseksi.”

Työhön kohdistuvan intohimon lisäksi Knowlesia vetivät Suomeen myös henkilökohtaiset syyt. Ennen mittavaa uraansa lääketeollisuudessa hän työskenteli kymmenkunta vuotta Suomessa VTT:n tutkijana. ”Perheeni kotikieli on suomi, olen itse Suomen kansalainen, pidän Suomesta!”

Mitä seuraavien viiden vuoden aikana sitten tulee tapahtumaan henkilökohtaisen lääketieteen saralla?

”Mullistamme syövän hoidon”, Knowles sanoo epäröimättä. Yksi hänen konkreettisista viiden vuoden tavoitteistaan on sellaisten diagnostisten testien kehittäminen, joiden avulla esimerkiksi vatsasyöpä ja munuaissyöpä voidaan tunnistaa verestä jo hyvin varhaisessa vaiheessa.

Syöpä on sairaus, joka koskettaa jokaista ihmistä – jos itse ei siihen sairastukaan, joku läheisistä sairastuu. Myös Knowles on sen kokenut, sillä hänen veljensä kuoli syöpään joitakin vuosia sitten. ”Minun tavoitteeni, intohimoni on parantaa syövän hoitoa.”

Henkilökohtaisen lääketieteen tutkimus on Knowlesin mukaan tällä hetkellä erittäin kiinnostavassa vaiheessa, ja muutaman lähivuoden kuluessa on odotettavissa suuria esitysaskelia. Eikä kysymys ole pelkästään syövästä, vaan myös monista muista sairauksista, esimerkiksi Alzheimerin taudista.

Knowles toivoo myös, että seuraavien viiden vuoden kuluessa Suomessa pystytään kuromaan umpeen se kuilu, joka vallitsee perustutkimuksen ja innovaatioiden sekä samalla tieteen ja potilashoidon välillä.
”Täällä panostetaan valtavasti perustutkimukseen, ja se tuottaa tulosta – tutkimus on korkeatasoista, syntyy tieteellisiä tuloksia ja saadaan tärkeitä ideoita. Mutta niin tieteellinen kunnia kuin taloudellinen hyötykin valuvat muualle, koska tuloksia ei työstetä täällä loppuun asti. Yhteiskunta ei saa panostuksestaan sitä hyötyä, mikä sille kuuluisi. Samalla kuilu nopeasti etenevän lääketieteen ja potilaiden saaman hoidon välillä kasvaa. Suomen kaltaisessa pienessä maassa tähän täytyy löytää ratkaisu – ja se löytyy, kun niin halutaan.”

Niin FIMMin kuin suomalaisten yleensäkin tulisi Knowlesin mielestä asettaa tavoitteensa korkealle, olla rohkeampia. ”En tarkoita ylimielisyyttä tai kehumista, vaan perusteltua luottamusta omaan osaamiseen. Pitää olla isoja tavoitteita. Aina niihin ei päästä, mutta silti kannattaa yrittää. Joskus onnistuu. Mullistetaan syövänhoito!”

Lecture Hall 1, Biomedicum Helsinki 1, Ground Floor (Haartmaninkatu 8, Helsinki)

9.00—12.00 Scientific presentations by the Members of the Scientific Advisory Board of FIMM

Chair, Professor Olli Kallioniemi

Marja Makarow Lecture: Lipid rafts as a membrane-organizing principle

Professor Kai Simons, Max-Planck-Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Germany

Signaling via receptors for PDGF and TGF-beta - possible targets in tumor therapy

Professor Carl-Henrik Heldin, Uppsala University, Sweden

Systems Reconstruction of Estrogen Receptor Regulation

Professor Edison Liu, Genome Institute of Singapore, Singapore

Macrophages to the rescue in mammalian regeneration

Professor Nadia Rosenthal, European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Monterotondo, Italy

12.00—13.30 Buffet Lunch

13.30—16.00 Opening ceremony

Chair Professor Marja Makarow

FIMM in the European Research Area

Chair of the Board of FIMM, Professor Marja Makarow

EMBL and EMBL Partnerships

Director General, Professor Iain Mattaj, European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL)

Overview of FIMM

Director, Professor Olli Kallioniemi, FIMM

Personalized medicine needs new approaches: an opportunity for FIMM

FiDiPro Professor Jonathan K.C. Knowles, FIMM

Minister of Education Henna Virkkunen, Ministry of Education

Minister of Health and Social Services Paula Risikko, Ministry of Social Affairs and Health

Director General Petri Peltonen, Ministry of Employment and the Economy

Centre for Molecular Medicine Norway — focus on disease mechanisms drawing on the strengths of the Nordic EMBL Partnership

Director, Professor Kjetil Taskén, Centre for Molecular Medicine Norway (NCMM), Oslo

MIMS: The Laboratory for Molecular Infection Medicine Sweden — Understanding the molecular mechanisms of microbial infection for development of new sustainable antimicrobial strategies

Director, Professor Bernt Eric Uhlin, Laboratory for Molecular Infection Medicine Sweden (MIMS), Umeå

Rector, Professor Thomas Wilhelmsson, University of Helsinki

Research Director, Professor Lasse Viinikka, Hospital District of Helsinki and Uusimaa (HUS)

Director General, Professor Pekka Puska, National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL)

Executive Vice President, Strategic Research, Professor Jorma Lammasniemi, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland

16.00—17.30 Cocktails

Wednesday, 17 March 2010

Lecture Hall 2, Biomedicum Helsinki 1, Ground Floor (Haartmaninkatu 8, Helsinki)

9.00—12.00

Scientific presentations by the Members of the Scientific Advisory Board of FIMM

Genome wide prediction in complex disorders: opportunities and limitations

Professor Cornelia van Duijn, Erasmus University Medical Center, the Netherlands

Scientific presentations by FIMM representatives

Population and disease genetics in Finland

Dr Samuli Ripatti, FIMM-EMBL Group Leader, FIMM

Medical Systems Biology:

Professor Olli Kallioniemi, FIMM

Molecular medicine — Past and future

FiDiPro Professor Jonathan K.C. Knowles, FIMM

Academician of Science Leena Palotie and five other distinguished Finnish women are portrayed onnew postage stamps issued on the International Women's Day today (March 8th 2010). The other prominent women on the stamps are Professor Laila Hirvisaari, Professor Elina Haavio-Mannila, Director Maria-Liisa Nevala of the Finnish National Theatre, Designer Ritva-Liisa Pohjalainen and Dance Artist Aira Samulin.

This is the first full series of Finnish stamps dedicated to influential women of today. All of them have achieved their influential position, many of them even internationally, through their own deeds," says Director Markku Penttinen of the Philatelic Centre.

Designed by Päivi Vainionpää, each stamp shows the silhouette, signature, and an illustration of something specific about the distinguished woman in question, such as a DNA double helix for Leena Palotie.

By issuing this booklet of stamps, Itella wants to honour Finnish women in general and their strong know-how in many sectors. “These six women were now chosen for the stamps following a long deliberation; there were many candidates," Penttinen says.

In all, 250,000 Distinguished Women stamp booklets were printed.

This funding is meant to ensure  Finland's commitment to the building of these European infrastructures. The level of funding in the future years was left open as this depends on the outcome and structures that will be developed in the pilot phase.

The approach that Finland has selected is based on the realization that significant potential synergies may arise from infrastructures developed for biobanking, bioinformatics and translational medical research. Funding of 1 M€ is provided by the Ministry of Education through the Academy of Finland, with 0.85 M€ co-financing from the consortium consisting of the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), CSC - IT Center for Science Ltd (CSC) and the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL).

This project is meant to ensure that Finnish scientists and institutions will continue to be active in the planning and implementation of the first wave of European BMS ESFRI infrastructures. There is particular interest to form links and synergies between the infrastructures, such as by linking sustainable infrastructure for biological information (ELIXIR) with biomedical samples and clinical, life-style and environmental data (BBMRI) as well as an opportunity to translate results to diagnostic and biomarker purposes (EATRIS).    

Professor Olli Kallioniemi, the director of FIMM and coordinator of the collaboration between the three infrastructure efforts, says "A small country should concentrate its investments in the European dimension to those  areas that are of critical importance and where synergies may be arise. Finland has a long tradition of collecting biobank samples and associated clinical as well as molecular profile information.

Professor Rudi Balling, director of the Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine and the coordinator of EATRIS, says "We are delighted with Finland taking the lead for a significant national commitment towards a European translational research infrastructure. This reflects the excellence of biomedical research in Finland and  the recognition that infrastructure is key for Europe to stay competitive".

EMBL-EBI Director and ELIXIR coordinator Professor Janet Thornton, adds "Finland’s active participation in developing ELIXIR is excellent news. The close interaction between the biomedical research infrastructures in Finland will help Europe to develop a fully integrated approach to handling heterogeneous data and exploiting it for translational research ".

Professor Kurt Zatloukal from Medical University of Graz and coordinator of BBMRI who has actively worked towards coordination of BMS ESFRIs at EU level further comments "We are delighted to see that coordination of BMS infrastructures also takes place at the national level".

Ms Eeva Ikonen, senior science advisor at the Academy of Finland, comments "Finland has made substantial contributions towards construction and upgrading of national infrastructures through Biocenter Finland. This current funding decision aims at establishing a firm Finnish role on in the development and implementation of BBMRI, EATRIS and ELIXIR. Our approach could hopefully also serve as a model for tighter integration between other European research infrastructures".

Consortium members have also signed a memorandum of understanding.

Suomi investoi 1,85 miljoonaa euroa Euroopan laajuiseen biolääketieteen tutkimusinfrastruktuuriin

Suomi on ottanut ensimmäisen askelen kohti Euroopan laajuisen biolääketieteen tutkimusinfrastruktuurin (ESFRI) kehittämistä tukemalla bioinformatiikan, biopankkitoiminnan ja translationaalisen tutkimuksen yhteistä infrastruktuurihanketta. Alustava sijoitus on 1,85 milj. euroa; summalla tuetaan hankeen valmistelu- ja esivaihetta vuonna 2010.

Rahoitus osoittaa Suomen sitoutumista Euroopan laajuisten tutkimusinfrastruktuurien rakentamiseen. Jatkorahoitus on kuitenkin avoin ja riippuu esivaiheen tuloksellisuudesta.

Suomen lähestymistapa perustuu sen oivaltamiseen, että bioinformatiikka, biopankkinäytteiden hyödyntäminen ja translationaalinen tutkimus ovat toisistaan riippuvaisia, joten yhteinen koordinoitu panostaminen vastaaviin tutkimusinfrastruktuureihin synnyttäisi synergiaetuja. Opetusministeriö rahoittaa hanketta Suomen Akatemian kautta miljoonalla eurolla, ja Suomen molekyylilääketieteen instituutin (FIMM), CSC - Tieteen tietotekniikan keskuksen sekä Terveyden ja hyvinvoinnin laitoksen (THL) muodostama konsortio tukee hanketta 0,85 miljoonalla eurolla.

Hankkeen tarkoituksena on varmistaa että Suomen tutkijat ja laitokset pysyvät mukana Euroopan biolääketieteen ESFRI:n ensimmäisen aallon suunnittelussa ja toteutuksessa. Tavoitteena on luoda käytännön yhteistyötä biotieteiden tuottaman datan kestävään tallentamiseen ja jakeluun tähtäävän ELIXIR-hankkeen, biopankkinäytteiden sekä niihin liittyvän kliinisen, elintapa- ja ympäristötiedon hyödyntämiseen pyrkivän BBMRI-hankkeen sekä perustutkimuksesta syntyvien tulosten lääketieteelliseen soveltamiseen pyrkivän EATRIS-hankkeen välillä.

"Pienen valtion on keskitettävä Euroopan mittakaavan sijoitukset omalta kannaltaan kriittisille sekä mahdollisesti synergiaa tuottaville osa-alueille. Suomella on pitkä biopankkinäytteiden sekä niihin liittyvän kliinisen tiedon keräämisen ja analyysin perinne", sanoo professori Olli Kallioniemi, FIMM:n johtaja ja konsortion koordinaattori.

EATRIS-hankkeen koordinaattori professori Rudi Balling Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine -instituutista kommentoi: "Olemme iloisia, että Suomi on ensimmäisten joukossa tukemassa eurooppalaisen translationaalisen tutkimuksen infrastruktuurin kehittämistä. Tämä heijastaa suomalaisen biolääketieteellisen tutkimuksen korkeata tasoa ja osoittaa, että Suomessa tunnistetaan tutkimusinfrastruktuurin tärkeys eurooppalaiselle kilpailukyvylle".

ELIXIR:n koorinaattori ja EMBL-EBI:n johtaja, professori Janet Thornton lisää "Suomen aktiivien osallistuminen ELIXIR:in on loistava uutinen. Biolääketieteen infrastruktuurien läheinen yhteistyö Suomessa auttaa kehittämään kokonaisvaltaisen lähestymistavan heterogeenisten aineistojen käsittelyyn sekä lääketieteelliseen hyödyntämiseen myös Euroopan tasolla".

Myös BBMRI:n koordinaattori ja ESFRI:en välisen tiiviimmän yhteistyön puolestapuhuja Professori Kurt Zatloukal Grazin lääketieteellisestä yliopistosta, on mielissään kansallisen tason yhteistyöstä tutkimusinfrastruktuurien välillä.

"Suomi on panostanut huomattavasti kansallisen tutkimusinfrastruktuurin rakentamiseen ja uudistamiseen Biokeskus Suomen kautta. Tämä rahoitus puolestaan tähtää Suomen roolin vahvistamiseen BBMRI-, EATRIS- ja ELIXIR-hankkeissa. Toivottavasti meidän lähestymistapamme toimii esimerkkinä tiiviimmästä integraatiosta myös muille eurooppalaisille tutkimusinfrastruktuureille." sanoo johtava tiedeasiantuntija Eeva Ikonen Suomen Akatemiasta.

Konsortion jäsenet ovat myös yhteishankkeen osalta solminut aiesopimuksen.

Professor Leena Peltonen, MD, has been awarded the honorary title of Academician of Science. The letter of appointment was presented to Professor Peltonen by President of the Republic Tarja Halonen on 29 October 2009.

Based on nominations by the Academy of Finland, the President of the Republic of Finland may confer the honorary title of Academician to highly distinguished Finnish or foreign scientists and scholars. The title of Academician can be held by no more than twelve Finnish scientists and scholars at a time.

Academician Leena Peltonen (b. 1952) is one of the world's foremost and most respected experts in gene research. She has conducted pioneering work in the field of human gene research, with special focus on disease genes. Her research serves as an excellent example of how basic molecular biology can be combined with medicine to gain a better understanding of different diseases. Her research results have shed valuable new light on the basic mechanisms of several diseases.

The field of human genetics has advanced at an extraordinary rate. Rather than studying individual genes, its focus has expanded now to include the impact of the individual's complete genome information on disease aetiology. The information gained from this research is used to help prevent diseases and produce new methods for care and prevention. "I have been extremely fortunate to be involved in this process from its very earliest stages. I have been in the right place at historically the right time," says Academician Leena Peltonen.

In her research Peltonen has made successful use of the Finnish genotype and population datasets. Her team have identified genetic mutations associated with dyslipidemias, lactose intolerance, MS disease, schizophrenia, obesity and heart diseases. The team have also established how these mutations mechanistically lead to the actual onset of disease. Their efforts have paved the way to new diagnostic tests and to screenings for disease carriers.

"It's not only our national gene pool that is unique providing technical short cuts in disease gene identification; the same can be said of our national health care records that span decades, our biological sample collections and above all the altruistic willingness of Finnish people to take part in our studies," Peltonen observes.

National and international research and impact

Academician Leena Peltonen has held several professorships and other significant positions at research organisations both at home and abroad. She was a Professor at the National Public Health Institute in 1991-1994 and at the National Public Health Institute and the University of Helsinki in 1995-1998 and again in 2002-2003. In 1998 she moved to the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) to establish a major genetic research centre. After nine years in the United States, she was invited to become Head of Human Genetics at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Europe's leading genome research centre. In addition to her work at the Sanger Institute in the UK, Academician Peltonen is currently Research Director at the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM) and at the National Institute for Health and Welfare as well as Visiting Professor at Broad Institute, Boston. She is also a member of the Scientific Council of the European Research Council (ERC) and a member of the US National Academy of Sciences, Institute of Medicine.

Peltonen chaired the Academy of Finland's Research Council for Health in 1995-1997, served as Academy Professor in 2003-2007 and was Director of the Centre of Excellence in Complex Disease Genetics in 2000-2007. She has been extraordinarily productive in terms of her scientific output. Furthermore, she has played a pivotal role in training a new generation of gene researchers in Finland and the United States. She has received numerous prestigious science awards and holds several titles of Honorary Doctor and Honorary Professor.

Further information: Academician Leena Peltonen, tel. +358 20 610 8393 and Academy of Finland President Markku Mattila, tel. +358 9 7748 821 or +358 400 736 603.

Finland Communications
Maj-Lis Tanner, Head of Communications
tel. +358 9 7748 8347, +358 40 729 6736
maj-lis.tanner(at)aka.fi

www.aka.fi/eng

Joint PhD Student Call (pdf)

FIMM is seeking outstanding candidates for the positions of
PhD Students.

FIMM PhD Student Call (pdf)

Please, fill application form here.

Jonathan K.C. Knowles has been appointed a Professor at the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), University of Helsinki, for the period 2010-2014. Professor Knowles will join FIMM from Swiss pharmaceutical and diagnostics giant Hoffman-La Roche when, at the end of this year, he steps down from his position as the Head of Group Research and Member of the Executive Committee. Professor Knowles is a world-recognised opinion leader and proponent of personalised medicine and has over 20 years of experience at the senior executive level in the global pharmaceutical industry.

The recruitment of Professor Knowles is possible thanks to the Finland Distinguished Professor Programme (FiDiPro) of the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation (Tekes). The aim of the FiDiPro Programme is to bring top expertise to Finland in order to develop and maintain its global competitiveness.

The recruitment of Professor Knowles is very significant for FIMM and its Nordic Partnership with the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL). "His expertise will be used to advance the scientific discoveries towards practical clinical applications and to facilitate the development of personalised medicine", says Professor Olli Kallioniemi, Director of FIMM.
"Jonathan Knowles will play a central role in advancing molecular medicine at FIMM, along with its national and international partners", says Professor Marja Makarow, Chair of FIMM Board and Director General of the European Science Foundation.
Director General of the EMBL, Iain Mattaj, is delighted to hear about the recruitment and hopes that the new capabilities for molecular medicine will also impact the translation of EMBL's research towards medical applications.

Jonathan Knowles, henkilökohtaisen lääketieteen johtava asiantuntija, siirtyy FiDiPro professoriksi Suomeen vuosiksi 2010-2014

Jonathan K.C. Knowles on valittu professoriksi Suomen molekyylilääketieteen instituuttiin (FIMM) Helsingin yliopistoon viisivuotiskaudeksi 2010-2014. Professori Knowles rekrytoitiin FIMM:iin sveitsiläisen lääke- ja diagnostiikkajätin Hoffman-La Rochen tutkimusjohtajan ja johtoryhmän jäsenen paikalta. Professori Knowles on henkilökohtaisen lääketieteen johtavia vaikuttajia maailmassa ja on toiminut viimeiset 20 vuotta kansainvälisten lääkeyritysten ylimmissä johtotehtävissä.

Professori Knowlesin rekrytoiminen Suomeen on mahdollista Tekesin Finland Distinguished Professor Programme (FiDiPro) -ohjelman ansiosta, jossa kansainvälisiä eturivin tutkijoita ja asiantuntijoita rekrytoidaan Suomeen. Ohjelman päämääränä on varmistaa korkeimman mahdollisen asiantuntemuksen saaminen Suomeen globaalin kilpailukyvyn kehittämiseksi ja ylläpitämiseksi.

Professori Knowlesin rekrytoiminen FIMM:iin on erittäin merkittävä asia. Hänen asiantuntemuksensa avulla voidaan ohjata tutkimustuloksia kohti lääketieteellisiä sovelluksia ja edistää henkilökohtaista, "räätälöityä", lääketiedettä. "Jonathan Knowlesilla tulee olemaan keskeinen rooli Helsingin yliopiston ja koko Suomen molekyylilääketieteen tutkimuksen kannalta", sanoo FIMM:n johtokunnan puheenjohtaja ja Euroopan tiedesäätiön pääjohtaja, professori Marja Makarow.

Myös Terveyden ja hyvinvoinnin laitoksen (THL) pääjohtaja Pekka Puska pitää professori Knowlesin rekrytoimista tärkeänä suomalaisen terveydenhuollon kehittämisen kannalta molekyylilääketieteen tuomien uusien mahdollisuuksien ja haasteiden edessä. Terveyden ja hyvinvoinnin strategisen huippuosaamisen keskittymän (SHOK) toimitusjohtaja Saara Hassinen puolestaan korostaa sitä, että on tärkeää saada Suomeen asiantuntijoita, joilla on kokemusta kansainvälisen yritysmaailman johtotehtävistä.

After obtaining his Ph.D. he began his postdoc joint between the laboratories of Keith Burridge and Channing Der at the University of North Carolina in 2000. As a postdoc, he worked on the regulation of small G-proteins and developed activity-based functional proteomics approaches to study these events. In 2004, he took a research and development scientist position at Cytoskeleton, Inc a small biotech company in Denver, CO, USA followed in 2006 by a group leader position at the Drug Discovery Division of Southern Research Institute, a research institute in Birmingham, AL, USA.

At Southern Research, Krister has been managing an internal drug discovery program and leading an assay development group and has in the process been involved in most aspects of early drug discovery, from target identification and -validation to assay development, high throughput screening, hit-to-lead and lead optimization. His own research at Southern Research has been focused on 1) targeting novel mitotic and cytokinetic proteins such as small G-protein regulators and kinesins by the development of specific small molecule inhibitors and 2) using activity-based profiling technologies for putative druggable classes of targets such as adenine and guanine nucleotide-binding and - hydrolyzing proteins to probe biology and identify novel molecular drug targets.

At FIMM, the Wennerberg lab will continue the two chemical biology research paths started at Southern Research; exploring mitotic biology and cancer through the development and use of novel small molecule mitotic inhibitors and using activity-based profiling to discover novel putative drug targets in cancer and other diseases. In both research paths, the long-term goals are to gain fundamental understanding of the biological systems studied as well as initiating full drug discovery efforts against some of the molecular targets.

Selected publications:

Swenson-Fields KI, Sandquist JC, Rossol-Allison J, Blat IC, Wennerberg K, Burridge K, Means AR. 2008. MLK3 limits activated Galphaq signaling to Rho by binding to p63RhoGEF. Mol. Cell. 32:43-56.

Dubash AD, Wennerberg K, García-Mata R, Menold MM, Arthur WT, Burridge K. 2007. A novel role for Lsc/p115 RhoGEF and LARG in regulating RhoA activity downstream of adhesion to fibronectin. J. Cell Sci. 120:3989-3998.

Wennerberg K, Forget MA, Ellerbroek SM, Arthur WT, Burridge K, Settleman J, Der CJ, Hansen SH. 2003. Rnd proteins function as RhoA antagonists by activating p190 RhoGAP. Curr. Biol. 2003 13:1106-1115.

Arthur WT, Ellerbroek SM, Der CJ, Burridge K, Wennerberg K. 2002. XPLN, a guanine nucleotide exchange factor for RhoA and RhoB, but not RhoC. J. Biol. Chem. 277:42964-42972.

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The scientific career of Denis Kainov started in 2001 in the Institute of Protein Research, Moscow, Russia, where he studied regulation of gene expression under supervision of Prof. Nick Matvienko. In 2001 he joined Professor Dennis Bamford team at the Institute of Biotechnology, University of Helsinki, Finland, where he studied how RNA viruses from the Cystoviridae family assemble nucleocapsid particles from protein constituents and RNA genomic segments.

Denis Kainov obtained his PhD in 2005. In the same year (2005) he received EMBO long-term postdoctoral fellowship and joined the laboratory of Prof. Jean-Marc Egly in the IGBMC, Strasbourg, France. His research was focused on small protein, mutations in which cause group A Trichotyodystrophy. Denis Kainov characterized this protein and its partners using biochemical and structural biology approaches providing valuable insights into molecular mechanisms of this disease.

In 2007 Denis Kainov started a second postdoctoral project in the Institute of Immunology in Luxembourg. He developed a new strategy to treat influenza infection. Denis Kainov will continue developing strategies to treat viral infection by joining the Medical Systems Biology research area of FIMM. He will establish a new research group on Medical Systems Virology with immediate translational opportunities.

The goals of the group are: 1) to provide a comprehensive molecular portrait of virus-host cell interactions using virus reverse genetics, proteomics, high-throughput siRNA and compound screening techniques; 2) to identify determinants of viral transmissibility using viral and human genomics.

Selected publications:

Kainov DE, Vitorino M, Cavarelli J, Poterszman A, Egly JM. (2008) Structural basis for group A trichothiodystrophy. Nat. Struct. Mol. Biol. 15: 980 - 984

Kainov DE, Mancini E, Lisal J, Grimes JM, Bamford D, Stuart DI, and Tuma R. (2008) Structural Basis of Mechano-Chemical Coupling in a Hexameric Molecular Motor. J. Biol. Chem. 283: 3607-3617

Lisal J, Lam TT, Kainov DE, Emmett MR, Marshall AG, Tuma R. (2005) Functional visualization of viral molecular motor by hydrogen-deuterium exchange reveals transient states. Nat. Struct. Mol. Biol. 12: 460-466.

Mancini EJ, Kainov DE, Grimes JM, Tuma R, Bamford DH, Stuart D.I. (2004) Atomic snapshots of an RNA packaging motor reveal conformational changes linking ATP hydrolysis to RNA translocation. Cell. 118: 743-755

In the course of her prolific career, Leena has published some 520 original research articles. Her work has centred around the use genetically isolated populations to identify genes that predispose carriers to a diversity of common human diseases. However, looking beyond genetic association alone, Leena’s teams have explored molecular mechanisms leading to cellular and tissue consequences in patients and her research has led to advances in clinical diagnostics.

Each year, the Carter medal is awarded to commemorate Cedric Carter, clinical geneticist and founder of the Clinical Genetics Society. The Society aims to “bring together doctors and other professionals involved in the care of individuals and families with genetic disorders.” Previous recipients of the medal include Sydney Brenner, Alec Jeffreys, and Kay Davies.

"I feel deeply honoured to receive this award, the list of earlier recipients makes you really humble,” says Leena. “I am passionate about realising the clinical relevance of genetic science and am thrilled to be honoured by an institution that nurtures this deeply important relationship. I am convinced that the work we are doing now will underpin the development of therapeutics in the future. We have already seen that genetic discoveries have been fundamental in the development of diagnostic tests and carrier screening."

Initially, Leena’s research focussed on monogenic diseases – those caused by mutations in single genes. She has successfully mapped over 20 diseases including early dementia and autoimmune disease and numerous early lethal syndromes including Meckel syndrome. Since, Leena has gone on to pioneer the use of population isolates to investigate polygenic diseases, caused by the interaction of several genes. This has led to published associations for several complex human diseases including multiple sclerosis, Schizophrenia, bipolar disease, obesity and heart disease.

Geographically isolated groups often have restricted diversity: in part, because of their relatively homogeneous genetic backgrounds and, in part, because of shared environmental exposure. Using isolated cohorts accelerates the process of finding those specific genes that are the cause of human diseases, whether independently or in concert with others. In 2007 Leena brought her expertise in the use of isolated populations in the hunt for genes contributing to human disease to the Sanger Institute, where she took up a post as Head of Human Genetics.

"Leena’s contribution to understanding the genetics of human disease has been a lifelong commitment and is simply outstanding," says Professor Allan Bradley, Director of the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute. "Leena is an inspirational figure – she immerses herself in the genetics community, working to build and maintain networks of collaborations, particularly in Europe. Her contribution to the field has been enormous."

At the Sanger Institute, Leena’s group aims to translate the vast amount of data, which can now be acquired though genome-wide association studies across populations, into genetic information that will have direct clinical relevance in the future. Leena’s group coordinates the European Network for the Genetic and Genomic Epidemiology project, which will characterise genetic and environmental predisposition to cardiovascular and metabolic disease. Leena also plays a leading role in the Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium, an assembly of 50 research groups, which has, to date, identified approaching 100 variants affecting susceptibility for some of the most common genetic diseases of humans.

Leena gained her MD and PhD from the University of Oulu in Finland. After completing her postdoctoral fellowship in the USA, she returned to Finland where she established genetic research at the Finnish National Public Health Institute and held several posts.

Leena’s influence as a global figure in human genetics is far-reaching and she has held several prominent positions. She was the founding Chair of the Department of Human Genetics at UCLA in 1998-2002 and president of HUGO in 2005-2007. She has also served as a member of the UNESCO Bioethics Committee, and since 2006 she has been a Foreign Associate Member of the National Academies USA, Institute of Medicine (IOM).

Alongside her position at the Sanger Institute, Leena maintains a part-time affiliation as Research Director at the Institute for Molecular Medicine, Finland (FIMM) and has a visiting professorship at the Broad Institute.

As winner of the Carter medal, Leena has been invited to present the Carter Lecture at the 2009 British Society for Human Genetics Annual conference, which takes place this week. Founded in 1996, the British Society for Human Genetics (BSHG) provides a forum for UK professionals involved in Genetics. The BSHG annual conference covers recent advances in human genetics research and its applications in the clinic, and is attended by hundreds of clinical geneticists, scientists and genetic counsellors.

More information:

http://www.fimm.fi/en/events/hbgs-fimm_seminar/

Sami Kilpinen, M.Sc., who is a bioinformatician and PhD student at FIMM, is the first author of the paper with 17 co-authors representing the University of Helsinki, the Tampere University of Technology and VTT. They have created a database with which one can quickly and easily investigate the expression of any human gene in 43 normal and 132 disease human tissues.

Although similar data compilation projects have also been carried out before, GeneSapiens has a decisive advantage that data from all studies, tissue types and diseases are fully integrated and can be easily explored through a biologist friendly user interface at www.genesapiens.org.

"From the database, it is possible to retrieve a single integrated view that indicates how a specific gene is expressed across all human tissues," Kilpinen explains.

Kilpinen got the idea of creating GeneSapiens as he saw how difficult it was to utilise gene information found in public databases for research purposes.

"The information was created using several different methods, and was scattered. However, this information provides great advantages for researchers. That is why I started to compile gene expression data from all possible sources."

The first effort was to harmonise the terminology. For the most part, the work was carried out by Kilpinen's research colleague Kalle Ojala, M.Sc., together with VTT researchers. Each study had to be processed and it had to be investigated how the study had been conducted, and the precise meaning of the terminology used by the researcher had to be found out.

"This was very time-consuming and required a lot of patience," Ojala admits.

Although all data compiled by Kilpinen had been produced with microarrays, the results were not directly comparable because there are differences in the methods and technologies employed. This is why a mathematical model had to be developed in order to be able to integrate data from different platforms into a comparable format.

"This part took three years, and it was carried out in cooperation with the Tampere University of Technology, and particularly with researcher Reija Autio," says Kilpinen.

When the project had reached a stage where it was offered for publication, the researchers encountered a lot of prejudice.

"Before this, an integrated database like this has been seen as a kind of unreachable Holy Grail; there are many who have not believed that it would be possible to create such a database."

The Genome Biology journal published the study in September 2008 after the researchers had provided detailed answers to critical questions presented by the reviewers, and once they had been assured by the researchers of the reliability of the project.

After the publication, the article quickly made it into the top 20 most sought articles in the journal. In June 2009, a total of 770 users from 18 countries had registered to use the database, which is intended for researchers who carry out academic research.

A joint project of biologists and mathematicians

GeneSapiens was a typical multidisciplinary project: it combined biology with mathematics and computer science, and a lot of the early efforts were funded by the Academy of Finland systems biology program.

"In many cases, the expertise of research teams is related to either biology or mathematics, and it is not easy to combine the fields of know-how. FIMM provides the possibility to operate at the interdisciplinary interface just like this," Kilpinen says.

Kilpinen and Ojala are both biologists by education, but they both also have competence in mathematics and computer science. In fact, Kilpinen says that he had to act as a sort of interpreter between the biologists at VTT and the mathematicians at the Tampere University of Technology, since these two groups were not always able to find a common language.

The development process of GeneSapiens also touched upon medicine, but its actual effect will be seen once the project is at the stage of clinical applications. "Of course, the objective is to also improve diagnostics so that the gene information would benefit patient treatment, but we still have a long way to go," says Kilpinen.

Text and photo: Päivi Lehtinen