Research projects 2017

Research projects with high scientific potential

Grants totaling SEK 560 million for 18 research projects considered to be of the highest international class, and offering potential for future scientific breakthroughs.

Project funding is granted primarily for basic research in the fields of medicine, technology and the natural sciences.

Medicine

Project: ”Transforming microbiome research”

Grant: SEK 43 200 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Professor Fredrik Bäckhed, University of Gothenburg

Mapping intestinal bacteria in diabetes

Project: ”Molecular structure of mucin domains and role of their interactions”

Grant: SEK 29 000 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Professor Gunnar Hansson, University of Gothenburg

In-depth study of mucus offers potential for lung disease drugs

Project: ”Mast cells and their proteases: future targets for asthma therapy and diagnosis”

Grant: SEK 34 300 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Professor Gunnar Pejler, Uppsala University

More effective asthma treatment

Project: ”Understanding malaria-parasite survival in the human body for developing antimalarial drugs”

Grant: SEK 27 500 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Professor Mats Wahlgren, Karolinska Institutet

Finding the Achilles heel of a malaria parasite

Project: ”The Achilles’ heel of breast cancer”

Grant: SEK 36 800 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Dr. Anita Göndör, Karolinska Institutet

Exploiting the adaptability of cancer cells

Project: ”Development of new therapeutic strategies based on the discovery of  ZC3H11A”

Grant: SEK 18 000 000 over two years
Principal investigator: Professor Leif Andersson, Uppsala University

Unknown mechanism paving the way for new drugs to combat flu and other viral infections

Natural sciences:

Project: “Interconnected quality (IQ) control – role in organelle structure-function, aging and longevity assurance”

Grant: SEK 44 700 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Professor Thomas Nyström, University of Gothenburg

Intra-cell communication keeping us young

Project:”Elucidating the principles of allelic expression and regulation using single-cell genomics”

Grant: SEK 18 400 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Professor Rickard Sandberg, Karolinska Institutet

Gene activity in individual cells

Project: “Deciphering the physicochemical codes for cellular function”

Grant: SEK 20 000 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Professor Mikael Oliveberg, Stockholm University

A new way to classify organisms

Project: ”Mitocondrial genome separation and segregation”

Grant: SEK 34 500 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Professor Maria Falkenberg, University of Gothenburg

A new research field opens up – mitochondrial reproduction

Project: ”Comparative Insect Biomics”

Grant: SEK 31 000 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Professor Fredrik Ronquist, Naturhistoriska Riksmuseet

DNA sequencing gives fresh knowledge about insects

Project: ”Deciphering Spatial Signaling of Protein Clusters at the Membrane”

Grant: SEK 25 150 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Associate Professor Björn Högberg, Karolinska Institutet

Revealing how cells communicate

Technology/physics/mathematics

Project: “Attosecond chronoscopy of electron wave-packets probing”

Grant: SEK 36 300 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Professor Raimund Feifel, University of Gothenburg

Quantum mechanical phenomena in real time

Project: ”Quantum sensors”

Grant: SEK 34 800 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Professor Val Zwiller, KTH Royal Institute of Technology

Project: “Pinning down the origin of collective effects in small collision systems”

Grant: SEK 26 200 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Associate Professor Peter Christiansen, Lund University

Disagreeing colleagues study the primordial matter of the universe

Project: ”Random structures and algorithms”

Grant: SEK 27 500 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Professor Svante Janson, Uppsala University

Mathematics researcher inspired by IT breakthroughs

Project: ”Controlled atomic scale 3D ordering for exotic electronic phases”

Grant: SEK 34 200 000 over five years
Principal investigator: Professor Kimberly Thelander, Lund University

Creating new materials from crystals on nanothreads

Project: ”Solving the Higgs Fine-Tuning Problem with Top Partners”

Grant: SEK 35 200 000 over five years 
Principal investigator: Associate Professor Sara Strandberg, Stockholm University

Looking for new elementary particles