Research at Oslo University Hospital

Three Oslo University Hospital scientists have received prestigous awards for their outstanding research. The major prize - the "Excellent Researcher Award" - went to Michael Bretthauer. Anna Hoffmann-Vold and Olav Kristianslund both received the "Early Career Award".

The prize money - 300.000 and 150.000 NOK respectively - is earmarked for research activities. The awards are distributed anually in order to honour excellent scientific work. The awarding process is organized by the hospital's research committee, while an external Scientific Advisory Board has evaluated the candidates. 

Researchers from Oslo University Hospital and Vestre Viken show that activation of the innate immune system contributes to breathing difficulties in covid-19 patients. In a study recently published in the prestigious journal "Proceedings of the National Academy of Science" they show that systemic and long-term activation of the complement system occurred in 39 Norwegian covid-19 patients who were hospitalized.

OUH scientists Søren Pischke and Jan Cato Holter are shared first authors, and Tom Erik Mollnes is last author. They have also written a populuar science article about the findings.

On this web page you will find an overview over planned and ongoing clinical trials and other research projects at Oslo University Hospital related to COVID-19 and SARS CoV-2 infection. The information has been retrieved from applications to the regional ethics committee, the Norwegian Research Council, other funding sources, or directly from the researchers behind the projects.

The Department of Ophthalmology at Oslo University Hospital and the Laboratory of Adaptive Immunity and Homeostasis of both Oslo University Hospital and University of Oslo, have entered an industry development agreement with the Dutch medical device company SJJ Solutions. The collaboration has resulted in a prototype of a tailor-made syringe optimised for eye injections.

Based on a licence from Else Marit Inderberg and Sebastien Wälchli’s group at The Section of Cell Therapy at Oslo University Hospital, the company Zelluna Immunotherapy is developing natural killer cells that are steered by T cell receptors. The aim is to offer different forms of targeted immunotherapy treatments that do not have to be individually tailored for each patient. Zelluna Immunotherapy receives NOK 83 million from investors and the Research Council of Norway to continue its work on this new form of cancer immunotherapy.

A unanimous prize committee highlights Bogen’s contributions to medical vaccine research as critical to the field of medicine and research-based innovation at the University of Oslo. Bjarne Bogen is head of the Cellular and Molecular Immunology research group at the Department of Immunology, under the Division of Laboratory Medicine. He is a professor at the Institute of Clinical Medicine and previously headed the K.G. Jebsen Centre for Influenza Vaccine Research, which closed in 2019. The award was distributed on September 2nd during the University of Oslo’s Annual Celebration.

Ole A. Andreassen, from The Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research (NORMENT) at the Division for Mental Health and Addiction, has received the award for his contributions to uncovering the complex genetic architecture behind mental disorders and for key contributions to Norwegian mental health research.
The prize, consisting of a monetary award of NOK 250,000 and a diploma, was presented at the University of Oslo’s Annual Celebration on September 2nd.

The National Research Conference in Musculoskeletal Health is an interdisciplinary conference that covers research in musculoskeletal injuries, diseases and ailments. The conference will be a meeting point for researchers, healthcare professionals, users, clinicians and others interested in musculoskeletal health.
Deadline for abstract submission: Sept 11 (possible to apply for extended deadline)

Complete information from the conference homepage

An enormous pink commitment from Norwegians last year means that six breast cancer researchers now receive a total of NOK 25 million. Among these are the following three scientist from Oslo University Hospital: Jon Amund Kyte (Department of Cancer Immunology), Therese Sørlie (Department of Cancer Genetics) and Xavier Tekpli (Department of Medical Genetics).

The goal of the Pink Ribbon campaign is to show solidarity with those affected by breast cancer, increase knowledge about the disease and provide support for research. Since 1999, Norwegians have contributed more than NOK 280 million.