Research at Oslo University Hospital

Cancer researchers from Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo, and Institut Curie, Paris, held a successful kick-off seminar in Paris on March 25^th, followed by a reception with Norway’s ambassador in France.

Thanks to a generous donation from Trond S. Paulsen, a new collaboration between ICR and Institut Curie, Paris, was opened. The funded project, “Mechanisms of cancer cell invasion” (InvaCell), is a collaboration between the groups of Harald Stenmark, ICR, and Philippe Chavrier, Institut Curie.

Dr. Theodossis Theodossiou discusses his team’s cutting-edge research into curing cancer with photodynamic therapy (PDT). PDT is an exciting anti-cancer treatment, currently used clinically. It works by using light, a photo-activatable drug and oxygen to kill cancer. With the specificity of the treatment relying on the application of light.

In this video, Dr. Theodossiou describes how his team are working to improve the efficiency and accuracy of PDT through a variety of methods.

Philips, B.Braun and Oslo University Hospital, represented by Axel R. Sauter and Leiv Arne Rosseland from the Division of Emergencies and Critical Care, have partnered in the EU funded INTUI-VIEW project to develop, validate, and bring to the market an intelligent needle tracking technology using ultrasound imaging.

The collaboration has successfully resulted in a market launch of a completely new solution, with the potential to revolutionise the field of regional anesthesia.

Research published March 21st in the open access Nature journal "Translational Psychiatry" found patients with severe mental disorders who had experienced childhood abuse to have shorter telomeres, a predictor of biological age. 

Here, Monica Aas, lead author of the study together with Torbjørn Elvsåshagen and Ole Andreassen tells us about the findings and what the next steps are for the field. 

Professor Kjersti Flatmark (Departments of Tumor Biology and Gastroenterological Surgery) was recently elected Chair of the EuroPMP COST Action, aimed at creating better networking opportunities for researchers and clinicians working to find a cure for rare cancer pseudomyxoma peritonei (PMP).

The article entitled “Small variations in nanoparticle structure dictate differential cellular stress responses and mode of cell death”, just published in Nanotoxicology, describes details about the toxic mechanisms obtained by testing three very similar nanoparticles on six cancer cell lines. The three different types of particles where all of the class poly(alkylcyanoacrylate), they differed only in their alkyl side chains being butyl (PBCA), ethylbutyl (PEBCA) or octyl (POCA). Such substances have for many years been used as medical glue. The authors describe different effects of these nanoparticles.

Researchers at the Oslo University Hospital and University of Oslo are developing a computer program that can assist oncologists to find the best personalized treatment for each patient. The main driving force behind the project is Arnoldo Frigessi, professor in medical statistics at UiO, who is head of the "Oslo Centre for Biostatistics Epidemiology" at OUS and leader of the "Centre for Research-based Innovation" (SFI) "Big Insight".

The award winning research magazine "Apollon" recently presented the work of Frigessi and collaborators in an extensive feature article by Yngve Vogt.

A joint effort by several groups at the Institute for Cancer Research and University of Oslo, led by Dr. Jodie Goodridge and Prof. Karl-Johan Malmberg provide new insights into the molecular basis behind NK cell education.

NK cells calibrate their functional potential against host MHC in a process termed education. Paradoxically, the more inhibitory input the cell receives during its education, the stronger its functional potential. Although this phenomena is well documented and conserved across species, the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying NK cell education have remained elusive. 

FRIPRO is an open, national competitive arena that covers all fields of research. FRIPRO aims to promote scientific excellence, bold and innovative research, support the careers of young research talents, as well as increasing the mobility for scientists early in their careers.

Five promising researchers and projects originating from Oslo University Hospital have now been granted suppoert from FRIPRIO.