Research Council of Finland funds new Academy Projects in biosciences and health and environmental research
The Scientific Council allocated a total of over 76 million to Academy Projects, Academy Research Fellowships and Clinical Researchers.
Academy Research Fellowships are granted for a period of four years. The funding for Clinical Researchers and Academy Projects is granted for a period of four years at the most.
The aim of Academy Project funding is to promote the renewal and diversity of Finnish science and to improve both the quality and scientific and other impact of research. The aim is to attain internationally as high a scientific standard of work as possible and to support scientific breakthroughs and top-tier international research collaborations.
A total of 562 Academy Project funding applications were submitted and about 16% of all the proposed projects were funded. The funding totals EUR 45 million.
The applications were reviewed by 21 panels.
Randomised pragmatic trial of screening for clinically significant prostate cancer
The ProScreen consortium led by Professor Anssi Auvinen investigates a new screening method for detecting prostate cancer.
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men and the third most common cause of cancer deaths. PSA-based screening has been shown to reduce prostate cancer mortality, but it causes a substantial overdiagnosis of indolent cases, which is why it has not been widely introduced.
The ProScreen study investigates whether the balance of the benefits and drawbacks of screening can be improved by using two blood-based tests — PSA and a kallikrein panel — and magnetic resonance imaging. The main goal is to assess the impact of screening on prostate cancer mortality.
The researchers’ preliminary results indicate that the method can detect aggressive cancers without significant overdiagnosis. The next stage strives to assess the impacts and the improvement of screening methods as well as optimising the screening algorithm using biological samples and digital data collected in the trial.
Helsinki University Hospital Catchment Area is a partner in the ProScreen study with its own Research Council of Finland-funded project.
Controlling integrin clustering
Professor of Cellular and Molecular Biology Vesa Hytönen’s project investigates cell surface receptors. The project studies integrin-mediated phagocytosis, which is associated with age-related macular degeneration.
Cell surface receptors play a critical role in cellular communication and are integral to physiological regulation. Integrins, a family of cell adhesion receptors, facilitate interactions between cells and their extracellular environment, contributing to a range of biological functions.
Hytönen’s Academy Project develops tools for controlling integrin clustering on the molecular level.
Effective communication between cells and the extracellular matrix is essential for biological processes such a wound healing. The improved understanding of integrin-mediated matrix remodelling offers opportunities for preventing pathological conditions that may lead to undesirable outcomes, such as excessive scar formation or fibrosis.
Influences of maternal, paternal and offspring genes on the hypertensive pregnancy complication of pre-eclampsia
Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Hannele Laivuori’s Academy Project studies pre-eclampsia (PE), which is a common pregnancy complication. The aim is the early prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in women and their families.
The study uses register data to classify the risk of CVD after a pre-eclampsia. The second aim is to study how genetic susceptibility to PE and CVD predict the course of pregnancy and later CVD. The third aim is to include paternal and offspring genetic data to explore the contribution of the family trio to the maternal risk of PE and later CVD morbidity in each family member.
The data will help to understand the complex association of PE with CVD in families. The scientific understanding thus gained is needed to provide targeted medical follow-up after pregnancy.
Role of oxidation and Nrf2 in systematic approach to study adverse effects of ultrafine particles
Professor of Aerosol Physics Topi Rönkkö’s Academy Project investigates the adverse effects of air pollution.
Air pollution is a well-known cause of adverse health effects in the human respiratory system and other organs. The WHO has found that especially ultrafine particles (UFP) and their component, black carbon (BC), are emerging as highly significant for health and the environment. One of the key mechanisms of the health effects is oxidative stress, which is a key mechanism in adverse health effects.
Because the real causes of the adverse effects are not known, systematic study of UFP compositions in a highly controllable manner is needed. Moreover, air pollution monitoring would require easy and robust ways of detecting the potential for adverse effects from air samples.
This highly multidisciplinary research project of Tampere University and the University of Eastern Finland systematically studies the role of different compositions (metals, organic compounds) on adverse effects.
Identification and characterization of lncRNAs driving aggressive prostate cancer
Professor Tapio Visakorpi leads an Academy Project that investigates the molecules that underlie prostate cancer.
The study asks which cancers should be actively treated, which therapies should be chosen and how to develop more efficient treatments for the aggressive forms of the disease.
Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are implicated in several diseases, including prostate cancer. However, their functions and significance are poorly understood. In this study, the researchers will identify lncRNAs, which are altered specifically in aggressive prostate cancer, and analyse their function as diagnostic markers.
The project will use a wide-ranging sample biorepository to establish whether IncRNAs could function as biomarkers or drug targets.
