Lab Members
Group Leader
Johanna Ivaska
Academy of Finland Professor
johanna.ivaska [at] utu.fi
Contact Information
Turku Centre for Biotechnology
Box 123, BioCity
(Street adr. Tykistökatu 6 B)
FIN-20521 Turku, Finland
Brief Background
PhD in collagen-binding integrins (Turku, Finland); Postdoc at CR-UK, LIR with Prof. Peter J. Parker; Lab established in 2003 (VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland); Now Academy Professor and Professor of Molecular Cell Biology at University of Turku Centre for Biotechnology.
For an interview with Johanna visit the Journal of Cell Biology: People and ideas.
Technical Staff
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/FullSizeRender-1.jpg)
Current Role
Day-to-day laboratory organisation and assisting in several research projectsResearch skills
Molecular biology, immunoprecipitation, PLA, IHC & IF and FACS analysis![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/FullSizeRender.jpg)
Current role
Day-to-day laboratory organisation and assisting in several research projectsResearch skills
Cell culture, DNA & RNA purification, Western blotting, IF, recombinant protein production, qRT-PCRDoctoral Candidates
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/aleksi-isomursu.jpg)
Project title
Mechanotransduction mechanisms in cancerResearch interests
Cancer, actin cytoskeleton, cell migration, ECM, mechanotransduction![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Niklas-Jäntti.jpg)
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Omkar-Joshi.jpg)
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Kaivola-Jasmin-IMG_1594.jpg)
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Huayi_Li_Ivaska_group.jpg)
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Pasquier-Nicolas-IMG_2126.jpg)
Postdoctoral Researchers
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Chastney-Megan-IMG_2200.jpg)
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Conway-James.jpg)
Project title
Regulation of integrin phosphorylationResearch interests
FRET biosensors and 3D models![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Michal_Dibus_Ivaska_grp_postdoc.jpg)
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Gautier.jpg)
Jacquemet Lab: https://cellmig.org/lab-members/
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Michalis_Gounis_Ivaska_group.jpg)
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/hamidi_hellyeh.jpg)
Research interests
Integrin activity, cell adhesion, cancer, cell migration![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Moreno-Layseca-Paulina.jpg)
Project title
LIMA1 in Rab21-mediated integrin traffickingResearch interests
Rab21, integrins, endosomes, LIMA1, cancer![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Veli-Matti_Leppanen_Ivaska_group.jpg)
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Meri_Pelkonen_Elenius_Ivaska_grps.jpg)
Undergraduate Students
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Elia_Heinonen_Ivaska_grp.jpg)
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Sofia_Held_Ivaska_grp.jpg)
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Trinh_Pham_Ivaska_group.jpg)
Trinh Pham
Undergraduate Student
Ivaska Lab![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Eva_Savulkina_Ivaska_group.jpg)
Eva Savulkina
![](https://sp-ao.shortpixel.ai/client/to_webp,q_glossy,ret_img/https://bioscience.fi/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Loane_Simon_Ivaska_goup.jpg)
Alumni
Doctoral Candidates
- Aki Stubb (thesis defended 2019)
- Pranshu Sahgal (thesis defended 2018)
- Jonna Alanko (thesis defended 2016)
- Riina Kaukonen (thesis defended 2016)
- Nicola De Franceschi (thesis defended 2016)
- Reetta Virtakoivu (thesis defended 2015)
- Gunilla Högnäs (thesis defended 2013)
- Juha Rantala (thesis defended 2011)
- Jonna Nevo (thesis defended 2011)
- Karolina Vuoriluoto (thesis defended 2010)
- Saara Tuomi (thesis defended 2010)
- Teijo Pellinen (thesis defended 2009)
- Elina Mattila (thesis defended 2009)
Postdocs
- Jaroslav Icha – 2019, next step: Application specialist for Promega cell-based assays and all luminescence products, Czech Republic
- Maria Georgiadou – August 2018, next step: Senior Researcher at Orion Pharma, Finland
- Mika Pietilä – until 2017, Next step: Astra Zeneca, Espoo, Finland
- Anja Mai – until 2016, Next step: Researcher at BerGenBio, Bergen, Norway
- Antti Arjonen – until 2015. Next step: Senior researcher at Misvik Biology Ltd, Turku, Finland
- Ghaffar Muharram – until 2013. Next step: Scientist at University of Lille, Lille, France
- Jeroen Pouwels – until 2013, Next step: group leader at Turku Centre for Biotechnology, Turku, Finland
- Stefan Veltel, Next step: lecturer at University of Applied Sciences, Bremen, Germany
- Emilia Peuhu – until 2019, next step: Group leader at Institute of Biomedicine, University of Turku
- Guillaume Jacquemet – until 2019, next step: Group leader at Åbo Akademi, Faculty of Science and Engineering
- Elisa Närvä -until 2021, Next step: group leader at Institute of Biomedicine, Turku, Finland