Description of the Research

Cytoskeletal intermediate filaments have received significant attention due to the broad range of diseases they have been shown to be associated with. Our research has established that these cytoskeletal proteins act as scaffolds, organizers, and gate-keepers for cell signaling. In this way, they direct signaling functions, with direct consequences for cell fate in tissues. More recently, our intermediate filament studies has focused on vimentin, which has key roles during wound healing, as it acts as a hub for the signaling networks that coordinate the recovery of injured tissue. By using this hub model, we have been able to map the signaling landscape in tissue recovery and revealed how vimentin works to orchestrate cell signaling during tissue regeneration. The gained molecular knowledge provides diagnostic and therapeutic approaches to tackle disease conditions including chronic wounds, internal injuries, different fibrotic diseases, and cancer. There is also potential to develop materials to promote regeneration and healing.

Thanks to our accumulated know-how in survival signaling we are also actively engaged in drug discovery and have developed a novel therapeutic concept to inhibit diseases related to human papillomavirus.

Group Members

From left to right: Navid Delshad, Ponnuswamy Mohanasundaram, Peiru Yang, Emilia Holm, Sepideh Parvanian, Leila Rato (sitting), Preethy Paul, John Eriksson, Mayank Modi, Tatiana Tarkhova, Giulia Sultana, Arun Venu, Joakim Edman, Robin Paetau, Michael Silva.

Funding

The group receive funding from Academy of Finland, Business Finland, European Union, Sigrid Juselius Foundation, Åbo Akademi University Foundation, Finnish Cancer Foundations