Elina Järvelä-Reijonen (elina.jarvela-reijonen@uef.fi)
I am a nutritionist interested in eating behavior and helping people to make better eating-related choices, and thus preventing obesity and type 2 diabetes. Especially concerned about people with psychological distress, low socioeconomic position, and metabolic syndrome risk factors. Also expertise in nudging, coealic disease and gluten-free diet.
Joonas Kosonen (joonas.kosonen@uef.fi)
One of the hallmarks of osteoarthritis progression is cartilage degeneration, which is partly driven by cartilage cells. However, the mechanisms triggering the cell-driven cartilage degeneration and tissue adaptation are poorly understood. Thus, in my Phd work we investigate how different cell-level mechanisms contribute to the cartilage degradation and osteoarthritis progression in injured cartilage.
To provide insight to the cartilage degradation mechanisms, we implement computational models to assess cell-driven cartilage degeneration after biomechanical (excessive loading triggered degradation) and biochemical (pro-inflammatory cytokine, such as interleukin-1 (IL-1), triggered degradation) stimulus. As shown by previous experiments, these factors may cause cell death, oxidative stress, and cell damage, promoting cartilage proteoglycan (PG) degeneration. These degenerative factors will be simulated first with tissue-level models. With the new numerical model, we are also going to assess potential intervention strategies to mitigate cell death and cartilage degradation as well as potential tissue recovery. The model is going to be calibrated against new in vitro biological experiments.
Finally, the new cell-driven tissue-level degradation model will be augmented into the joint-level models of articular cartilage to estimate patients’ cartilage health. Improved joint-level models could supplement the current models by providing novel tools to better estimate cartilage adaptation as well as avail development of new intervention strategies.
Leena Latonen (leena.latonen@uef.fi)
In the Cancer Stress Biology research we study the molecular, cellular and tissue mechanisms that contribute to the increased ability of cancer cells to tolerate stress. We focus on the molecular mechanisms behind the different capacities of cancer and neuronal cells to deal with protein and RNA aggregates, and the ability of cancer cells to form resistance to drugs. We also query the cancer growth patterns in tissue combining this to molecular information in order to better understand the mechanisms behind cancer cells’ ability to survive in the crossfire of different stress types. In our tissue analysis collaboration projects we search for better ways to image, visualise and quantitatively analyse histology with development of digital pathology, machine learning and AI tools.
Understanding the molecular mechanisms behind detrimental tissue effects in disease are key to find more efficient treatments for patients. Better understanding of cellular stress responses enables identification of novel drug targets. If we can inhibit the increased ability of cancer cells to bypass toxic amounts of stress, we can identify ways to destroy cancer cells. On the other hand, by activating the stress responses in cells that are unable to buffer out toxic effects, we can prevent the damage on cells and tissues in diseases such as neurodegeneration.
Please visit our research group website:
https://sites.uef.fi/cancer-stress-biology-latonen/
Mastaneh Torkamani Azar (mastaneh.torkamani@uef.fi)
Postdoctoral Researcher at Biomedical Image Analysis Group, A.I Virtanen Institute, Faculty of Health Sciences, Kuopio (2022 – present) and Interactive Technologies, School of Computing, Joensuu (2020 – 2022). Leader of proof-of-concept project from 04.2022-11.2022 in collaboration with HUMEA laboratory, Department of Technical Physics, and the Microsurgery Center of Eastern Finland at Kuopio University Hospital. Actively working on statistical signal processing, interactive medical technologies, cognitive neuroscience (sustained attention / vigilance, psychophysiological stress) and mental state monitoring, multi-modal data analysis and decision fusion for data-driven surgery, microsurgery image synthesis using generative adversarial networks, and adaptive EEG-based brain-computer interfaces (BCIs).
Mervi Hyvönen (mervi.hyvonen@uef.fi)
I work in arctic research strategic programme funded by the Academy of Finland, in the group led by Professor Jouko Vepsäläinen. We collaborate with Professor Alex R. Khomutov from the Moscow Engelhardt Institute. Our project “Biogenic amines in the health challenge caused by the changing arctic climate; ABIOHEALTH” belongs to theme “Changing arctic climate, changing diseases”. We investigate the role and functions of polyamines in the biotic and abiotic stresses caused by the chaning arctic climate. We aim to develop novel polyamine-based drug candidates against pathogenic micro-organisms and diseases which are spreading to the arctic area due to theclimate change.
Mervi Issakainen (mervi.issakainen@uef.fi)
I work as a senior researcher in social psychology, with a particular interest in health and well-being issues. I have explored young people’s distress in relation to cultural conceptions of depression, and the experiences, life situations and rights of people with mild cognitive impairment or early onset dementia in working age. I am currently involved in research projects on the well-being and rights of older people, people living with dementia and people living with epilepsy.
Mika Tarvainen (mika.tarvainen@uef.fi)
Mika P. Tarvainen, Ph.D, Docent, received the M.Sc. degree in 1999 and the Ph.D. degree in 2004 from the University of Kuopio, Kuopio,Finland. He is currently a Senior Researcher at the Department of Applied Physics,University of Eastern Finland and Consultant at the Department of Clinical Physiology and Nuclear Medicine, Kuopio University Hospital.
His current research interests include medical signal analysis methods and physiological modelling and their applications in assessing human health. Specifically, development of analysis methods for cardiovascular signals, including heart rate variability (HRV), and psychophysiological measurements. The main research applications include objective assessment of occupational stress, complications of diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases.
Mika Tarvainen is also the founder of Kubios Oy and Partner at Heart2Save Oy, both companies are based in Finland. Kubios Oy is a start-up company providing HRV and other biomedical signal analysis software tools for researchers and consumers, as well as algorithms and custom-built software for the health and wellbeing industry. Kubios HRV software is the most detailed HRV analysis software in the market and is used at roughly 1200 universities in 128 countries.
Olusegun Akinyemi (olusegun.akinyemi@uef.fi)
I use high-throughput phenotyping techniques: chlorophyll fluorescence induction, and hyperspectral imaging to assess measurable trait differences of important forest trees to variations in environmental conditions and drought stress.
I aim to characterize phenotypic variation among European aspen genotypes in response to drought stress and during recovery, assess differences in photosynthetic efficiency between Finnish silver birch originating from northern and southern provenances, and develop an improved methodology for plant phenotyping.
Rajendra Ghimire (rajendra.ghimire@uef.fi)
My research goal is to study chemical defense of conifer tree species in response to biotic and abiotic stress factors. More specifically, my research aims to investigate plant productivity and volatile and non-volatile terpenoid secondary metabolites (TSM) in boreal conifers under biological and climatic stressors, and evaluate terpenoid-mediated ecosystem feedback to climate change.