About me

M.Sci - Stockholm University 1988

M.Med.Sc - Karolinska Institutet 1989

Ph.D - Karolinska Institutet 1999

Associate Professor - Karolinska Institutet 2007

Research description

Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory disease in which bacterial products, host response, genetic and environmental factors are involved. It is generally accepted that the bacterial products activate host immunoinflammatory responses and subsequently the production of inflammatory mediators, prostaglandins and proteolytic enzymes which, directly or indirectly, contribute to the destruction of the periodontal tissues. However, neither the precise molecular mechanism(s) nor the regulatory genes underlying periodontitis are fully understood. 
During past decades, reciprocal effects of periodontal disease have been considered as factors potentially affecting the progression of other chronic inflammatory diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus, obesity, and rheumatoid arthritis. The underlying pathological mechanisms of periodontitis and rheumatoid arthritis are strikingly similar although the link, strength and temporality of the association is still not understood.

Objectives of our research are:

- to identify predictive and diagnostic biomarkers for periodontitis
- to develop anti-inflammatory agents targeting the enzyme prostaglandin E synthase for chronic inflammation 
- to investigate the relationship between periodontitis/periodontal pathogens and associated diseases such as   rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes
- to study the interactions between oral microbiome and carcinogenesis

Group members

Tülay Yucel-Lindberg – Associate professor; 
Carina Fie – PhD student;  
Anders Lindunger – PhD student;
 Carl Lundgren– PhD student; Kaja Eriksson – associated;
 Anna Lundmark – associated; 
Anna Kats – associated; 
Mehrad Mohammadi – KI’s summer research school; Elizabeth Stenwall –  KI’s summer research school

Research grants 

The Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet);
The Patent Revenue Fund for Research in Preventive Odontology (Patentmedelsfonden);
Stockholm County Council, KI/SLL for odontological research (SOF);
Stockholm County Council (ALF);
Reumatikerförbundet

Dissertations

Tove Båge -  Prostaglandin E synthases in periodontitis-affected gingival tissue and in gingival fibroblasts

Anna Kats - Expression of prostaglandin E synthase-1 in periodontitis : in vivo and in vitro studies

Haleh Davanian - Gene expression profiling in periodontitis

Kaja Eriksson - Studies on the relationship between periodontitis and rheumatoid arthritis

Anna Lundmark - Transcriptomic and taxonomic profiling of periodontitis by massively parallel sequencing