Explore our grantees and awardees

Grant category: Research Grants in open competition

Year: 2023

Geography: Denmark

This project of Ulrich auf dem Keller aims to elucidate the potential role of a set of recently discovered proteins in atopic dermatitis that may contribute to disease development.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin condition that affects people of all ages. It is one of the most common skin diseases, affecting approximately 10-20% of children and 1-3% of adults worldwide. AD can be a frustrating and uncomfortable condition that can significantly impact a person’s quality of life.

Despite extensive research it is not fully clear, if AD is primarily caused by a defect barrier function of the skin, allowing uncontrolled entry of environmental allergens that trigger an immune response, or by immunological disorders that in turn weaken the skin’s protective barrier, exaggerating the disease in a vicious cycle. Most likely, both contribute to predisposition and development of AD, but there are differences between patients which call for customized therapies.

Together with basic skin researchers in Switzerland and dermatologists in Germany, Ulrich auf dem Keller has identified proteins in non-lesional skin of AD patients whose activities might impair skin barrier integrity mostly independent of an immune response. This project will use human skin models and advanced protein analytics to understand if and how they might exert these detrimental activities and thereby contribute to predisposition to AD in affected individuals. Moreover, they will test their findings in samples from AD patients with a long-term aim to contribute to new strategies for development of therapeutics as alternatives to frequently applied emollients in barrier repair therapy.

Grant category: Research Grants in open competition

Year: 2023

Geography: Denmark

This research project aims to synergistically improve patient treatment and improve understanding of the underlying biological and chemical mechanisms of cutaneous dystrophic calcinosis (DC) – a disease causing exaggerated deposition of calcium salts in skin.

These pathological calcifications cause severe ulcerations and pain in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) and negatively impact their quality of life. Today, reliable methods of quantifying the distribution, volume and composition of calcium crystal deposits are lacking.

Combining the expertise of data scientists and molecular biologists with medical experts in the field of radiology, dermatology, and rheumatology, Mette Mogensen and her team will create a new approach for quantifying calcium crystal deposits in skin and soft tissue in patients suffering from SSc, which is highly needed to monitor disease progression and potential treatment effects in future clinical trials. Several smaller studies have shown a potential for treating DC using sodium thiosulphate (STS). The aim of this study is to explore the characteristics of DC and investigate how STS treatment effects can be monitored over time with novel biomarkers (from blood and skin biopsies) and by advanced imaging technologies.

The vision is to cure calcinosis and the goal of this project is to increase quality of life for patients by development of an effective, targeted treatment that may offer therapeutic potential to all DC patients globally.

Grant category: Research Grants in open competition

Year: 2023

Geography: Denmark

In this project Mariaceleste Aragona, in collaboration with Elena Enzo (University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy), aims at the optimization of skin graft production for regenerative and replacement purpose.

Skin grafts for transplantation purposes are generated from epidermal stem cells. These regenerative therapies are life-saving procedures and have been demonstrated to be successful and safe for the treatment of burns and severe genetic diseases. Long lasting skin regeneration requires the correct amount of stem cells (SCs) in the graft. However, the treatment of large burns or skin replacement therapy in elderly patients are still challenging.

In such situations, the limited area of donor sites, and the physiological reduction of the number of SCs results in insufficient availability of SCs for graft production. A way to efficiently produce more SCs is to enforce their self-renewing – the process of generating more SCs – capacity.

A condition that forces SCs to increase their self-renewal capacity is tissue stretching. In this project, Mariaceleste Aragona aims to generate a comprehensive atlas of the changes occurring in space and time during tissue stretching. Based on this atlas, they will elucidate the signaling molecules instructing SC’s self-renewal and identify options to target such molecules. This knowledge will be used to develop cell culture conditions to ameliorate skin graft productions for clinical application.

Collectively, such insights will provide new fundamental knowledge on the biology of SCs and this approach may improve the clinical success of skin regenerative and replacement therapies to the benefit of patients.

Grant category: Research Grants in open competition

Year: 2023

Geography: Denmark

Hans Wandall’s project aims to investigate the potential role of sugar molecules (glycans) in inflammatory skin diseases.

Several skin diseases, including atopic dermatitis, contact dermatitis, and psoriasis, are caused by a cascade of inflammatory events localized to the epidermis and the dermis.

Based on substantial preliminary findings showing dysregulation of glycosylation (sugarcoating) of the cells in the skin of patients with inflammatory skin diseases, Hans Wandall and his team hypothesize that carbohydrate receptors on immune cells recognize inflammation-induced glycan changes and induce a vicious cycle that aggravates inflammatory skin diseases in susceptible individuals.

They will investigate this through a three-pronged approach: 1) characterize the glycosylation patterns of skin samples obtained from patients diagnosed with contact dermatitis, psoriasis, and atopic dermatitis, and also analyze glycosylation patterns on human keratinocytes and fibroblasts from skin-inflammation models based on human 3D organ-like skin systems with exogenous cytokines and inflammatory cells and samples from murine models of inflammatory skin diseases. 2) Next, they will co-culture immune cells with keratinocytes ablated for select glycosylation pathways to define the functional role these in relation to glycan changes, and finally, 3) analyze the importance of key immune receptors sensing the glycan changes.

Through the investigations, the project will systematically evaluate the role of glycans in inflammatory skin diseases with a promise to provide new targets for interventions.

Grant category: Education and Awareness Grants

Year: 2023

Geography: Denmark

“Danske Stjerner” (translated to Danish stars) is a series of children’s books about important Danish scientists. The series is for kids of aged 4-8 years. The books’ stories are illustrated, and their tales begin  when the scientists are the same age as their young readers. They then follow the scientists into adulthood, exploring their lives and discoveries. The aim of the series is to increase children’s interest for science, and to inspire them through role models. So far, the series consists of eight published books, illustrating the lives of, amongst others, physicist Niels Bohr, seismologist Inge Lehmann, and astronaut Andreas Mogensen.

The grant is for DKK 380,000 and supports the publishing of four additional books to the series, including one about Morten Peter Meldal, who won the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 2022 for the development of “click chemistry”, and one about Elise Sørensen, creator of the colostomy bag, which today is used globally.

Visit The Children’s Book Publisher’s webpage

Grant category: Education and Awareness Grants

Year: 2023

Geography: Denmark

The Biology Olympiad (Biologiolympiaden) is an initiative which encourages education within biology and biotechnology. The Biology Olympiad is a Danish, nation-wide, online competition for high school students, where the 30 best students progress to the semi-final as well as a talent program – established in partnership with the University of Copenhagen (KU), Aarhus University (AU), University of Southern Denmark (SDU), and Technical University of Denmark (DTU). The talent program, which combines both theory and laboratory exercises, follows the young participants through a series of exercises within cell biology, biochemistry, physiology, ecology, genetics, and evolution. 15 students then progress to the final, and four national winners invited to participate in the international final with participants from 78 countries.

The grant for DKK 100,000 supports introductory exercises and training sessions, as well as travel andfor the four Danish winners invited to compete internationally in 2023. The international final will take place in the United Arab Emirates.

Visit the Biology Olympiad’s webpage

Grant category: Education and Awareness Grants

Year: 2023

Geography: Denmark

High5Girls is a non-profit organization which works to inspire young women (ages 13-19) to take an education within the STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). Through camps, workshops, and hackathons, the aim is to strengthen women’s opportunities to create, think innovatively, and turn ideas into reality.

All events are free, and the focus is on solving real challenges. Mentors and role models are also women working within STEM, both from the academic world but also from within the industry.

The grant of DKK 259,884 is to help fund three STEM camps as well as three events for young women and their mothers. The project will create a safe space, where young women can learn about STEM, experiment, and learn through both successes and failures. The goal is also to strengthen the young participants’ self-esteems as well as belief in their own capabilities. Focus is placed on finding solutions for societal challenges through technology and science. Close collaboration with role models throughout hopes to provide inspiration for the young participants to choose an educational or career path within the STEM area.

Visit High5Girls webpage

Grant category: Education and Awareness Grants

Year: 2023

Geography: Denmark

Maria Jarjis is an influencer who goes by the name “Videnskabsmaria”, and has for the last six years run the YouTube channel “WTF is that?” (“WTF er det?”). Using engaging cases, Maria Jarjis fosters an awareness through her channel for the world of sciences, and she specifically targets a youthful demographic of viewers between the ages of 14-24 years – who can be challenging to reach through more the traditional media. The YouTube channel “WTF is that?” has 63,500 followers, and altogether, Maria Jarjis’ videos have been viewed over 22 million times.

The LEO Foundation’s grant of DKK 243,000 supports the production of five videos with a focus on skin and skin diseases. In the videos, Maria Jarjis will interview researchers and other experts. The videos will be released on the YouTube channel “WTF is that?” throughout 2023 and be publicly accessible to young viewers, as well as to anyone else with an interest within the area.

Visit the YouTube channel “WTF is that?”

Grant category: Standalone grants

Year: 2023

Geography: Denmark

The Costerton Biofilm Center (CBC) at Department of Immunology and Microbiology (ISIM), University of Copenhagen, is a world-leading interdisciplinary research center dedicated to exploring chronic infections caused by bacteria, including skin infections. The center runs two infrastructure facilities which are open to external users from basic, clinical, and industrial research. 

There is an urgent need in the center’s Biofilm Test Facility to replace an outdated confocal laser scanning microscope which can no longer be serviced. The grant from the LEO Foundation therefore hopes to provide this upgrade, the microscope a critical tool in the CBC’s pioneering work on understanding how the ability of bacteria to form biofilm is key to addressing antimicrobial resistance and developing novel antibacterial treatments.  

Grant category: Research Grants in open competition

Year: 2022

Geography: Denmark

Nils Færgeman’s proposal investigates the role of acyl-CoA binding protein (ACBP) in regulating dermal white adipose tissue function in the skin.

Dermal white adipose tissue (dWAT) is a distinct type of fat depot located under the reticular dermis (the deepest layer of the dermis) and comprises a special layer of the skin. Compared to other well-defined fat depots, dWAT shows a very high degree of plasticity, and can rapidly and locally expand and reduce its volume in response to various stimuli.

Via lipolysis (an enzymatic process that releases free fatty acids from triglycerides in fat depots) dermal white adipocytes (fat cells) release fatty acids into the extracellular space, which for example can regulate production of extracellular matrix in dermal fibroblasts and differentiation of keratinocytes.

Recently, Nils and colleagues have demonstrated that acyl-CoA binding protein plays a fundamental role in lipid metabolism in the skin and is indispensable for its barrier function. Given that ACBP is required for differentiation of white adipocytes and given its high expression in the skin, the hypothesis behind this project is that ACBP plays a critical role in dermal adipose tissue by serving as a key regulator and driver of intracellular fatty acid metabolism.

The group will use state-of-the-art lipidomics (global analyses of lipid composition and abundance) and genomics technologies and a series of novel mouse models, to clarify the role of ACBP in dWAT functions in the skin and to define the role of dWAT in systemic energy metabolism.