{"id":12241,"date":"2024-08-22T09:44:49","date_gmt":"2024-08-22T07:44:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leo-foundation.org\/en\/?p=12241"},"modified":"2024-08-22T09:44:50","modified_gmt":"2024-08-22T07:44:50","slug":"the-leo-foundation-awards-dkk-44-million-to-12-pioneering-skin-research-projects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/leo-foundation.org\/en\/2024\/08\/22\/the-leo-foundation-awards-dkk-44-million-to-12-pioneering-skin-research-projects\/","title":{"rendered":"The LEO Foundation awards DKK 44 million to 12 pioneering skin research projects"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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22 August 2024<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The LEO Foundation\u2019s latest round of research grants sees DKK 44 million to 12 international skin research projects, that will illuminate new corners of dermatological knowledge.<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How can a system that mimics the fetal way of forming connective tissue and at the same time keeps the immune system calm, contribute to the ability of adult skin to heal without scarring? What is the genetic background of rosacea, a common and chronic facial skin inflammation? And can a new treatment help patients suffering from from psoriasis?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are just some of the questions being tackled by the 12 research projects, recently funded by the LEO Foundation with a total of more than DKK 44 million. Among the grant recipients are Professor Ole Birger Pedersen at Zealand University Hospital in Denmark, Assistant Professor Wei Tao from Brigham and Women\u2019s Hospital in the US, and Professor Rebecca Deprez-Poulain at Institut Pasteur de Lille in France.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are very pleased to award funding for these 12 pioneering research projects from across the world. The funded projects are highly diverse and vary from exploring the mechanisms of skin aging and immunity dysfunction to new treatment of psoriasis and determining the genetic basis of rosacea. Each research project will create new dermatological knowledge that will benefit the many people globally who live skin diseases,\u201d says Anne-Marie Engel, Chief Scientific Officer at the LEO Foundation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This round of Research Grants in open competition saw 54 applications and covered basic, translational, technical, clinical and epidemiological research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A glance into the projects<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Understanding the genetic pathways of rosacea<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

One project to receive a grant is that by Professor Ole Birger Pedersen from Zealand University Hospital in K\u00f8ge, Denmark. His research aims to identify the genetic pathways of rosacea and determine the causal connection and modifiable risk factors associated with previously reported systemic comorbidities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rosacea is a common chronic inflammatory skin disease of the face, which may manifest as a bulbous nose, flushing, and inflammatory pimple-like spots among other discomforts. Severe rosacea has a large impact on patients\u2019 quality of life, social and psychological well-being and has been linked to many systemic comorbidities including cardiovascular, psychiatric, neurological, and cancer diseases. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ole Birger Pedersen has recently developed a rosacea classification tool, which he applied to a cohort of approximately 55,000 Danes, allowing for detailed analysis of the association between rosacea, risk factors and comorbidities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The knowledge gained from this explorative research may eventually pave the way for developing new treatments and early targeted interventions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Exploring the potential of new treatment of psoriasis<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Professor Rebecca Deprez-Poulain from Institut Pasteur de Lille in France receives a grant for her research project focused on the therapeutic potential of the so-called ERAP1 and ERAP2 inhibitors for the treatment of psoriasis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Psoriasis is known to be caused by the erroneous recognition of self-antigens by T-cells. Rebecca Deprez-Poulain has identified selective inhibitors of ERAP1 and ERAP2, which decrease antigen presentation and T-cell activation, showing preliminary positive results in vivo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rebecca Deprez-Poulain\u2019s research will combine both structural biology, medical chemistry, biochemistry, and cellular biology to optimize currently known compounds into potent and selective inhibitors targeting ERAP. This project may define the optimal profile of an ERAP inhibitor as a pharmacological tool, providing a foundation for the exploration of ERAP\u2019s role and eventually the development of an ERAP-based oral treatment for psoriasis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mimicking the scarless fetal wound healing process<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another project to receive funding is that by Dr. Wei Tao, Farokhzad Family Distinguished Chair for Innovation at Brigham and Women\u2019s Hospital in the US. His research explores biological mechanisms to improve wound healing in adults by mimicking the processes involved in connective tissue rearrangement during fetal development. He aims to use sophisticated mRNA delivery techniques to produce specific proteins that replicate the generation of the fetal extracellular matrix while simultaneously keeping the immune system in check, thereby inhibiting the biological processes that lead to scar formation. Wei Tao\u2019s research holds potential not only for establishing a foundation for future scarless wound healing studies but also for clinical applications in wound care and other dermatological diseases using mRNA medicine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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12 Research Grants<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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