{"id":14621,"date":"2026-11-02T09:41:17","date_gmt":"2026-11-02T08:41:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leo-foundation.org\/en\/?p=14621"},"modified":"2026-11-02T09:41:20","modified_gmt":"2026-11-02T08:41:20","slug":"cutting-edge-steps-to-reach-the-inaccessible","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/leo-foundation.org\/en\/2026\/11\/02\/cutting-edge-steps-to-reach-the-inaccessible\/","title":{"rendered":"Cutting-edge steps to reach the inaccessible"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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2 November 2026<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bacterial biofilms deep in the skin can limit treatment of hidradenitis suppurativa, a chronic disease. Dr Abildgaard Fellow Tijana Miseljic introduces micromotors to overcome this barrier. <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

One of the uniquely difficult aspects of the skin condition hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is that it creates inflamed tunnels in the skin. These can be weblike or resemble a tree’s branches in their architecture, as they differ from patient to patient. Treatment exists, but over time biofilms can develop within these tunnels, enclosing bacteria and making them more difficult to target with treatment. 1 out of 100 gets the condition, mostly women.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a LEO Foundation Dr Abildgaard Fellow, Tijana Miseljic will map out a solution: Adding a so-called micromotor onto the skin. The groundbreaking technology consists of tiny light-activated devices. In this case, the Assistant Professor at the Technical University of Denmark proposes that they have the potential to break down the biofilm – one of the barriers to solving HS. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“If it works, treatment could penetrate the biofilm more effectively and better target persistent bacteria within the tunnels, which may help reduce recurrent lesions,” she says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Applying creativity to research<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is new to use micromotors for this purpose. At the moment they have mostly been applied as a part of environmental efforts, for instance to reduce pollutants in water areas, but they are increasingly being explored for biomedical applications. As a field of research Tijana Miseljic knows micromotors well. It was the focus of her PhD. With this project she will test the micromotors on skin models in a lab. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I will track in detail how the skin responds to them. We want them to break up biofilm, but not disturb the healthy areas of the skin,” she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The earlier chapters of her research journey were not without challenges. A Serbian native, she came to Denmark in 2020 for the university she has stayed with ever since. The same week, the country closed down because of the pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I knew no one, which was hard in itself. And it removed the face-to-face dialogue among colleagues, which is one of the aspects I love about academia.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She also confesses that it took a bit of time for her to understand what research could do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“As a PhD I to an extent just did my tasks and did them well. But then an advisor pushed me to ask: What if you apply what you are doing here to another problem? It spurred my creativity. Years later, as an Assistant Professor, that way of thinking helped me make the link between micromotors and skin.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Micromotors are moving closer to clinical applications but are not yet used routinely in patient settings. It is a scenario she hopes her project can be a step towards, if the technology appears compatible with the HS condition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“This study could move us closer to a place where the technology improves the lives of patients. That would be the real satisfaction for me, not another scientific publication,” she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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About Tijana Miseljic<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

PhD, Assistant Professor<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Technical University of Denmark, Department of Health Technology<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Research project:<\/strong> Micromotor Technology to Overcome Biofilm Barriers in Hidradenitis Suppurativa. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Awarded the LEO Foundation Dr Abildgaard Fellowship 2026:<\/strong> DKK 12 million over 5 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Project team members made possible by the support:<\/strong> One PhD and three postdoctoral researchers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On receiving the fellowship:<\/strong> “I am super grateful and happy.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On navigating research life<\/strong>: “For me the key thing is freedom. No two days are the same. I can learn something new, ask questions and discuss it with the students I teach alongside research.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Advice for a younger researcher:<\/strong> “One rejection does not mean the idea is bad, just like one failed experiment does not mean the project is bad. Dream big and keep going. A second advice is to think about more than your next position: What do you want your contribution to society to be?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

2 November 2026 Bacterial biofilms deep in the skin can limit treatment of hidradenitis suppurativa, a chronic disease. Dr Abildgaard Fellow Tijana Miseljic introduces micromotors to overcome this barrier.  One of the uniquely difficult aspects of the skin condition hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is that it creates inflamed tunnels in the skin. These can be weblike … Continued<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":14577,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14621","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nCutting-edge steps to reach the inaccessible - LEO Foundation<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/leo-foundation.org\/en\/2026\/11\/02\/cutting-edge-steps-to-reach-the-inaccessible\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Cutting-edge steps to reach the inaccessible - LEO Foundation\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"2 November 2026 Bacterial biofilms deep in the skin can limit treatment of hidradenitis suppurativa, a chronic disease. 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