{"id":3410,"date":"2021-03-02T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-03-02T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/leo-foundation.org\/en\/?p=3410"},"modified":"2021-03-02T11:21:03","modified_gmt":"2021-03-02T10:21:03","slug":"dkk-17-million-awarded-to-five-international-skin-research-projects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/leo-foundation.org\/en\/2021\/03\/02\/dkk-17-million-awarded-to-five-international-skin-research-projects\/","title":{"rendered":"DKK 17 million awarded to five international skin research projects"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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2 Mar 2021<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Wound healing, scarring, pigmentation, eczema and skin barrier. The LEO Foundation is awarding DKK 17 million to five particularly interesting skin research projects conducted by researchers in four different countries.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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LEO Foundation research grants are awarded in open competition to support the best skin research projects worldwide. With grants between DKK 2-4 million, grantees from five research institutions in four different countries \u2013 Austria, Italy, United Kingdom, USA \u2013 are ready to improve the understanding and treatment of the skin and its diseases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The five projects\u2019 contribution to skin research span a wide range of fields \u2013 from understanding why skin in the facial region heals faster than the rest of the body to addressing the challenge that treatments for atopic dermatitis only work as long as they are given.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Skin pigmentation research in Italy<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marta Giacomello is Assistant Professor at University of Padova in Italy and is one of the grantees. She is awarded DKK 4 million to conduct research on the role of a certain protein – AIFM3 – in determining skin pigmentation. In preliminary studies, Marta Giacomello has found that AIFM3 is likely to be pivotal for melanogenesis – the complex process by which the skin pigment melanin is produced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marta Giacomello hopes that the project will lead to new discoveries on the role of AIFM3:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs AIFM3 is very poorly studied, the project will provide unprecedented insight into its role in determining skin pigmentation – not only on a physiological level, but also on pathological conditions such as albinism and vitiligo,” she said.<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n