Highlights
2023
Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation has in cooperation with Åsa Petersén produced a short film about Huntington's disease and Petersén's research on HD.
Link to the movie "Huntington's disease - the hunt for treatment" on YouTube
The European Huntington Disease Network (EHDN) elected Åsa Petersén member of the executive committee. The EHDN is a nonprofit research network committed to advancing research, facilitating the conduct of clinical trials, and improving clinical care in HD. Through the EHDN a platform has been created such that basic scientists, clinicians, patients and families can collaborate on academic and industry studies to fulfil its mission. The EHDN is supported by and collaborates closely with CHDI Foundation, Inc.
Find out more about EHDN on the organization's website: https://www.euro-hd.net/html/network/project/execcom
2022
Petersén (PI) received a research grant of 6 MSEK from the Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet) for 2023-2026. The grant was awarded for the project on novel cellular and molecular mechanisms in the limbic system for psychiatric symptoms in Huntington disease.
2021
In August 2021 TNU and international collaborators published a new paper on early changes in the limbic system in Huntington disease Acta Neuropathologica.
Link to article on Springer's website (opens in a new window): Early white matter pathology in the fornix of the limbic system in Huntington disease
Link to Lund University webpage for news article on the the results (in Swedish): Känslohjärnan – en nyckel i kampen mot Huntingtons sjukdom
Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation appointed Åsa Petersén Wallenberg Clinical Scholar in 2020. An article on Åsa's research was published on the foundation's website in January 2021.
The Wallenberg Clinical Scholar is aimed for researchers combining their research with clinical work and is a grant for five years. The article on Petersén's research is presenting the psychiatric symptoms and hypothalamic changes. You find it on KAW:s website. In Swedish only.
Link to Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation's website.
2020
Åsa Petersén was appointed Wallenberg Clinical Scholar and will receive a research grant of 15 million SEK over five years. The Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation briefly describes her research on psychiatric symptoms in HD (in Swedish only):
Link to article on Knut and Alice Walleberg Foundation's website: Ska utveckla behandling mot Huntingtons sjukdom.
From Neuro (Swedish association focusing on neurology): Article on Petersén and TNU:s research how hypothalamus is affected in HD (in Swedish only):
Link to the article "Neuro gav till forskning om hur Huntington skadar hjärnans infocentrum" on Neuro's website
2019
In November the Huntington Disease Center, lead by Åsa Petersén, arranged the 2nd Nordic Huntington Disease Research Meeting in Lund. The meeting gathered over 50 researchers from Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. The day was filled with interesting presentations about the latest fidings, and Astri Arnesen, President of the European Huntington Association (EHA) and Patrick Weydt, co-chair of the European Huntington Disease Network (EHDN) gave talks.
Link to article "European Huntington heights met at Lund summit".
The magazine Vetenskap & Hälsa (Science & Health) published two articles on HD in the November issue; one about depression and apathy, which is frequent with HD patients, and one about the oxytocin-producing nervecells, that the Petersén research group found to be fewer in number in HD-patients (in Swedish only):
Link to article "Huntingtons sjukdom: Vanligt med depression och apati"
Link to article "Fel i produktion av kärlekshormonet"
Article on HD by Petersén in Neurologi i Sverige (Neurology in Sweden): About the effect on hypothalamus in Huntington's disease (in Swedish only):
Link to the article "Huntingtons sjukdom påverkar även hypotalamus" on Neurology in Sweden's website
2018
Åsa Petersén is rewarded the Fernström Award from Eric K. Fernström Foundation for her research on neurodegenerative diseases, primarily on HD. Article in Life Science Sweden (in Swedish):
Link to article " Min drivkraft är att kunna bromsa sjukdomen" on Life Science Sweden's website
Åsa Petersén receives a research grant from Hjärnfonden (the Brain Foundation) and TNU:s novel research on hypothalamic changes in HD patients is hightlighted. The grant is awarded for the now ongoing studies of the role of oxytocin in HD (in Swedish only):
Link to article "Hjärnans hormoncentral förändrad vid Huntingtons sjukdom" on Hjärnfonden's website
2016
The magazine Reflex (1/2016) includes an article on TNU:s research on the hypothalamic changes in HD. Article available on Neuro's website, in Swedish only; scroll to the bottom of the page, choose "Reflex magasin nr 1-2016".
Link to Neuro's webpage.
2013
The newspaper Helsingborgs Dagblad published an article about the camp for families with HD in Båstad, in southern Sweden (2013-08-02). The camp was held in July 2013 and Åsa Petersén and Sanaz Gabery from TNU were invited to talk about HD and the ongoing research. Article only open to subscribers of the newspaper (in Swedish only):
Nytt familjeläger med den senaste forskningen - on Helsingborgs Dagblad's webpage
HDYO (Huntington's Disease Youth Organization) filmed a tour at the TNU lab:
Tour of the HD Lab - on HDYO:s website
2012
Article in the newspaper Skånska Dagbladet (2012-07-28): Visitors from the International summer camp for young adults in families with HD visited the TNU Lab. Article only open to subscribers of the newspaper (in Swedish only):
Sjukdomen utan nåd - on Skånska Dagbladet's website
2011
In the newspaper Sydsvenska Dagblandet (2011-04-07): About early changes in hypothalamus for HD patients. Article only open to subscribers of the newspaper (in Swedish only):
Hopp om bot för danssjuka - on Sydsvenska Dagbladet's website
In the newspaper Svenska Dagbladet (2011-03-27) : Article called "This is Huntington's Disease" about the disease, psychiatric symptoms and genetic testing (in Swedish only):
Det här är Huntingtons sjukdom - on Svenska Dagbladet's website
In the newspaper Svenska Dagbladet (2011-03-27): Article on the new novel about HD, where we meet a couple, before and after the genetic testing. In the book, co-authored by Åsa Petersén, they share their thoughts. In Swedish only.
När sjukdomen överskuggar allt - on Svenska Dagbladet's website
2010
At the Research Day, a yearly event arranged by the Medical Faculty and the health care organization Region Skåne, Åsa Petersén gave her talk "The hypothalamus - the thermostat of emotions”. This year's theme was depression and mania and Åsa’s talk was about her research on hypothalamic changes and depression in HD. Use the link below to see it (in Swedish only):
Åsa Peterséns talk at the Research Day 2010 - on YouTube
2008
A weekly magazine (Allers 27/2008) publishes a story about a family where the father’s behaviour and mood starts to change. He is later diagnosed with HD and the adult children decides to take a genetic test. Åsa's research on hypothalamus and a new grant of EUR 350 000 is featured.
Article in the newspaper Sydsvenska Dagbladet (2008-06-09) on a EUR 350 000 research grant to Åsa Petersén and Deniz Kirik from High Q Foundation for research on the role of hypothalamus in HD. Also a story about the siblings Therese and Mattias, who both carry the gene.