Collaboration is non-negotiable for first-class cardiovascular research, as was evident at the UEF Cardiovascular Research Community’s (CVD RC) Annual Symposium held at Kuopio University Hospital on 25 September 2025.
Understanding the complexity of cardiovascular diseases, and advancing their prevention and treatment, requires multidisciplinary expertise and the use of cutting-edge technologies – both which are at the core of CVD RC’s mission. The Annual Symposium offered a key platform for scientists and clinicians to connect, share knowledge and build new collaborations.
The afternoon opened with an introduction of the new leadership of the CVD RC, as Associate Professor Johanna Laakkonen and Professor Marja Hedman continue as RC Director and Vice Director, respectively. They highlighted the growing strength of the CVD RC, which now includes over 100 researchers and 26 principal investigators. Looking ahead, the community will focus on further strengthening collaboration and communication across disciplines, while also enhancing the role and visibility of postdoctoral researchers.
“The strengths of our Cardiovascular Research Community lie in a strong collaboration between clinicians and basic science researchers,” Laakkonen said. The same was also highlighted by Vice Dean, Professor Ville Leinonen, who expressed greetings from the UEF administration and underlined the importance of the community’s excellent translational capabilities. Krista Hokkanen, the RC coordinator, also shared statistics on the RC’s successful year 2024, highlighting growing memberships and high numbers of doctoral dissertations from the RC.
Coronary heart disease is no longer a death sentence
The symposium programme showcased all main research areas of the CVD RC. True to the RC’s aims for 2025, the sessions were chaired by postdoctoral researchers, strengthening their role within the community.
Dr Jari Halonen from Kuopio University Hospital (KUH) reflected on the early days of cardiothoracic research in Kuopio in the 1980s. He reminded the audience how the university was originally established to train doctors in Kuopio due to the high incidence of CVD in the Eastern areas of Finland, and how far the field has progressed, as coronary heart disease is no longer a death sentence, as it once was. Dr Santeri Tarvainen then provided an overview of advances in vascular surgery and micro- and macrovascular research at KUH.
As keynote speaker, Professor Jussi Hernesniemi from Tampere University gave a lecture on the promises and challenges of individualised genetic profiling in detecting patients at risk of sudden cardiac death. He emphasised that traditional risk profiling is insufficient to identify high risk patients, pointing to the urgent need for new approaches.
Improved imaging, treatments and drug carriers
The second session was divided into three themes: cardiovascular imaging, advanced therapy medicinal product (ATMP) development and disease mechanisms. Professor Tomi Laitinen gave an overview of CVD research at the Institute of Clinical Medicine and within the field of nuclear medicine. He highlighted the central role of nuclear imaging as a tool in studying coronary artery disease, cardiac sarcoidosis and cardiac infections, but also its role in detecting fatty liver disease. Doctoral Researcher Iida Räty followed with a presentation of advanced 3D magnetic resonance imaging, focusing on improving data quality.
Dr Diana Schenkwein introduced the topic of ATMPs, which are novel medicines based on genes, cells, or tissues. She emphasised the importance of developing effective treatment delivery vehicles known as vectors to improve gene therapies for cardiovascular diseases. Doctoral Researcher Tuisku Suoranta’s presentation focused on ATMP manufacturing, specifically on adeno-associated viral vectors and how different production scales affect yield and therapeutic product quality.
Dr Vesa Turkki introduced lipid nanoparticles, a type of therapeutic vector used as carriers for RNA, DNA and proteins as medicines. He also presented the current in-house production capabilities, which include mRNA production, LNP synthesis and purification, as well as LNP analytics as part of the National Virus Vector Laboratory’s core facilities. In his talk, Dr Turkki highlighted the potential of LNPs in developing new therapies for CVDs.
The complexity of cardiovascular diseases calls for interdisciplinary research
The final session of the symposium highlighted novel discoveries in CVD pathologies. Dr Masoud Isanejad from the University of Liverpool presented his work on metabolomics in heart failure, building on the pioneering research of UEF’s Professor Tomi-Pekka Tuomainen. His talk emphasised the importance of skeletal muscle metabolomics in understanding the pathogenesis of heart failure. “If the muscle goes wrong, the heart will fail,” Dr Isanejad noted, referencing recent findings that link the metabolic profile of sarcopenia to heart failure risk.
Doctoral Researcher Petrus Nuotio presented findings on the link between circulating lipoprotein(a) (Lp(a)) and fatty acids in cardiovascular risk, showing that dietary unsaturated fats may raise Lp(a) levels, an important question considering personalised nutrition. Senior Researcher Suvi Jauhiainen shared new insights into venous malformations, highlighting the role of other cell types beyond endothelial cells in their pathogenesis. Doctoral Researcher Iida Vokkolainen applied a state-of-the-art CRISPR screening approach to investigate how vascular smooth muscle contributes to atherosclerosis.
The presentations highlighted how interdisciplinary approaches are essential for understanding the complexity of cardiovascular diseases and advancing their prevention, diagnostics and therapeutics. Together, these studies not only advance basic science but also pave the way for more precise diagnostics and personalised therapies, reminding us that the future of medicine lies at the crossroads of collaboration and innovation.
Authors: Post Doctoral Researchers Sanna Koponen, Tiina Nieminen and Anna-Kaisa Ruotsalainen, Coordinator Krista Hokkanen, Director Johanna Laakkonen and Vice Director Marja Hedman / CVD RC
Photos: Riikka Myöhänen / Kuopio University Hospital
For further information, please contact:
CVD RC Coordinator Krista Hokkanen, [email protected]
