Academy Research Fellow Henri Leinonen at the University of Eastern Finland School of Pharmacy is the first Finnish researcher to be recognised with the FEBS Excellence Award of the Federation of European Biochemical Societies, FEBS. Amounting to 100,000 euros, the award can be granted to early-career group leaders who present a scientific research track record of proven excellence, as well as international experience.
The award was granted to a research project led by Leinonen, which explores the protective mechanisms of a combination treatment based on drug repurposing against retinal degenerations. The catecholaminergic activity modulating drugs used in the study are approved for treating conditions such as heart disease and hypertension, benign prostatic hyperplasia, and hyperprolactinemia.
The study uses retinal tissue cultures as its primary method, which makes it possible to examine the effect of genetic and environmental stressors, as well as drug therapies, directly in the target tissue. Material for retinal tissue cultures can be obtained from animal disease models, but also from animals slaughtered for the food industry, which reduces the need for laboratory animals and enhances the clinical translatability of the results.
The FEBS Excellence Award can be applied for by members of a FEBS Constituent Society; in Finland by members of the BioBio Society, which promotes biochemical, biophysical, microbiological and related biological research in Finland.
For further information, please contact:
Academy Research Fellow Henri Leinonen, henri.leinonen@uef.fi, https://uefconnect.uef.fi/en/person/henri.leinonen/
FEBS Excellence Awards https://www.febs.org/funding/excellence-awards/
