English 
(go to Danish version)

The official opening of PERSIMUNE Centre of Excellence took place on Wednesday, 4 February 2015, following a two-day scientific retreat where stakeholders participated in intense discussions about the Centre of Excellence.

The afternoon’s reception was opened by Professor Liselotte Højgaard, Chair of the Board of the Danish National Research Foundation that awarded PERSIMUNE with the grant. According to Liselotte Højgaard there where several reasons why PERSIMUNE was awarded: “The idea is perfect, the man is perfect, and the place is perfect”. 

Jannik Hilsted, Director of Rigshospitalet, introduced and welcomed PERSIMUNE, recognizing the crucial role PERSIMUNE will play in the future of scientific research at the hospital. Rigshospitalet is the platform at which patient data will be collected across the various departments involved in the research.

The initial aim of PERSIMUNE is to understand the mechanisms explaining the variation in risk using a diverse set of methodologies, including pattern recognition from big data obtained from routine care, studies of host and microbial genetics, imaging, and immunological characterization. According to Professor Jens Lundgren, head of the Centre of Excellence, PERSIMUNE will over the next 10 years take research ”to the next level”.

"We basically use all hospital patients as our research platform, and in contrast to more specific projects, this is broader, a kind of gamble, where we expect to find patterns that may have great potential for future treatment" says Professor Jens Lundgren to Ingeniøren.

The work ahead will be both challenging and rewarding. Stakeholders and researchers from Rigshospitalet and international institutions will work closely to ensure the day-to-day activity and results are of the highest quality. Collaborators include Magnus Fontes (Lund University, Institut Pasteur) and Amanda Mocroft (University College London). This type of collaboration is important for the research as “It is the type of research where you have a very simple question; the answer, on the other hand, is very complex” says Professor Jens Lundgren to TV2 Lorry.

“For the research to be relevant for me in my work, it needs to be research that prolongs the life of my patients” says Professor Jens Lundgren to TV2 Lorry. Rigshospitalet, in collaboration with CHIP, has already had great success with dividing the patients into groups at high and low risk for immune deficiencies in MATCH (Management of Post-Transplant Infections in Collaborating Hospitals).

The excitement and motivation for taking this further is big and comes from the profound wish to improve the treatment and lives of patients. “That is what I am working for everyday and this is also what will be the main focus of this research”, says Professor Jens Lundgren. 

Danish

Efter et to dage langt fagligt seminar med diskussioner blandt alle involverede, var dagen kommet for den officielle åbning af PERSIMUNE, det nye Centre of Excellence, den 4. Februar 2015.

Åbningen blev indledt af Professor Liselotte Højgaard, bestyrelsesformanden fra Danmarks Grundforskningsfond. Ifølge Liselotte Højgaard var der flere grunde til at PERSIMUNE modtog støtten: “Idéen er perfekt, manden er perfekt, og stedet er perfekt”. [link til grundforskningsfonden]

Jannik Hilsted, Rigshospitalets Direktør, introducerede PERSIMUNE og bød velkommen. Rigshospitalet er den platform hvor patient data vil blive indsamlet fra på tværs af afdelinger.

Målet med PERSIMUNE er, at forstå de bagvedliggende mekanismer, som kan forklare variationen i risiko for at udvikle immundefekter. Dette gøres ved at anvende forskellige metoder til at finde mønstre indenfor ’Big Data’, indsamlet fra rutine pleje.  Disse metoder omfatter undersøgelse af genetisk bioinformation  værts – og mikrobiel genetik, billeddannelse og  immunlogisk karakterisering. Ifølge professor Jens Lundgren, centrets leder, rykker PERSIMUNE ”op på en helt ny klinge”.

”Vi har så at sige alle hospitalets patienter som vores forskningsplatform, og i modsætning til mere specifikke projekter er dette bredere, et slags gamble, hvor vi satser på at finde mønstre, som kan have store potentialer for en fremtidig behandlingsform” siger Jens Lungren til Ingeniøren.

Arbejdet der ligger forud er en stor udfordringer og involverer mange partnere og forskere både fra Rigshospitalet og internationale institutioner som vil arbejde sammen for at sikre resultater af højeste kvalitet. Samarbejdspartnerne omfatter Magnus Fontes (Lund Universitet og Institut Pasteur) og Amanda Mocroft (University College London).

Samarbejde er vigtigt for forskningen da “ Det er den form for  forskning, hvor man får et meget enkelt spørgsmål, svaret til gengæld, er meget kompleks” siger professor Jens Lundgren til TV2 Lorry. 

“For at forskningen skal være relevant for mig, i mit arbejde ,så skal det være forskning som forlænger livet for mine patienter “, siger Jens Lundgren to TV2 Lorry. Rigshospitalet har, i samarbejde med CHIP, allerede haft success med at inddele patienter i grupper med henholdsvist høj og lav risiko for at udvikle immundefekter I MATCH (Management of Post-Transplant Infections in Collaborating Hospitals).

Forventningerne og motivationen til det videre arbejde er stor og bunder i et ønske om at forbedre behandling og livskvaliteten for patienterne. “Det er det jeg arbejder for hver dag, og det kommer PERSIMUNE I høj grad også til at have centralt fokus på”.