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Innovations

- research put into practice in healthcare and industry

The Öresund region is one of the most dynamic regions in Europe. Highly specialised healthcare, medical engineering industry and successful research and science parks can be found in our immediate neighbourhood. The conditions are therefore optimal for developing, commercialising and applying the knowledge and ideas that our researchers develop.

Lund University is behind a large number of significant medical discoveries that have led to improved treatments methods, new drugs and better diagnostics. In a number of cases the findings have resulted in the establishment of biomedical companies.

Here are just a few examples of innovations from the Faculty of Medicine:

Innovations for the future

• Vaccine against heart attacks 
  A vaccine against heart attacks and an antibody-based drug against arterisclerosis, which could hopefully stop the build-up of plaque in the arteries of patients with cardiovascular disease.
  Researcher: Jan Nilsson 
  Current stage - 'phase 2' studies are about to begin
  In cooperation with the Swedish biotechnology company Bioinvent from Lund and the American company Genentech.
• A drug that speeds up slow labour, Tafoxiparin
  Researcher: Anders Malmstöm 
  Current stage - clinical study underway with promising results
• Endogenous peptides against bacteria
  Researchers: Artur Schmidtchen, Lund, together with Martin Malmsten, Uppsala
  - Endogenous peptides against bacteria on the skin (company DermaGen).
  - Current stage: First clinical studies completed.
  - Endogenous peptides against chronic inflammatory diseases and blood poisoning (company Ximmune). A number of peptides are being investigated.

Established in Sweden and internationally

• Proteins G and L, a way to identify and purify antibodies from blood
  Used today around the world by almost all biomedical analysis laboratories.
  Researcher:  Lars Björck, 1980s
• Test for risk of blood clots, known as APC resistance
  Now used around the world to assess the risk of thrombosis.
  Researcher: Björn Dahlbäck, 1990s
• Lund model for treatment of head injuries 
  With the help of this model, mortality among patients with serious head injuries has fallen from 30-40 per cent to 10-15 per cent. The Lund model is today the dominant method in Sweden and is increasingly being used internationally as well.
  Researchers: Per-Olof Grände and Carl-Henrik Nordström, 1990s
• Synflorix ® - a vaccine against meningitis, otitis and pneumonia with the protective protein D. Synflorix is part of the national vaccination program in many countries.
  Researchers: Arne Forsgren, 1990s.

Well-known and well-established

• The artificial kidney, the dialysis machine
  Researcher: Nils Alwall, Gambro, 1960s
• Non-ionised contrast medium 
  Researcher: Torsten Almén, Nycomed, 1960s
• New ventilator, the Servo ventilator
  Researcher: Björn Jonson, Siemens-Elma, 1970s
• Nicotine chewing gum, the world's first nicotine medication, Nicorette
  Researchers: Claes Lundgren and Stefan Lichtneckert, Leo, 1970s