Column - June 11, 2025
Forever Young
Based on new geroscience findings, many of the diseases that emerge later on in life could be prevented if the aging process could be slowed down.
Column - March 10, 2025
Science – A glimmer of hope
Reading the news today can be quite disheartening. If it’s not a mass shooting in Sweden it’s a power-mad politician from another country thinking that he (yes, it is often a man) is worth more than other people.
Column - February 26, 2025
Norway needs a national life science strategy – The time to act is now
The discussion around a national life science strategy for Norway has seen increasing momentum in recent months, with differing viewpoints emerging.
Column - December 20, 2024
A New Dawn For Data
As this year’s Nobel Prize winners were walking into Stockholm City Hall for festivities recently, the temperature was climbing below zero in the December night outside.
Column - December 12, 2024
Academic freedom and its close links with democracy in Europe
Academic freedom is a necessary, if not sufficient, condition for open research and teaching, not only in the humanities and social sciences but also in the natural and life sciences.
Column - December 6, 2024
Words from the Editor: Chess & The Nobel Prize
I have always admired those who can play chess well and really wish I learned to play when I was younger. Lucky for me I have a son who, at the moment, really enjoys the game and goes to a chess club every week.
Commentaries
Commentary – June 2, 2025
Preparedness for a new era – Clear roles and Nordic collaboration
In December last year, Sweden’s National Board of Health and Welfare and the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency concluded that the country’s pharmaceutical stockpiles are insufficient to cope with a crisis or war. That is a serious conclusion. Their report outlines 130 measures to address this, 40 of which are considered to be high priority. But the key question is: how will the stockpiling work in practice?
Commentary – December 11, 2024
AI and the 2024 Nobel Prizes: A Revolutionary Moment for Life Sciences
The 2024 Nobel Prizes in Chemistry and Physics reflect the revolutionary impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on life sciences. These awards, celebrating advancements in protein design and neural networks, demonstrate how AI is transforming how we approach drug discovery, personalized medicine, and healthcare management.
Commentary – July 3, 2024
Commentary: Navigating the Obesity Market
Challenges and Funding Dilemmas from an International and Nordic Perspective. It is no secret that obesity is one of the biggest public health challenges of the 21st century and is one of the leading causes of preventable death globally. It’s estimated that 18% of the global population is obese, with the prevalence of obesity in […]
Commentary – March 22, 2023
Oligos – The medicines of the future?
What if we could silence certain genes to treat a wide range of medical conditions, from genetic conditions to infectious diseases, and even cancer? It may sound like science fiction, but for some rare diseases it’s already a reality through the use of oligonucleotide therapeutics, sometimes referred to as the medicines of the future. But […]
Commentary – October 31, 2022
Pandemic Preparedness
Staffan Svärd, Professor, Scientific Lead for SciLifeLab’s Pandemic Laboratory Preparedness Capability, writes about how lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic can increase our pandemic preparedness. Early in the pandemic, SciLifeLab, together with Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation, launched a major national COVID-19 research program. Today SciLifeLab has a government mandate to coordinate and expand the […]
Commentary – June 15, 2022
Health in the shadow of war
There is a massive need for medicines and medical care in war-torn Ukraine, but getting aid supplies through is virtually impossible. At the same time, the Swedish healthcare service faces medical challenges as Ukrainian refugee patients arrive in Sweden. Bengt Mattson, special adviser at the trade association for the research-based pharmaceutical industry in Sweden (Lif), […]
Commentary – November 22, 2021
#WAAW: Fighting antibiotic resistance by strengthening our immune system
I began to be interested in the problem of antibiotic resistance almost 30 years ago. A couple of colleagues and I were evaluating some patent applications describing the possibilities of replacing antibiotics in animal feed with lactobacillus. At that time, similarly to today, antibiotics were routinely used to stimulate the growth of animals raised for […]
Commentary – June 1, 2019
Data Protection and Medical Progress: striking the right balance
An individual’s medical data is clearly one of the most private elements of personal data – quite clearly deserving of the highest level of data protection.
Commentary – November 29, 2018
Patient-focused treatments
Patient-focused treatments in cancer care – an opportunity for Swedish life science The increased knowledge in cancer biology and the introduction of new drugs have contributed to an improved survival and, in many cases, also to increased quality of life. However, not everyone benefits. In fact, the positive effects are only seen in a smaller […]
Commentary – October 31, 2018
How will brexit affect the pharmaceutical sector
How will Brexit affect the pharmaceutical sector? Brexit and the implications of the UK’s departure from the European Union (EU) continue to dominate the news agenda and industry discussions. Here, Thomas Beck, Senior Vice President, Quality Management at Recipharm, gives his views on the relocation of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), the need for a […]