Pirjo Åström

I am an Academy Research Fellow and a group leader at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu. I have extensive experience in biomedical research, especially in the fields of immunology as well as cell and molecular biology. I also teach cell biology, immunology and microbiology in our university.

My research investigates mechanisms that lead to disorders in the body's defense response and increase susceptibility to diseases or worsens the disease progression and symptoms. I am particularly interested in biological phenomena in the central nervous system infections and in diseases in which infection, tissue destruction or inflammation affect the nervous system and participate in, for example, development of chronic disease or pain. In order to improve the correspondence of laboratory studies to phenomena occurring in the body, together with researchers from the Health Sciences and Technology, we are developing machine learning-based cell identification methods and culture models that utilize human-derived materials as growth matrix for the cells.

In collaboration with researchers from Oulu University Hospital, we aim to identify new genetic variants that predispose to severe central nervous system dysfunction and infections. Using data from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort, my research investigates the connections between viruses that infect the nervous system with other diseases and lifestyles. In the future, my group will aim to clarify the role of the body's defense mechanisms behind the observed multimorbidities.