Genetics

Research on molecular genetics and genetic epidemiology, with special focus on epilepsy, diabetes, diabetic complications, osteoporosis, neuromuscular disorder and retinal dystrophies.

About the Institute

The Folkhälsan Institute of Genetics was founded in 1962. The first two decades it worked in close cooperation with the Medical Research Institute Minerva, later also with the Department of Medical Genetics of the University of Helsinki.

In 1997, when the Folkhälsan Research Centre was founded, the Institute moved to its own premises in the Folkhälsan senior house at Mannerheimintie 97. Since 2001 the major part of the Institute has been located in Biomedicum Helsinki.

Since its foundation, the Institute had two departments: the cytogenetics and population genetics departments. Later on the name of the cytogenetics department was changed into the department of molecular genetics and the population genetics department became 2007 department of genetic epidemiology. During 2003 a new department for diabetes genetics was founded.

Inheritance enabled research

Ossian and Betsy Schauman left by will almost their entire property to "establish and maintain a Swedish institute for theoretical and applied genetic research". This simple definition, written in 1921 has been followed in every detail. The research preformed at the institute has been in part theoretical (e.g. the structure of chromosomes, population genetics) and in part applied genetics (e.g. disease gene mutations).