UPM-Biofore-Magazine-2-2017-ENG

TEXT SAARA PAKARINEN  PHOTOGRAPHY UPM BIOCHEMICALS, JANNE LEHTINEN, SAMI KULJU

Pia Nilsson, responsible for Biomedicals products (left), senior researcher Vilja Pietiäinen from FIMM and product expert Lauri Paasonen from UPM work closely together in cancer research.

Teamwork in top-quality science

U PM´s Biomedicals department spearheads UPM’s involvement in the field of medicine. The department has been working under UPMBiochemicals for a few years and has already built a successful tradition of collaboration between various research institutes. Some three years ago, an interdisci­ plinary project between UPMand the University of Helsinki launched GrowDex®, a cellulose-based hydrogel. It is a fairly new product but it has already been granted an award for innovation in the chemical industry last year. GrowDex is the first medical product to be launched by UPM’s Biomedicals department. The presenters of the award described it as an innovation that will most likely offer significant benefits to the health of people and the environment, both in

everyday life and industrial applications. Today, GrowDex is already used by researchers around the world. United front in cancer research GrowDex is also used in the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM) based on theMeilahti Campus of the University of Helsinki. The institute uses GrowDex as a cell culture matrix in cancer research. The FIMM research institute is part of the newHelsinki Institute for Life Science (HiLIFE) department and specialises in personalisedmedicine. This joint project by UPMand FIMM combines bioeconomy and personalised medicine. “We are conducting cancer research. We receive cancer cell specimens from a neighbouring clinic and we culture these cancer cells under different conditions

UPM Biochemicals has a Biomedicals department that fosters collaboration between corporations and universities in the field of biomedical innovation, delivering break­ throughs from which people, companies and all of society benefit.

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