Academy Professors

Lauri Aaltonen, professor of tumour genomics, investigates people’s predisposition to tumours, and somatic cancer genetics.

Cancer is a disease always associated with genes as their functioning is disrupted in all cancers. Key to cancer genomics is how the patient’s genome affects the tumour’s features. A particular focus of Aaltonen’s research group is hereditary colorectal cancer.

During his third term as an Academy Professor, Aaltonen aims to advance the treatment and prevention of cancers. Among other things, Aaltonen’s research group has already succeeded in discovering a common mechanism that predisposes people to cancer. The find was a breakthrough in understanding predisposition to cancer on the population level.

Aaltonen heads the Applied Tumor Genomics research programme and the Centre of Excellence in Tumour Genetics Research at the Faculty of Medicine.

The term of his Academy Professorship is from 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2023.

Yrjö Helariutta is a professor of evolutionary biology. Together with his research group, Helariutta studies how trees and their phloem develop.

Helariutta combines tree research, especially on birch, with forest tree improvement and wood materials science.

Helariutta’s research helps us better understand how trees and other plants grow. This has practical implications e.g. when developing plant improvement or forest care.

The term of his Academy Professorship is from 1 September 2021 to 31 August 2026.

Jukka Jernvall is a professor of quantitative evolutionary phenomics. Jernvall studies the development and formation of teeth.

Jernvall’s research focuses on how the cusps of teeth are formed. Cusps are the parts of teeth that grind of cut food.

Although we know quite well in general how teeth are formed, we don’t yet know how the shape of the cusps is regulated. Jernvall and his group develops a new computational model to identify what aspects of tooth development are critical for proper contact between the teeth.

The term of his Academy Professorship is from 1 September 2021 to 31 August 2026. Jernvall also had an Academy Professorship in 2010–2019.

Pekka Lappalainen, professor of quantitative cell biology, studies a protein called actin, which is necessary for cell motility.

Thanks to actin, many cells are able to quickly change shape and actively move about in tissues. The healing of wounds and the immune system, among others, are dependent on cell motility. At the same time, uncontrollably moving cancer cells are central to the formation of metastases.

Lappalainen’s group has made several significant discoveries related to actin. The researcher identified a protein that loads adenosine triphosphate (ATP), an energy source for chemical reactions in cells, into actin. The group has also discovered a molecular machinery that is responsible for the disassembly and recycling of actin filaments.

Research on cell motility and the other topics investigated by Lappalainen’s group increase our understanding of the functioning of the human body and may potentially help develop drugs and therapies, for example, for cancer.

The term of his Academy Professorship is from 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2023.

Matti Lassas, professor of applied mathematics, investigates inverse problems in mathematics.

Inverse problems are simple questions asked backwards, which often makes them much more complex. The inverse problem of a question such as ‘If we know the composition of the Earth precisely, what kind of a gravitational field does it generate?’ would be ‘If the Earth produces a certain gravitational field, what is the Earth’s composition?’.

Lassas heads the Academy of Finland’s Centre of Excellence of Inverse Modelling and Imaging, which is recognised as a leading unit globally in its field.

Its goal is to develop new and effective solutions to practical inverse problems. The Centre of Excellence headed by Lassas focuses particularly on medical imaging, geophysics and space research, as well as various needs of environmental research.

The term of his Academy Professorship is from 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2023.

Mappes’s research investigates how communication evolves in the animal communities and how signaling between species affects the population dynamics of their communities.

From the simplest cells to the complex societies of bees or humans, life thrives on communication. Often, the fate of organisms hinges upon communicating with other species. For example, prey with defenses can evolve warning signals to prevent predators from attacking them. Animal communication is classically studied in simple, often laboratory settings but Mappes’s research aims to investigates how communication evolves in the rich communities we find in nature.

This is Mappes second term as a Academy Professor (2009-2013), and she has previously led Academy of Finland Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions (2012-2017).

The term of her Academy Professorship is from 1st of January 2019 to 31 December 2023.

Karri Muinonen is a professor of astronomy. Muinonen studies electromagnetic scattering, which means how light changes direction when confronted by an obstacle or a change in matter density.

Light scatters and is absorbed in practically all systems of matter and electromagnetic radiation. Studying this interaction provides information about the different properties of the system, down to the length scales of a fraction of the wavelength.

Muinonen’s research can be used e.g. to spot planetary objects such as asteroids.

The term of his Academy Professorship is from 1 September 2021 to 31 August 2026.

Heikki Pihlajamäki is a professor of comparative legal history. Pihlajamäki studies, what kinds of legal solutions England, the Netherlands, Spain and Portugal, that is the most important early modern colonial powers, used in their overseas colonies.

Pihlajamäki studies the colonial legal systems both in contrast to the powers’ medieval laws and in the context of early modern continental European empires. The study also involves a systematic comparison of the early modern legal orders with each other.

Understanding the development of legal systems helps us better understand how European states and societies have developed into what they are today.

The term of his Academy Professorship is from 1 September 2021 to 31 August 2026.

Anssi Peräkylä, professor of sociology, investigates social interaction in institutional and everyday environments.

Peräkylä’s research topics have included the way in which problems stemming from narcissism shape people’s social interaction. In the project, the researchers observe narcissism in informal conversations, psychiatric interviews, couples therapy and experimental circumstances.

Peräkylä’s group utilises discourse analysis, ethnography and psychophysiological measurements, which contribute to intensifying the project’s multidisciplinary approach.

The research increases our understanding of how experiences of the self and practices of interaction relate to each other. At the same time, it demonstrates how personality disorders and pathological narcissism are problems associated not only with individuals, but also with interaction. Peräkylä’s findings can help to develop better therapeutic methods.

The term of his Academy Professorship is from 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2023.

Kari Rummukainen, professor of theoretical physics, investigates gravitational waves born out of the collision of two black holes.

Gravitational waves cause oscillations in space, bending and compacting spacetime, causing wrinkles of a sort.

Rummukainen’s research also involves the requirement specification for the LISA telescope designed for detecting gravitational waves. The plan is to launch the telescope into space in 2034. The processes that generate gravitational waves are analysed theoretically and numerically, which is important for LISA’s observation strategy and interpreting the observations.

Rummukainen’s research and the observations made by LISA will help obtain an increasingly accurate understanding of the moments when the universe was born.

The term of his Academy Professorship is from 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2023.

Katariina Salmela-Aro is a doctor of psychology and a professor of educational sciences. Salmela-Aro studies the impact of climate change and the coronavirus on young people’s wellbeing both in Finland and internationally.

The aim of Salmela-Aro’s research is to find out what consequences climate change and the coronavirus situation have on the development of young people. Positive impacts could be e.g. empowerment and social cohesion, while negative impacts could be e.g. stress and anxiety.

The study takes into account, among other things, the effects of friends, digital networks, parents, teachers and communities.

Salmela-Aro’s research may provide society with means to facilitate the needs of young people and to assess what kinds of support services young people will need in the future.

The term of her Academy Professorship is from 1 September 2021 to 31 August 2026.

Anu Wartiovaara is a professor of clinical medicine. Wartiovaara studies mitochondrial diseases.

Mitochondrial diseases, or disturbances of mitochondrial function, cause several hereditary diseases whose clinical picture varies considerably and is often severe. At the moment, only a few therapies are available for treating mitochondrial diseases.

Wartiovaara studies how the metabolism of mitochondria affects nervous system health and disease. The aim is to clarify how mitochondrial signalling modifies the whole-cellular metabolic environment and behaviour in different nervous system cell populations.

Wartiovaara’s sresearch provides new information on mechanisms behind neurodegenerative diseases, and it may provide opportunities for developing new targeted therapies.

Ultimately, Wartiovaara aims to develop functioning therapies for mitochondrial diseases. It is likely that many different forms of treatment are needed due to the extremely broad spectrum of mitochondrial diseases.

The term of her Academy Professorship is from 1 September 2021 to 31 August 2026. Wartiovaaralla also had an Academy Professorhip in 2017—2021.

Wartiovaara uses the surname Suomalainen in her publications.