Globally, 3 out of 5 persons lose their lives to chronic inflammatory conditions, such as diabetes, cardiovascular disorders, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, skin diseases, renal diseases and obesity. Inflammatory diseases are the most prevailing cause of death worldwide and the numbers keep rising.

The network focuses on reducing the burden of infectious and inflammatory diseases caused by pathogens, damaged cells, toxic compounds or radiation in order to develop new diagnostic and treatment technologies.

As a society, we need more knowledge about the correlation between e.g. inflammation and development of cancer, about biomarkers and about molecular mechanisms of autoimmunity in e.g. rheumatological conditions - not to mention chronic mucosal inflammation. In the inflammation network we collaborate interdisciplinearily in order to find answers.

We comprise a wide range of researchers with interest in diagnostic methods, epidemiological data, inflammatory markers and intracellular pathways, understanding of cell population and tissue structures, among others.


Subject-specific programmes for PhD students

The subject-specific PhD programme in inflammation at Aarhus University, Health, offers an in-depth, multidisciplinary study of inflammation's role in diseases and prevention, addressing its significant role in both non-communicable diseases (NCD) and infections.

For more information about the subject-specific programmes: Subject-specific programmes, Graduate School of Health (au.dk).


Paper of the month

Paper of the month, September 2025 is presented by Clinical professor Torben Steiniche, Department of Clinical Medicine.

Pathology-oriented multiplexing enables integrative disease mapping.
Kuehl M, Okabayashi Y, Wong MN, et al.. Nature. 2025 Aug;644(8076):516-526. doi: 10.1038/s41586-025-09225-2. Epub 2025 Jul 18.PMID: 40681898 

Read the paper: Pathology-oriented multiplexing enables integrative disease mapping.
 

Why is this paper important?
In a newly published Nature paper, a research group affiliated with Aarhus University presents important advances in large-scale multiplex immunohistochemistry for formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissues using cost-effective, microscopy-based methods. They introduce the PathoPlex framework, which is now available as an exciting new scientific tool in Aarhus. PathoPlex uses iterative indirect immunofluorescence with standard, unmodified antibodies and simple elution steps, enabling up to 140 stainings on a single tissue sample, including archival biopsies, while preserving tissue integrity through more than 90 imaging cycles.