People

Principal Investigator

Pekka Taimen, MD, PhD

I am a Professor of Molecular Pathology at the University of Turku and a part-time Chief pathologist at Turku University Hospital. I have more than 20 years of experience in cell biological and translational research and 15 years of experience in clinical pathology. After obtaining my PhD at the University of Turku in 2005, I did my postdoctoral studies in the laboratory of Professor Robert D. Goldman at Northwestern University (Chicago, USA) in 2008-2009 and started my own group at the Institute of Biomedicine, University of Turku in 2011. I worked as the Academy of Finland Clinical Researcher in 2015-2019 and I hold a title of docent in clinical pathology as well as in molecular pathology. In the clinical pathology work, my main focus is on genitourinary pathology (prostate, bladder) and cardiovascular pathology.

Senior Researchers

Gun West, MSc, PhD

Postdoctoral researcher working on signaling pathways involved in the development of laminopathies. I obtained my Master’s degree in biochemistry from Åbo Akademi University in 2005 and thereafter did my PhD focusing on proteins’ structural binding properties in Peter Mattjus’ Lab at Åbo Akademi University. I joined Taimen lab already at the early beginning in 2011 and I have been involved in several research projects over the years. In my current research project, I study unfolded protein response and ER stress related mechanism involved in the pathogenesis of diseases caused by lamin A/C mutations.

Vanina Dahlström-Heuser, PhD

Joel Nyström, PhD

Doctoral Candidates

Kimmo Kettunen, MD

I received my MD degree from University of Turku in 2020. I joined the Taimen lab already during my medical studies and currently hold a PhD student position supported by the Turku Doctoral Programme of Molecular Medicine (TuDMM). My main interest is in the pathogenesis and patient-derived cell culture models of bladder cancer. Using these methods we aim to develop novel tools to improve the stratification of bladder cancer patients.

Eva-Maria Talvitie, MD

Eva-Maria Talvitie, MD

I received a MSc degree in Biomedicine in 2007 and MD degree in 2013, both from University of Turku. Thereafter I did my training in pathology at Turku University Hospital in 2014-2020 and I received a specialist’s degree in 2020. My PhD project focuses on molecular pathology of non-small cell lung cancer. Using highly validated tissue micro arrays, FoundationOne NGS data and detailed clinical follow-up data, we study the mutational spectrum, tumor mutation burden, biomarkers, and their prognostic and predictive value in surgically resected lung cancers.

Aino Kivikallio, MD

I completed my Bachelor's degree in cellular and molecular biology in 2020. I then pursued further studies at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences and earned a Master's degree in Human Genetics. I began working as a project researcher in the Taimen lab in mid-2024. Currently, my research focuses on identifying predictive biomarkers for neoadjuvant chemotherapy response in bladder cancer patients. I am also involved in establishing conditionally reprogrammed bladder cancer cell lines for various assays, including drug sensitivity.

Arian Askari, MSc

I completed my Bachelor’s degree in cellular and molecular biology in 2020. I then pursued further studies at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences and earned a Master’s degree in Human Genetics. I began working as a project researcher in the Taimen lab in mid-2024. Currently, my research focuses on identifying predictive biomarkers for neoadjuvant chemotherapy response in bladder cancer patients. I am also involved in establishing conditionally reprogrammed bladder cancer cell lines for various assays, including drug sensitivity.

Sofia Erkkilä, MSc

I completed my Bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry in 2021. I then pursued further studies at the University of Oulu and earned a Master’s degree in Molecular Medicine. I started working as a Doctoral researcher in the Taimen lab in early 2025. Currently, my research focuses on identifying predictive biomarkers for immune checkpoint therapy response in bladder cancer patients. I am also involved in establishing conditionally reprogrammed bladder cancer cell lines for various assays, including drug sensitivity.

Oskar Haavisto, MSc

Graduate Students

Kaisa Saarikoski, BSc

Kaisa Saarikoski, BSc

I earned my Bachelor’s degree in Biomedicine in 2024 and am currently working towards a Master’s in Drug Discovery and Development at the University of Turku. I became a member of the Taimen lab in the summer of 2023, where my research centers on patient-derived bladder cancer cell cultures using conditional reprogramming. My goal is to develop tools for investigating the mechanisms and characteristics of bladder cancer, including its drug sensitivity.

Kusti Kilpinen, BSc

Alumni

  • Irena Saarinen
  • Minttu Turunen
  • Laura Virtanen
  • Song-Ping Li
  • Matias Blomqvist
  • Mona Halme
  • Josef Gullmets
  • Anni Keinänen