EASO — NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION AWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED
Obesity Prize for Excellence awarded to paediatric endocrinologist for groundbreaking research into the origin and consequences of childhood obesity
Professor Antje Körner from Helmholtz Munich and the University of Leipzig has been named as the 2024 recipient of the Obesity Prize for Excellence, established in January 2023 by the European Association for the Study of Obesity (EASO) and the Novo Nordisk Foundation.
The prize includes a DKK 2 million award, with DKK 300,000 designated as a personal award and DKK 1.7 million allocated for research. At the same time, four other researchers receive the New Investigator Award for promising research in the field of obesity.
New Investigator Awards in Basic Science, Childhood Obesity, Clinical Research and Public Health
Basic Science — Birgitta van der Kolk, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Helsinki in Finland, has shed new light on obesity and weight-loss mechanisms through multidisciplinary research on tissue-specific insulin resistance phenotypes and mitochondrial metabolism in adipose tissue and skeletal muscle. Her goal is to advance the development of science-based treatments for obesity by identifying molecular pathways that affect whole-body physiology in successful weight loss and in obesity in an aging population.
Childhood Obesity — Andrew Agbaje, MD, MPH, PhD, FESC, a Pediatric Clinical Epidemiologist and Principal Investigator of “urFIT-child” research group, University of Eastern Finland (Finland) & University of Exeter (UK) is receiving the Award for discovering arterial stiffness as a novel risk factor for pediatric obesity and insulin resistance, identifying critical time to interrupt fat mass-insulin resistance pathologic cycle, and demonstrating light-intensity physical activity as a highly effective antidote for reversing excessive fat deposit induced by childhood sedentariness.
Clinical Research — Borja Martinez Tellez, Tenure Track Researcher at the University of Almeria and Torrecardenas University Hospital in Spain, is being recognized for his pioneering research on the role of brown adipose tissue (BAT) in human metabolism. His ongoing investigations explore the potential presence of previously unidentified BAT depots in women and examine the effects of innovative interventions like exercise or B2 agonists on enhancing BAT thermogenesis. The potential revelation of a new BAT depot and its function in women suggests the possible development of tailored treatments for patients with obesity.
Public Health — Laura Gray, research fellow at the University of Sheffield, United Kingdom, has conducted extensive research on obesity and population health. She has a particular interest in obesity across the life course and has led research on childhood obesity and obesity in older adults as well as analysing trends in obesity across time, with age and within birth cohorts.
UPCOMING DEADLINES AND EVENTS
Wider Care Needs of People Living with Obesity
Tuesday, 26th March 2024
11:30am-12:30pm UK / 12:30-1:30pm Paris
Early Career Network Webinar:
Person-first Language, Weight Bias and Implications for Obesity Research featuring Dr Ximena Ramos Salas
Tuesday 19th March 2024
4-5 pm UK / 5-6 pm Paris
REGISTRATION IS OPEN FOR #ECO2024
Programme details have now been published online; visit the website for full details.
We look forward to hosting you in Venice!
Click here to learn more and register for ECO2024
EASO NEWS
Obesity Healthcare Professionals Survey
The European Association for the Study of Obesity (EASO) is pleased to announce a new collaboration with medical education provider Infomedica around an initiative: “Assessment of HCP Perceptions and Approaches to Obesity in Clinical Settings.”
This global assessment has been developed to collect and analyse beliefs, perceptions and attitudes of healthcare professionals around obesity and obesity care.
ECN Spotlight – Julia Mueller
We are pleased to meet with Dr Julia Mueller, a researcher at the MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge. Her passion lies in understanding the links between psychology and obesity and harnessing this to develop behavioural weight management interventions that can help people manage their weight and improve their overall well-being.
Changing the way we measure childhood obesity: in conversation with Andrew Agbaje
Andrew disses his research in waist circumference-to-height ratio as an alternative to BMI in identifying obesity in children and adolescents.
WORLD OBESITY DAY EUROPE
EASO was pleased to participate in World Obesity Day, observed annually across Europe on March 4th. It is a global campaign which serves to raise awareness, promote advocacy, enhance policies and facilitate the sharing of experiences in the field of obesity. Dozens of events took place across Europe, and we jointly hosted a webinar “Latest Updates in Obesity Medicine with WONCA Europe.
▶️ Joint World Obesity Day Europe Event: Latest Updates in Obesity Medicine
UPCOMING EVENTS
European Hormone Day 2024
24 April 2024
Following successful events in 2022 and 2023, European Hormone Day will be back on 24 April 2024. This event brings together the endocrine community to raise awareness of the importance of good hormone health.
29th WONCA Europe Conference
25-28 Sept. 2024 in Dublin, Ireland
Abstract submission is now open. The Scientific Committee encourages submissions for consideration in the WONCA programme.
Deadline for abstract submission is 30 March
EndoBridge 2024
17-20 Oct 2024 in Antalya, Turkiye
Clinical Case Submission Deadline:
23 Aug 2024
OBESITY FACTS JOURNAL
Read the latest edition of OBESITY FACTS Journal
Volume 17, Issue 1, online first articles are all available open access.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
EU PROJECTS
STAGE: Staying Healthy Through Ageing
Stage focuses on the study of healthy ageing. The project brings together experts to investigate ageing and multi-morbidity—the presence of multiple long-term health conditions—using extensive health data collected over lifetimes.
The key aim of the project is to understand how to prevent these complex health issues.
Follow the new EU Project on Twitter and LinkedIn
SWEET PROJECT
The EU SWEET project concluded after 5 years, with 45 members from 29 organizations sharing groundbreaking findings on the impact of sweeteners and enhancers.
Register to receive info on SWEET Project findings:
BIO-STREAMS
Introducing Bio-Streams: Addressing Childhood and Adolescent Obesity in the EU
Bio-Streams, a new Horizon Europe Research and Innovation project designed to address the growing epidemic of underage obesity in the European Union, is excited to announce its official launch.
This groundbreaking project combines data-driven research, prevention measures and community participation to provide a holistic approach to reducing obesity rates among children and adolescents.
INTERACT EUROPE
Obesity is a chronic relapsing disease that acts as a gateway to other NCDs and is linked with an increased risk of developing breast, ovary, liver and colon cancer.
EASO is pleased to support the European Cancer Organisation-led Interact Europe project, which brings together 33 partners from 17 countries to develop a patient-centred European inter-specialty cancer training programme.
PREVENT EU
Proactive Strategies for Addressing Childhood Obesity and reducing Future Cancer Risks
EASO is delighted to partner with the European Health Management Association in a new project, PREVENT — improving and upscaling primary prevention of cancer by addressing childhood obesity through implementation research.
TIMESPAN
EASO is pleased to support this 5 year EU funded H2020 initiative. TIMESPAN, led by scientific coordinator Professor Henrik Larsson (Örebro University), includes 17 partners from across academia, industry, and patient advocacy communities, and aims to foster improvement in clinical management of adults living with with ADHD and co-occurring cardiometabolic disease, including obesity.
