In Mohn Research Centre for Regenerative Medicine (MRCRM), we aim to develop new cell-based therapies to repair or replace - to regenerate - tissues and cells damaged by disease or injury. Our research focus spans from biomedical to clinical research and clinical trials within the field of regenerative medicine, and our long-term aim is to offer patients new state-of-the-art therapies.
The goal of the Mohn Research Centre for Regenerative Medicine (MRCRM) is to support and strengthen the research environment within regenerative medicine in Bergen, with a particular focus on translating basic research into clinical studies that, in turn, will benefit the patients.
We envision the Centre as an umbrella for the scientific community within this research area, providing a common hub where new research collaborations and ideas can evolve and take the field to the next level.
We organize events for the community regularly.
The Centre is a strategic initiative from Haukeland University Hospital at Helse Bergen Health Trust and the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Bergen, financed by Trond Mohn Research Foundation for five years. MRCRM builds on an active research environment and the newly established Ex vivo facility at the Laboratory building at Haukeland. This laboratory is a high-grade cleanroom facility operating under Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) and will manufacture the cells for clinical trials affiliated with the Centre.
The initial research projects affiliated to the Centre, and recruited through a generous grant by the Trond Mohn Research Foundation are presented below.
The objectives of the MRCRM are to coordinate groundbreaking fundamental research, and give patients access to state-of-the-art therapies, initially in clinical trials but later as established advanced, personalized treatment, see below. We will achieve this by:
Being the hub for the scientific community
Supporting and promoting fundamental and translational stem cell research
Enabling clinical trials with advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs) based on tissues and cells, employing the new GMP laboratory at Haukeland
Assisting in steering through the approval process by the Norwegian Medicinal Agency
Implementing novel therapies using ATMPs
Read more about our events and the MRCRM seminar series here.
Read more about the new clean-room cell production laboratory called the Ex vivo facility.
In August 2021, the Helse Bergen Health Trust and the University of Bergen established the Mohn Research Centre for Regenerative Medicine. Four research projects, recruited through grants from the Trond Mohn Research Foundation, comprise the initial scientific foundation of the Centre.
The Trond Mohn Research Foundation has generously supported the initiative with 30 MNOK, and the host institutions have contributed with in total 60 MNOK. The Helse Bergen Health Trust has also invested a considerable amount in the new “Ex Vivo” cell production facility, which will be operable at Haukeland University Hospital by the end of 2022.
The administrative unit of the Centre is located at the Department of Immunology and Transfusion Medicine in the Laboratory Building at Haukeland University Hospital. Still, our research is spread to dedicated laboratories and buildings around Bergen. Thus, so far this is a centre “without walls”.
The MRCRM Team
The appointed centre leader is Professor and MD Einar K. Kristoffersen, Head of the Department of Immunology and Transfusion Medicine at Haukeland University Hospital. He chairs the MRCRM Management group, which meets monthly to discuss strategic and practical issues.
The MRCRM Steering Group is chaired by the Helse Bergen deputy CEO Clara Gjesdal, and consists of representatives from the Helse Bergen Health Trust, the University of Bergen and the Trond Mohn Research Foundation.
An international Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) has been established and consists of representatives with high compentency on cell therapy and research centre development. The role of the SAB is to support and evaluate the Centre.
If you would like to join the Centre or be informed about MRCRM-related activities and upcoming events, send us an e-mail or see contact information below.
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High-school students first encounter with stem cell research
On Friday, March 22, 2024, UniStem Day was celebrated worldwide, with 97 participating research centres and universities. Norway joined the initiative for the very first time, and gathered 80 high school students from Bergen to explore the possibilities within stem cell research - a field that has the potential to revolutionize future medicine.
What should one do when bones in the mouth disappear?
It's about bones, stem cells, and the stimulation of growth factors in tissue when the dentist and postdoctoral researcher Siddharth Vivek Shanbhag (38) explains his research. Last week, he received the Health West Young Researcher Award for his studies on bone defect regeneration.
The Mohn Research Centre for Regenerative Medicine is supported by the Trond Mohn Foundation, University of Bergen, and Haukeland University Hospital.
