Ģ��ֱ��

9/2024

M.Sc. Tero Sievänen defended his doctoral dissertation in Gerontology and Public Health, titled '', on September 20, 2024.

Opponent was Professor Arto Mannermaa (University of Eastern Finland) and Custos Associate Professor Eija Laakkonen (Ģ��ֱ��). Supervisors were Eija Laakkonen (Ģ��ֱ��), Toni Seppälä (University of Tampere), and Elina Sillanpää (Ģ��ֱ�� & Wellbeing Services County of Central Finland).

4/2024

M.Sc. Anna Kankaanpää defended her doctoral dissertation in Gerontology and Public Health, titled ',' on April 19, 2024.

Opponent was Docent Juulia Jylhävä (Tampere University) and Custos Associate Professor Elina Sillanpää (Ģ��ֱ��). Supervisors were Elina Sillanpää (Ģ��ֱ�� & Wellbeing Services County of Central Finland), Miina Ollikainen (Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM), HiLife University of Helsinki & Minerva Foundation Institute for Medical Research Finland), and Asko Tolvanen (Ģ��ֱ��).

6/2023

M.Sc. Suvi Ravi defended her doctoral dissertation in Sports and Exercise Medicine, titled '',  on June 21, 2023. 

Opponent Docent was Arja Uusitalo (Helsinki University Hospital Diagnostic Center & Clinic for Sports and Exercise Medicine) and Custos Professor Jari Parkkari (Ģ��ֱ��). Supervisors were Jari Parkkari (Ģ��ֱ��), Maarit Valtonen (Finnish Institute of High Performance Sport KIHU), Benjamin Waller (University of Reykjavik), and Urho Kujala (Ģ��ֱ��).

A study conducted by the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences at the Ģ��ֱ�� found that men with a genetic predisposition supporting higher muscle strength had a lower risk of dying from cardiovascular diseases, regardless of their leisure-time physical activity levels or other lifestyle-related factors.

“The link between a greater inherited physical strength and a lower risk of death remained regardless of whether the person was more or less physically active in their leisure time,” explains doctoral researcher Päivi Herranen from the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences.

In women, an inherited predisposition to higher muscle strength was not associated with mortality, possibly due to biological and environmental differences between sexes that influence cardiovascular health.

The study utilized a polygenic score that combined the effects of hundreds of thousands of genetic variants associated with handgrip strength. The study included genetic and lifestyle data of nearly 9000 participants from the older Finnish Twin Cohort. Information on participants’ education, body mass index, smoking, alcohol use, and physical activity was collected via questionnaires at three measurement points.

To read more about the study click here

Original publication: Herranen, P., Waller, K., Joensuu, L., Palviainen,T., Laakkonen, E.K., Kaprio, J. &  Sillanpää, E. (2025) Genetic liability to higher muscle strength associates with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease mortality in men irrespective of leisure-time physical activity in adulthood: a longitudinal cohort study. J Am Heart Assoc.

Although sedentary behaviour may be an evolutionarily selected trait, it is still important to try to be physically active, says a new study conducted at the Ģ��ֱ��. Researchers have shown for the first time that genetic predisposition to sedentary behaviour is associated with a higher risk of developing the most common cardiovascular diseases. A high genetic predisposition to sedentary behaviour can increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases by up to 20%.

Genetics are known to be associated with both cardiovascular diseases and low levels of physical activity. For the first time, researchers of the Ģ��ֱ��’s Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences have investigated the association between genetic predisposition to sedentary behaviour and cardiovascular diseases. The unique genome and health data of about 330,000 Finns from FinnGen was used in the research.

Genetic predisposition can be determined using modern genome-wide polygenic scores. The researchers developed a polygenic score to describe genetic predisposition to leisure screen time, the most common type of voluntary sedentary behaviour. The polygenic score was used to investigate the association between genetic predisposition to sedentary behaviour and the incidence of all cardiovascular diseases, hypertensive diseases, ischaemic heart diseases, such as myocardial infarction as well as cerebrovascular diseases. The analyses were repeated in a separate reference group, which consisted of about 35,000 Norwegians.

“We found that genetic predisposition to sedentary behaviour increased the risk of cardiovascular diseases almost equally in both population samples,” says Postdoctoral Researcher Laura Joensuu from the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences of the Ģ��ֱ��. “People with the highest predisposition to sedentary behaviour accumulated about half an hour more daily sedentary time and had about a 20% higher risk of developing the most common cardiovascular diseases, compared to those with the lowest genetic predisposition.”

It is worth getting moving, even if you feel lazy

Sedentary behaviour may be a trait selected by evolution. Paleoanthropologists have previously argued that physical activity has long been a survival need in human history, which is why humans would not have evolved to move voluntarily. Although the evidence is still mainly theory-based, human genetics may regulate physical activity behaviour and underlie the commonly observed phenomenon of physical inactivity in the population.

“Our results support previous theories that the human trait to be sedentary has a genetic basis and illustrate its health effects,” says Joensuu, “and these findings should be taken into account when promoting the health of the population.

“The feeling of not having the energy to exercise can be completely normal. However, since physical activity has positive effects on our overall wellbeing, it’s important to ignore these types of negative feelings." 

"We should better encourage physical activity in our society. One effective way to do this is by fostering a sense of community and the joy that comes with physical activity.”

The study was published in the world’s leading sports medicine journal, the British Journal of Sports Medicine. The first author of the study, Postdoctoral Researcher Laura Joensuu, is a member of the GenActive research group of the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, Ģ��ֱ��. The GenActive group investigates genetic and lifestyle factors that predict biological ageing, health and functional capacity. The group is led by Elina Sillanpää, Associate Professor of Health Promotion.

The research was funded by the Research Council of Finland, the Juho Vainio Foundation, Päivikki and Sakari Sohlberg Foundation and Sigrid Juselius Foundation.

Link to publication: 

A recent twin study investigated the links between long-term leisure-time physical activity and mortality, as well as whether physical activity can mitigate the increased risk of mortality due to genetic predisposition to diseases. Moreover, the relationship between physical activity and later biological aging was examined.

When the association between leisure-time physical activity was examined at the 30-year follow-up, it was found that the greatest benefit – a 7% lower risk of mortality – was achieved between the sedentary and moderately active participants. A clear association between higher physical activity and lower mortality was found only in the short-term. Surprisingly, in the long term, those who were highly active did not differ from those who were sedentary in terms of mortality.  The study also found that meeting the World Health Organization's physical activity guidelines did not lower mortality risk or alter genetic disease risk to diseases. Even for twins who met the recommended levels of physical activity over a 15-year period, no statistically significant difference in mortality rates was found compared to their less active twin pair.

"The widely observed favorable association between physical activity and mortality are based on observational studies that are prone to bias from different sources,” says postdoctoral researcher Laura Joensuu. “In our studies, we aimed to account for various sources of biases, and combined with the long follow-up period, we could not confirm that adhering to physical activity guidelines mitigates genetic cardiovascular disease risk or causally reduces mortality.”

Additionally, a U-shaped relationship between leisure-time physical activity and biological aging was found.

“Biological aging was accelerated in those who exercised the least and the most,” says Associate Professor Elina Sillanpää.

Other lifestyles, such as smoking and alcohol consumption, largely explained the favourable associations of physical activity with biological aging. 

Read the full press release here. The research articles were published in  ja .

The Juho Vainio Foundation has awarded grants to the following research team members for their projects:

Joensuu Laura, Genetic drivers of physical activity and exercise participation

Koivunen Kaisa, Resilience and healthy aging: a complex systems approach

Pitkänen Anni, Body weight trajectories from childhood to adulthood: Associations with genetics, physical activity, environment, and biological aging

Ravi Suvi, The role of nutrition in the prevention of common diseases

You can find the Faculty news on the topic here (in Finnish). Members of the group in the news photo: Anni Pitkänen (front left), Suvi Ravi (front center), Laura Joensuu (front right). 

The rate of biological aging indicates the discrepancy between chronological age and biological age, that is, whether a person is biologically older or younger than their chronological age. Biological aging can be measured using epigenetic clocks. 

A study conducted at the Ģ��ֱ�� and the Gerontology Research Center investigated whether diet predicts the rate of biological aging in young adulthood. The study participants were twins between the ages of 20 and 25.  

According to the results, diets characterized by low intake of vegetables and fruits and high consumption of red and processed meat, fast food, and sugar-sweetened soft drinks were associated with faster biological aging. Conversely, diets rich in vegetables and fruits and low in meat, fast food, and sugary soft drinks were associated with slower biological aging. 

‘Some of the observed associations may also be explained by other lifestyle factors, such as physical activity, smoking, and body weight, as healthy and unhealthy lifestyle habits tend to cluster in the same individuals,’ says postdoctoral researcher Suvi Ravi. ‘However, diet maintained a small independent association with aging even when we accounted for other lifestyle factors.’ 

Since the study participants were twins, the research was able to investigate the genetic influence on the relationship between diet and biological age. The results suggest that a shared genetic background, but not the shared childhood environment of the twins, explains the relationship between diet and aging in young adulthood. 

The study is a part of the research project ‘The role of nutrition in the prevention of common diseases’, which is funded by the Juho Vainio Foundation. This sub-study utilized data from the FinnTwin12 study. A total of 826 individual twins and 363 twin pairs participated in the study. Diet was assessed using a food frequency questionnaire, where participants reported the typical consumption frequency of 55 food items. 

Read the full press release here. The research article published in the Clinical Nutrition can be read .

MSc, PhD researcher Päivi Herranen placed second in the "Best Research Paper in Sports Medicine Competition" final at the Helsinki Sports Medicine Days in November 2024. Her paper in the competition was "Genetic Liability to Higher Muscle Strength Associates with a Lower Risk of Cardiovascular Disease Mortality in Men Irrespective of Leisure-Time Physical Activity in Adulthood: A Longitudinal Cohort Study". 

Herranen and her research group investigated whether a genetic predisposition for higher muscle strength is associated with lower mortality and whether this association is influenced by long-term leisure-time physical activity. The data included genetic and lifestyle information from nearly 9,000 Finnish twins measured at several time points. The results suggest that a genetic predisposition for higher muscle strength may confer a small protective effect against all-cause and cardiovascular disease-related mortality in men, regardless of their physical activity level in adulthood. The independent clinical utility of the polygenic score for muscle strength is still limited but could potentially complement traditional risk assessments, especially for identifying individuals who are the most prone to cardiovascular events. 

Find the original announcement (available in Finnish only).

Tiedonportti - Ģ��ֱ��’s online science magazine -  interviewed postdoctoral researcher Anna Kankaanpää about her doctoral research and the widespread media attention received by the fourth publication of her doctoral work. In her dissertation, Kankaanpää examined the genetic and environmental influences on biological aging. The fourth publication focused on the associations between leisure-time physical activity, biological aging, and mortality. The findings were surprising, and the research won the Best Research Paper in Sports Medicine 2023 Competition organized by the Finnish Society of Sport Sciences. As a result of this recognition, the research findings also gained international media attention.

Read the full article here.

Dr. ��ܲ�é�� ��ó����-���ܱ�Դ� worked as a Visiting Fellow in our group in August 2024, funded by the JYU Visiting Fellow program. Dr. ��ó����-���ܱ�Դ� is a Senior Researcher on Public Health at University of Zaragoza, Spain, and a Research collaborator with the musculoskeletal disorders-group at the National Research Center for the Working Environment (Copenhagen, Denmark). His research focuses on health-related behaviors, particularly physical activity aiming to identify research gaps and develop methods that advance the current body of epidemiological literature.

The visit was hosted by Associate Professor Elina Sillanpää and Postdoctoral Researcher Laura Joensuu.

From the left: Laura Joensuu, ��ܲ�é�� ��ó����-���ܱ�Դ�, and Elina Sillanpää

Postdoctoral researcher Kaisa Koivunen was awarded the Nordic Gerontological Federation Prize for Promising Researcher, presented in Stockholm at the 27th Nordic Congress of Gerontology in June 2024. Her primary interests lie in public health, physical functioning, and specifically, systemic resilience and psychometrics. 

For the original announcement, click

The Science Day of the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences was held on May 8, 2024. During the event, students presented their completed or nearly completed master's theses from the school year through oral or poster presentations. Doctoral researchers also showcased their research. One outstanding master's thesis from each study program was selected for an oral presentation. Anni Pitkänen received this honor in the Health Promotion program. The title of her thesis was "The association of genetic predisposition to overweight with biological aging in young adulthood". The main supervisor was Anna Kankaanpää and the second supervisor was Elina Sillanpää.

In addition, based on the audience vote, the award for the best poster presentation went to Michelle Becquart ("The association between parent-child co-activity and children's motor skills: a cross-sectional study of four-year-old children". Supervisors Laura Joensuu and Elina Sillanpää) and Heidi Maaranen ("Overweight and Obesity in Health Education Textbooks in Lower Secondary Schools". Supevisors Elina Sillanpää and Terhi Koivumäki (University of Tampere)).

From the left: Anni Pitkänen, Heidi Maaranen, and Michelle Becquart

Muscle strength, especially hand grip strength, can indicate an individual’s physiological resources to protect against age-related diseases and disabilities, as well as their ability to cope with them. Age-related loss of muscle strength is individual and influenced not only by lifestyle but also by genetics.

“Our study revealed that individuals with a genetic predisposition for higher muscle strength have a slightly lower risk for common noncommunicable diseases and premature mortality. However, it did not predict better survival after acute adverse health events compared to the time before illness onset,” says doctoral researcher Päivi Herranen.

The study utilized the internationally unique FinnGen dataset, compiled through the collaboration of Finnish biobanks. The dataset consisted of 342,443 Finns who had given their consent and provided a biobank sample. The participants were aged 40 to 108 years, and 53% of them were women. 

To read more about the study click here. Direct access to the research paper published in   The Journals of Gerontology: Series A behind this .

Tutkimuksessa havaittiin, että metabolinen oireyhtymä oli yhteydessä kiihtyneeseen biologiseen vanhenemiseen. Metabolinen oireyhtymä kiihdytti vanhenemista keskimäärin 2,6 vuotta GrimAge-kellolla ja 1,4 kuukautta jokaista kalenterivuotta kohden uudemmalla DunedinPACE-kellolla mitattuna. Yhteys metabolisen oireyhtymän ja kiihtyneen ikääntymisen välillä säilyi, vaikka analyysissä huomioitiin sukupuoli, ikä, liikunta, tupakointi, alkoholin käyttö tai lääkkeiden käyttö. 

”Tutkimuksessa käytetty aineisto sisälsi myös kaksosia, mikä mahdollisti perimän merkityksen selvittämisen tässä yhteydessä ensimmäistä kertaa. Tulokset viittasivat siihen, että geneettiset tekijät ovat merkittävä selittävä tekijä metabolisen oireyhtymän ja biologisen vanhenemisen välisessä yhteydessä”, kertoo tutkijatohtori Tiina Föhr Jyväskylän yliopistosta. 

”Tutkimuksen tulokset lisäävät ymmärrystä biologisesta vanhenemisesta ja siihen vaikuttavista tekijöistä. Tuloksia voidaan hyödyntää terveyden edistämistyössä ja kehitettäessä toimenpiteitä, jotka edesauttavat tervettä vanhenemista”, Föhr lisää. 

Pääaineisto koostui 268 tutkittavasta, joista naisia oli 57 %. He olivat iältään 23–69 vuotiaita, kattaen koko aikuisuuden ikäskaalan. Tutkimus toistettiin tulosten varmentamiseksi kahdessa muussa riippumattomassa aineistossa; toinen aineisto koostui yksilöistä ja toinen kaksosista. Tutkittavien metabolisen oireyhtymän osatekijät - vyötärönympärys, verenpaine sekä paastoverinäytteestä määritetty verensokeri sekä triglyseridien ja hdl-kolesterolin määrä - määritettiin laboratorio-olosuhteissa. Tutkittavien elintapoihin liittyviä tekijöitä eli liikunta-aktiivisuutta, tupakointia ja alkoholinkäyttöä selvitettiin kyselylomakkeilla. 

Alkuperäinen tiedote löytyy ��ää����ä. Tutkimus on julkaistu lehdessä .

Kaikkiaan Kulttuurirahasto jakoi lokakuussa 2023 saatujen hakemusten perusteella yli 30 miljoonaa euroa apurahoina tieteen, taiteen ja kulttuurin hyväksi. Hakemuksista menestyi joka kymmenes. Apurahahakemuksia on arvioimassa yli 150 vuosittain vaihtuvaa tieteen ja taiteen eri alojen asiantuntijaa. Taiteelle ohjautui 43 % ja tieteelle 57 % apurahaeuroista.

Monivuotisen apurahan saivat mm. PsT Francesca Brandolin kansainvälisten yliopisto-opiskelijoiden ja henkilökunnan sopeutumista ja integroitumista suomalaiseen yhteiskuntaan käsittelevään väitöksen jälkeiseen tutkimukseen. Terveystieteiden tohtori Laura Joensuu sai tukea väestön istuvan elämäntavan ja heikon fyysisen kunnon syy-seuraussuhdetta terveydenhuollon kustannuksiin käsittelevään väitöksen jälkeiseen tutkimukseen. FM Kia Liimatainen puolistaan sai tukea vammaisten ihmisten työelämään siirtymisen kokemuksia käsittelevään väitöskirjatyöhön.

Apurahojen saajien tiedot löytyvät Suomen Kulttuurirahaston oheisesta tiedostosta.

Voittajatutkimuksen otsikko on Fyysisen aktiivisuuden yhteydet biologiseen vanhenemiseen ja kuolleisuuteen. Anna Kankaanpään ja hänen tutkimusryhmänsä voittajatutkimus tarkasteli voisiko biologinen vanheneminen välittää fyysisen aktiivisuuden yhteyksiä kuolleisuuteen. Lisäksi he tutkivat, miten perimän ja sairauksien huomioiminen eri analyysimenetelmillä vaikuttaa fyysisen aktiivisuuden ja kuolleisuuden välisen yhteyden tulkintaan.   

Tutkittavat olivat vanhemman suomalaisen kaksoskohortin kaksosia (n = 22 854, 18–50-vuotiaita vuonna 1975). Vapaa-ajan fyysistä aktiivisuutta tutkijat arvioivat validoidulla kyselylomakkeella vuosilta 1975, 1981 ja 1990. Kuolleisuutta seurattiin vuoden 2020 loppuun asti. Tutkijat jakoivat tutkittavat neljään alaryhmään, joilla oli toisistaan poikkeava fyysisen aktiivisuuden taso aikuisuudessa. Biologista vanhenemista mitattiin kahdella DNA:n metylaatioon perustuvalla mittarilla.   

Tutkimustulokset osoittivat, että fyysinen aktiivisuus oli yhteydessä biologiseen vanhenemiseen, mutta yhteys oli U:n muotoinen: pysyvästi vähän liikkuvat ja erittäin aktiiviset olivat biologisesti vanhempia kuin melko aktiiviset ja aktiiviset henkilöt. Kun malli vakioitiin muilla elintapoihin liittyvillä tekijöillä, ainoastaan erot erittäin aktiivisten ryhmään säilyivät. Pysyvästi aktiivisilla ryhmillä oli pienempi riski kuolla ennenaikaisesti verrattuna vähiten liikkuvien ryhmään, kun yhteiset perintö- ja ympäristötekijät huomioitiin mallinnuksessa. Ryhmien väliset erot heikkenivät, kun muut elintapoihin liittyvät tekijät huomioitiin. Kun sairauksia raportoineet parit poissuljettiin, havaitut erot heikkenivät entisestään eivätkä olleet tilastollisesti merkitseviä.  

Tulosten perusteella biologinen vanheneminen ei näytä välittävän fyysisen aktiivisuuden ja kuolleisuuden välisiä yhteyksiä. Fyysisen aktiivisuuden taso saattaa ennemmin heijastaa henkilön terveydentilaa kuin lisätä elinvuosia.  
 

Alkuperäisen uutisen tiedot löytyvät ��ää����ä.

Prof. Ulf Ekelund worked as a Visiting Fellow in our group in April 2023, funded by the JYU Visiting Fellow program. Prof. Ekelund is an expert in measuring physical activity and inactivity, as well as in relationships between physical activity and non-communicable diseases throughout the life course.

During his impressive career, Prof. Ekelund has received numerous awards and recognitions. In the last five years, he has been ranked four times on the 'Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher' list, which recognizes researchers at top one percent in their field. Prof. Ekelund is actively involved in several internationally significant research and working groups and consortia, making a significant impact on the advancement of knowledge in his field.

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The visit was hosted by Postdoctoral Researcher Laura Joensuu.

From the left: Laura Joensuu and Ulf Ekelund