Distinguished University Health Professor Jeffrey P. Krischer, PhD, an internationally leading researcher in autoimmune diseases, will be formally recognized as a new honorary doctor of medicine by the Lund University Faculty of Medicine on May 25, 2018, at Lund Cathedral in Sweden.

Jeffrey Krischer, PhD

Dr. Krischer, director of the Health Informatics Institute at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, is one of the world’s foremost experts in the mechanisms behind autoimmune diseases such as type 1 diabetes and celiac disease. He coordinates several major international, NIH-sponsored clinical networks investigating the causes and outcomes of type 1 diabetes, including TEDDY (The Environmental Determinants of Diabetes in the Young) and TrialNet, in which Lunden University and Skane University Hospitals are a central hub. Many key findings have emerged from these studies, including insight into the co-occurrence of type 1 diabetes and celiac disease autoimmunity, the effects of gluten consumption on the risk of celiac disease, and dietary recommendations on gluten for children in Sweden.

Dr. Krischer’s work has led to the recognition of two distinct patterns of autoimmunity in children at high genetic risk for diabetes that could lead to targeted prevention strategies. They give rise to autoantibodies that are age and genetically linked.

Dr. Krischer has collaborated with researchers at the Lund University Faculty of Medicine since 2002, contributing his expertise in the design and analysis of clinical studies, said Lund professor Ake Lernmark. “Not least, he acts as a mentor for several junior researchers in Lund who have had the opportunity to conduct research with him at his institute in Tampa.”

Three other leading researchers — neuroscientist Elena Catteneo, a professor at the University of Milan; astrophysicist Sandor J. Kovacs, a professor at Washington University, St. Louis; and cardiovascular expert John Chalmers, a professor at The George Institute for Global Health, Sydney, and the University of New South Wales – will be recognized as honorary doctors along with Dr. Krischer at the ceremony in May.

Lund University is one of Europe’s oldest, largest and most prestigious universities, consistently ranked among the world’s top 100 universities.