University of Helsinki
Tapani Koppinen is an Australian-Finnish PhD student in Prof. Merja Voutilainen’s group at the University of Helsinki’s Faculty of Pharmacy.
Tapani was born in Melbourne, Australia, before moving to Helsinki at a young age. After working briefly in a lab at the Meilahti campus, he joined the Voutilainen group to study the regenerative effects of novel drug compounds in models of Multiple Sclerosis, a debilitating neurological condition in which the nerve cells of the brain and the spinal cord lose their ‘coating’ that is essential for the fast transfer of signals from the brain to our organs.
Tapani remarks “the field of neuroscience and immunology have always been close to my heart, and both lend themselves nicely to artistic expression”. He continues: “In general, research is a challenging yet deeply rewarding field to work in, and this project sounds like a great medium to highlight our research. Discussing our work with the artists was very enjoyable”.
Looking ahead to the exhibition, Tapani is excited to see the different pieces of art generated via the other collaborations and is also eager to share his research with the general public.
Read more about Tapani’s research within the Voutilainen group on their website.