Topic: research

In 2025, the study that drew the most attention in public digital channels was led by Professor of Botany Meelis Pärtel and confirms the negative effect of human activity on wildlife biodiversity.

On the 12th of December 2025 Tatjana Meister will defend her thesis "Assessing COVID-19 risk and sequelae: the role of vaccination in modifying infection, severity, and long-term outcomes”.

As possible ways forward, participants proposed strengthening digital and health literacy, providing institutional support for professionals, and raising awareness among both healthcare workers and patients.

University of Tartu Professor of Nanomedicine Tambet Teesalu has become the first Estonian researcher to receive a Synergy Grant from the European Research Council, which supports collaboration of top-level research teams in tackling highly complex and ambitious scientific challenges.

Interest in the European Research Council (ERC) programme has grown among University of Tartu researchers. In response, the Grant Writing Unit is organising an ERC Information Event on 4 November 2025, focused on individual ERC Starting, Consolidator, and Advanced Grants.

In the genetic study on heart health led by the University of Tartu Estonian Biobank, the required number of participants – just over 2,500 gene donors – have now expressed their willingness to take part. With their help, researchers aim to determine whether heart disease can be more effectively prevented with cholesterol-lowering treatment based on genetic risk assessment.