the team

Taija Mäkinen

Principle investigator

Filipa Oliveira

I did my master thesis in vascular biology work with Lena Claesson-Welch before joining Taija’s group as a PhD student 2023. My project focuses on origins and functions of lymphatic vessels.

Sarah Schnabellenhner

I joined Taija’s group as a PhD student in 2018, investigating integrin signalling in (lymph)-angiogenesis and organ-specific vascular heterogeneity.

Gauri Arolkar

I started my PhD studies in the group 2025 as part of the iCAN cancer programme .

Charlotte Rorsman

I joined the lab in October 2022 as a research engineer. Previously I have been working at the Ludwig Cancer Institute in Uppsala and with Elisabetta Dejana/Petra Magnusson’s group here at IGP.

Sofie Lunell

I joined the lab 2018 as the groups laboratory assistent.

Yan Zhang

I received my PhD from Tsinghua University in China where I worked on convergent extension movement in embryos. I joined Taija’s lab in 2015 as a postdoc. Now my work is focusing on mechanisms of lymphatic morphogenesis.

Bojana Jakic

I obtained my PhD in Austria 2017. I have experience in the cardiovascular, endothelial and immunology fields. Since joining Taija’s group 2019 I work on immunomodulatory and homeostatic functions of LECs.

Vishal Mohanakrishnan

Vishal joined us as a postdoc in 2024, where he is now working on the characterization of lymphatic capillary endothelial cells. Outside of the confocal room, he enjoys photography and traveling.

Yizhou Hu

I am a Researcher and Bioinformatician that joined from the Karolinska Institute in 2025.

Zuzana Varaliova

I received my PhD in Prague on the interplay between adipose tissue and the lymphatic system. I joined in 2023 and work on organ-specific lymphatic vessel development.

Ingvar Ferby

Senior Researcher in Taija’s lab with a background in epithelial cell biology.