Elin Manell

I am a European veterinary specialist in laboratory animal medicine (Dipl. ECLAM) with a special interest in porcine models for human disease and veterinary care of research pigs. My interest for research pigs has led me to collaborations in xenotransplantation research, which is now also one of the main focuses for my own research. At SLU, I currently divide my time between research, teaching and a position as animal care and welfare officer. 

As a specialist in laboratory animal medicine I am committed to work with the three Rs, replace, reduce and refine. This concept is central to all scientific work that includes animals. Research animals should be replaced with non-animal alternatives when they becomes avaliable, and we need to work with refinement of animal models and animal care to ensure that the animals are used in the best possible way for the animals and for the integrity of the research data. I have an ongoing animal welfare project looking at how restrain affect research pigs, and methods for reducing stress during restraint. At the same time I have a project to improve methods used in immunological reseach to get more and improved data from samples that are collected from research pigs. In addition I am co-supervisor for a PhD student working on improved methods of anesthesia in mice and rats. 

Through collaborations with medical doctors, and during a postdoc fellowship at Columbia University, I came to work with transplant immunology and xenotransplantation research. Xenotransplantation is a research field that has made major advancements during the past few years, with the first living patient receiving a porcine heart in 2022. Despite major advances in clinical xenotransplantation, immunological questions on how to improve xenograft survival and function remain. The focus of my current research is to study properties of porcine endothelial cells and innate immune reaction in human blood that comes in contact with these cells. We are also looking at intervention to attenuate innate immune activation in xenotransplantion. In this projcet I collaborate with Prof. Bo Nilsson's group at Uppsala University and Prof. Eckhard Wolf's group at Ludwig-Maximillian's University in Munich. 

I have been teaching laboratory animal medicine and science at courses for various student groups at the university for more than 10 years. As a laboratory animal veterinarian I also instruct animal care takers and researchers in how to carry out procedures involving research animals. 

Manell E, Gunes ME, Merl S, Patwardhan S, Chauhan I, Hong J, Chen B, Jordache P, Almesalmy A, Ekanayake-Alper D, Husain S, Wuu CS, Wright M, Bogue J, Rohde C, Shanmugarajah K, Cetrulo CL, Sachs D, Weiner J. MHC class I matching is necessary but not sufficient for tolerance induction to vascularized composite allografts. Accepted for publication in Transplantation Direct

Manell E, Mulder H, Gunes E, Chauhan I, Patwardhan S, Hong J, Batal I, Sachs D, Weiner J. Prolonged skin graft survival and histocompatibility in highly inbred miniature swine. Accepted for publication in Transplantation Direct

Biglarnia A, Teramura Y, Asif S, Dührkop C, Arnand Manivel V, Manell E, Hedenqvist P, Ryden A, Sellberg F, Fromell K, Hammer S, Huber-Lang M, Ekdahl KN, Jensen-Waern M, Nilsson B. A new principle to attenuate ischemia reperfusion injury in kidney transplantation. Am J Transplant. 2025 Sep 24:S1600-6135(25)02938-7. doi: 10.1016/j.ajt.2025.08.024. Online ahead of print.

Manell E, Gunes ME, Jordache P, Patwardhan S, Hong J, Sachs D, Weiner J. A Novel Mixed Lymphocyte Reaction Assay for Measuring T Cell Responses in the Skin of Pigs. J Immunol Methods. 2025;12:543:113920. Doi: 10.1016/j.jim.2025.113920

Gunes E, Wolbrom DH, Nygaards, ED, Manell E, Jordache P, Qudus S, Cadelina A, Weiner J, Novak G. OMIP-108: 22-color flow cytometry panel for detection and monitoring of chimerism and immune reconstitution in porcine-to-baboon models of operational xenotransplant tolerance studies. Cytometry A. 2024 Sep 18. Doi: 10.1002/cyto.a.24899.

Manell, E, Hedenqvist P, Jensen-Waern M. Training pigs for oral glucose tolerance test – six years’ experience of a refined model. Animals. 2021;11(6):1677. doi:10.3390/ani11061677 

Manell E, Puuvuori E, Svensson A, Velikyan I, Hulsart-Billström G, Hedenqvist P, Holst JJ, Jensen Waern M, Eriksson O. Exploring the GLP-1 – GLP-1R axis in porcine pancreas and gastrointestinal tract in vivo by ex vivo autoradiography. BMJ Open Diab Res Care 2021;9:e002083. doi:10.1136/ bmjdrc-2020-002083

Askar R, Fredriksson E, Manell E, Hedeland M, Bondesson U, Bate S, Olsén L, Hedenqvist P. Bioavailability of subcutaneous and intramuscular administrated buprenorphine in New Zealand White rabbits. BMC Vet Res. 2020:11;16(1):436. 

Hedenqvist P, Trbakovic A, Mellgren T, Öhman Mägi C, Hammarström Johansson P, Manell E, Ekman S, Ley C, Jensen-Waern M, Thor A. The effect of housing environment on bone healing in a critical radius defect in New Zealand White rabbits. PLoS ONE. 2020; 15(5): e0233530. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0233530 

Manell E, Hedenqvist P, Svensson A, Jensen-Waern M. Establishment of a Refined Oral Glucose Tolerance Test in Pigs, and Assessment of Insulin, Glucagon and Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Responses. PLoS ONE. 2016; 11(2): e0148896.doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0148896

Manell E, Rydén A, Hedenqvist P, Jacobson M, Jensen-Waern M. Insulin treatment of streptozotocin-induced diabetes re-establish the patterns in carbohydrate, fat and amino acid metabolism in growing pigs. Lab Anim 2014; 48: 261-269.