Associate Professor and Group Leader. Head of a highly specialized function in newborn screening, responsible for genetic diagnostics of mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation disorders. Coordinator of elective courses and summer schools in the Medicine Master’s program.

Mitochondria convert the food we eat and the air we breathe into energy. In doing so, they also produce signalling molecules that enhance cellular defences against both internal and external stress. Understanding these mechanisms is critical for uncovering how inherited disorders of mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation and chronic fatigue syndromes impair the body’s ability to cope with metabolic stress from exertion or infection.

My research is rooted in mitochondrial medicine, with a strong translational focus — bridging molecular mechanisms and patient-centered applications in rare inborn metabolic diseases and complex fatigue syndromes, such as ME/CFS and Long COVID.

We conduct genetic diagnostics and research on inherited mitochondrial disorders, with a focus on fatty acid oxidation disorders. We support newborn screening programs and integrate patient diagnostics with research on molecular disease mechanisms. Our research focuses on mitochondria as energy and stress-signalling organelles. In recent years, we have extended our studies into mitochondrial dysfunction and stress-signalling in chronic fatigue and pain syndromes, studying ME/CFS, long-COVID, and neuropathic pain. 

We utilize patient-derived dermal fibroblasts, immune cells, and iPSC models, and apply advanced molecular methods, including functional genomics, proteomics, extracellular bioenergetic flux analysis, and fluorescence imaging techniques, to characterize novel disease genes, pinpoint disease mechanisms, and identify treatment targets. 

To advance the clinical translation of our research, we are launching a randomized controlled trial to examine hypoxia-induced mitochondrial stress-signalling as a therapeutic strategy for chronic fatigue and pain.

Film production about mitochondrial biomarker research; from inborn metabolic diseases to ME/CFS. 2023. Olsen RK, Aarhus University in collaboration with DTU Academy and Meedom Kommunikation. Financed by Novonordisk Fonden. https://www.biotechacademy.dk/undervisning/gymnasiale-projekter/biomarkoerer/

In addition to supervising pre- and post-graduate students, I contribute to research training through theoretical and experimental PhD courses in molecular medicine. I serve on the PhD Committee at the Graduate School of Health and the Education Board for the Medicine Master’s Program at Aarhus University. I coordinate and develop elective courses and international summer schools in the Medicine Master’s Program.

I have played a central role in establishing interdisciplinary initiatives, including the Research Honors Program, the PhD Program in Translational Molecular Medicine, and the cross-faculty PhD Program in Molecular Medicine. 

I share and develop my knowledge with peers, patients, and society. I am frequently invited to speak at international meetings, and I participate in public debates by providing interviews to the press on topics within my research field. Funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation, I have produced three films to promote our research and educate the younger generation in mitochondrial biomarker research.

I am a member of the scientific boards, the International Network for Fatty Acid Oxidation Research and Management (INFORM) and the European ME Research Group (EMERG). I organize and chair scientific sessions at these leading international meetings, shaping the scientific field and fostering research networks.

I am a member of:

The National Neonatal Screening Group, Denmark

The steering committee for the International Network for Fatty Acid Oxidation Research and Management (INFORM) - https://informnetwork.org/

European ME Research Group (EMERG) - https://www.emerg.eu/em-index.shtml

Advisory Board, the Danish ME Association - https://me-foreningen.dk/me-advisory-board/

The PhD Committee, Graduate School of Health, Aarhus University

Education Board of Medicine Master Studies, Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University