Markéta Dudková, a physician at the Third Internal Medicine Department – Nephrology, Rheumatology and Endocrinology at the Olomouc University Hospital and the Faculty of Medicine at Palacký University, received one of this year’s International Medis Awards for Medical Research from the President of Slovenia. The international competition, now in its twelfth year, recognises the outstanding research achievements of physicians and pharmacists from Central and Eastern Europe.
“I view this award as an extraordinary achievement in my career to date. It would not have been possible without the support of the entire team of rheumatologists at the Third Department of Internal Medicine who contributed to this project. Special thanks go to the head of the clinic, Professor Pavel Horák, and Associate Professor Eva Kriegová from the Institute of Immunology at the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacký University, and the University Hospital Olomouc, under whose leadership the research was conducted. This award represents not only a great honour for me, but also confirmation that our work is meaningful,” said the rheumatologist, who is currently on maternity leave.
Markéta Dudková specialises in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a serious autoimmune rheumatic disease in which the immune system attacks the body’s own tissues, often the skin, joints, kidneys, and brain.
The award-winning study Blood gene expression of Toll-like receptors in SLE patients with lupus nephritis or neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus, published in the journal Arthritis Research & Therapy, examines the role of Toll-like receptors, which are a key component of innate immunity.
“We compared the activity of these receptors in patients with SLE compared to healthy individuals and also examined differences among patients with various manifestations of the disease, particularly those with kidney or central nervous system damage. Our results could contribute to better diagnosis of active disease and organ damage in patients with SLE in the future. At the same time, they may help explain why treatment may not work the same way in patients with the same diagnosis,” the doctor explained.
The awards ceremony for the nine winners of this year’s 12th edition of the competition took place in Ljubljana, Slovenia. The guest of honour at the event was Slovenian President Nataša Pirc Musar, who also presented the awards. Learn more about the international competition here.