NutriEV meets the public at Copenhagen Culture Night 2025 

27 November 2025
NEWS
Young visitors and researchers interacting at the University of Copenhagen’s stand during Copenhagen Culture Night 2025, with laptops showing educational games about glycobiology and NutriEV, and informational posters displayed in the background.

The NutriEV project was featured at Copenhagen Culture Night; one of the city’s most anticipated public events, where museums, institutions, and research centres open their doors for an evening of discovery. The University of Copenhagen, a key NutriEV partner, welcomed more than 2,500 visitors to its Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, transforming science into an open and engaging experience for all. 

Among the many exhibits presented at the faculty, visitors could explore how cutting-edge European research is shaping the future of nutrition and health.  

Young scientists from the Center for Glycocalyx Research came together to share insights from several European projects iniciatives in which ones the University is involved, including the NutriEV project, which investigates nutrient-enriched extracellular vesicles (nutriEVs): tiny, natural particles found in foods that may influence how our bodies manage metabolism and health. 

At the stand of the Center for Glycocalyx Research, researchers used interactive presentations and flyers to explain how plant- and food-derived vesicles might serve as future “messengers of nutrition,” potentially supporting new, non-invasive approaches to prevent metabolic diseases such as obesity and diabetes.  

Visitors were invited to see how advanced glycoproteomic analysis and organoid models help scientists understand how food communicates with our cells. 

The University of Copenhagen and NutriEV 

The University of Copenhagen plays a leading role in NutriEV, contributing world-class expertise in glycobiology, proteomics, and biomedical innovation. Within the project, Professor Hans H. Wandall and his team at the Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine investigate how glycans, complex sugar structures on the surface of molecules, shape the biological functions of food-derived extracellular vesicles. 

By combining advanced mass spectrometry-based glycoproteomics and human organoid models, their work helps reveal how these nutritional vesicles interact with the gut and other tissues. This research is key to understanding how nutriEVs influence metabolic pathways and may inspire new therapeutic strategies for obesity and related disorders. 

Their contribution places the University of Copenhagen at the heart of Europe’s efforts to translate molecular nutrition research into real-world health innovations, and events like Culture Night show how this science connects directly with society. 

This open-house initiative reflects one of NutriEV’s core goals: to bring European research closer to society, making innovation tangible and relevant to everyday life. By engaging directly with the public, the project helps spark curiosity about how nutrition, biotechnology, and health are interconnected, and how EU-funded science contributes to a healthier future for all.