NutriEV at Science Day 2025 in Oulu: Showcasing the future of nutritional vesicles 

17 December 2025
NEWS
Four people stand smiling beside a NutriEV research poster during Science Day at the University of Oulu. The poster includes diagrams explaining gut biology and metabolic pathways. The scene is an indoor Science Day poster exhibition with several scientific posters displayed behind them.

On 28 October 2025, the bustling atrium of the Kontinkangas Campus transformed into a lively hub of scientific exchange as researchers, clinicians, students, and industry partners gathered for the Science Day of Kontinkangas Campus 2025 at University of Oulu. This year’s theme, “Are you hAIped yet? Human–AI partnerships in biomedical discovery”, set the tone for a dynamic event exploring how emerging technologies are reshaping biomedical research and health innovation.  

Amid this forward-looking landscape, the NutriEV project stood out as a compelling example of how nutritional science, extracellular vesicle (EV) research, and digital innovation intersect to push the boundaries of precision medicine.  

Throughout the day, project researchers presented a series of posters showcasing early findings from “Nutriev: Development of Nutritional Vesicles for Precision Diagnostics and Therapeutics for Metabolic Diseases”.  

Their contributions highlighted the scientific ambition behind NutriEV: to understand how nutrient-enriched extracellular vesicles (nutriEVs) from plants and fermented foods influence metabolism, immunity, and overall health, and how these vesicles may one day support non-invasive diagnostics or even therapeutic strategies for obesity and metabolic disorders. 

A person stands next to a large NutriEV project poster during Science Day, presenting research on nutritional vesicles for precision diagnostics and metabolic disease. The poster features partner logos, diagrams of experimental approaches, and project focus areas. The setting is an indoor Science Day poster session with natural light from nearby windows.
During Science Day at the University of Oulu, postdoctoral researcher Susanna Kaisto presents the project’s overview poster, engaging visitors with the latest insights on nutritional extracellular vesicles and their potential for precision diagnostics and therapeutics.

A spotlight on NutriEV research  

NutriEV’s presence at Science Day 2025 at the University of Oulu´s Campus was marked by a series of engaging posters that introduced visitors to the project’s vision and early findings.  

At the forefront, Susanna Kosamo presented the overall concept of nutriEVs, vesicles derived from raw and fermented foods that can endure digestion, interact with gut-resident cells, and potentially influence metabolic pathways.  

Her poster framed the project’s ambition to translate these natural nanoscale messengers into tools for precision diagnostics and, in time, therapeutic innovation. 

Complementing this broader vision, Ramila Mammadova showcased research on cloudberry-derived nanovesicles and their biological activity in human skin cells. The work highlighted antioxidant and regenerative properties, offering an intriguing example of how traditional Nordic foods may harbour vesicle-based bioactivity with applications beyond nutrition. These findings sparked active discussion around the role of plant-derived vesicles in future health-supporting formulations. 

Two people stand on either side of a scientific poster during Science Day showcasing research on the bioactivity of cloudberry-derived nanovesicles in human skin cells. The poster includes charts, microscopy images, and diagrams explaining antioxidant and regenerative effects. Other posters from the Science Day exhibition are visible in the background.
Researchers stand beside their Science Day poster showcasing the bioactivity of cloudberry-derived nanovesicles in human skin cells.

Further molecular insights were presented by Pradnya Patil and Jenni Turunen, who explored how vesicle composition and genetic signatures inform their targeting and origin. Their posters demonstrated approaches for refining EV uptake and tracing microbiota-derived vesicles through DNA and RNA profiling.  

Two people stand beside a scientific poster during Science Day presenting research on bioengineering surface lipids of milk-derived extracellular vesicles for improved cell targeting. The poster contains workflow diagrams, purification comparisons, and experimental results. The image is taken in an indoor Science Day poster exhibition space.
Researchers present their Science Day poster on engineering milk-derived extracellular vesicles for improved cell targeting.

Collectively, the contributions at Science Day illustrated NutriEV’s multidisciplinary scope, from food science to molecular engineering, and reinforced the project’s momentum as it advances towards a deeper understanding of nutritional vesicles and their impact on health. 

Posters, partnerships, and public engagement 

Science Day 2025 offered the first major opportunity for NutriEV researchers to share their Horizon Europe–funded work with a general audience. The event included poster sessions embedded within a full-day programme of keynote lectures, AI-focused presentations, and panel discussions on the future of biomedical technologies.  

NutriEV posters stood alongside contributions from complementary fields such as computational pathology, oral health diagnostics, and digital health innovation. These diverse perspectives created an ideal environment for discussing how nutritional vesicles may integrate with emerging AI-driven tools for metabolic disease prediction, personalised nutrition, and non-invasive monitoring. 

Attendees, ranging from senior academics to first-year doctoral researchers and undergraduate students, visited the NutriEV posters throughout the breaks, where lively conversations unfolded around experimental methods, translational potential, and societal relevance.  

Photographs from the event show the NutriEV team enthusiastically engaging with visitors, demonstrating vesicle visualisation methods, and discussing organoid models, glycoproteomics, and cohort studies planned within the project. 

Connecting nutrition, human health, and AI 

Although NutriEV’s core scientific focus is biological rather than computational, the project fits naturally within this year’s Science Day theme: Human–AI partnerships in biomedical discovery. As the digital research landscape evolves, technologies such as AI-enhanced image analysis, automated glycan profiling, and machine learning – driven biomarker discovery will play pivotal roles in uncovering patterns within the complex datasets NutriEV generates. 

At the heart of these conversations was a shared recognition that multidisciplinary collaboration is essential for tackling conditions like obesity and metabolic disorders, complex diseases shaped by diet, lifestyle, immunity, and environment. 

A NutriEV poster presentation list is displayed on a desk during Science Day, detailing several project posters and presenters. Next to it are NutriEV informational flyers summarising the project’s aims. A container with pens and highlighters sits on the desk, reflecting the Science Day preparation environment.

A strong step forward for NutriEV 

For a project still in its early stages, NutriEV’s presence at Science Day 2025 marked an important milestone. The event provided visibility, attracted new scientific interest, and highlighted the commitment of the consortium to transparent, accessible, and engaging communication, key priorities under Horizon Europe. 

What resonated most strongly was the sense of curiosity NutriEV inspired. Visitors were intrigued by the idea that everyday foods, from cloudberries to fermented vegetables, contain nanoscale messengers capable of influencing biological pathways. The posters not only showcased experimental progress but also invited the audience to imagine a future where diet-derived vesicles contribute to precision nutrition, metabolic health monitoring, and even next-generation therapeutics. 

NutriEV’s journey is just beginning. Over the coming years, researchers across the consortium will continue to isolate, profile, engineer, and test nutritional vesicles in both preclinical and clinical settings. The insights gathered will deepen our understanding of how food communicates with the body and how this knowledge can be translated into meaningful health solutions.