Claes Ohlsson - Selected Publications#

Google scholar H-index 117 (72,652 citations; March 22, 2022)

1. Movérare-Skrtic S, Henning P, Liu X, Nagano K, Saito H, Börjesson AE, Sjögren K, Windahl SH, Farman H, Kindlund B, Engdahl C, Koskela A, Zhang FP, Eriksson EE, Zaman F, Hammarstedt A, Isaksson H, Bally M, Kassem A, Lindholm C, Sandberg O, Aspenberg P, Sävendah L, Feng JQ, Tuckermann J, Tuukkanen J, Poutanen M, Baron R, Lerner UH, Gori F, Ohlsson C 2014 Osteoblast-derived WNT16 represses osteoclastogenesis and prevents cortical bone fragility fractures Nature Medicine 2014 Nov;20(11):1279-88

2. Moverare-Skrtic S, Wu J, Henning P, Gustafsson KL, Sjogren K, Windahl SH, Koskela A, Tuukkanen J, Borjesson AE, Lagerquist MK, Lerner UH, Zhang FP, Gustafsson JA, Poutanen M, Ohlsson C. The bone-sparing effects of estrogen and WNT16 are independent of each other. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2015; 112:14972-14977

Study no. 1 and 2 prove my unique translational competence. Starting from a GWAS association signal (identified by us in Nature Genetics 2012, 44:491 and PLoS Genet. 2012, 8:e1002745), I have as senior author in these two translational studies identified a new mechanism for the regulation of cortical bone mass and fracture susceptibility.

3. Sjögren K, Engdahl C, Henning P, Lerner UH, Tremaroli V, Lagerquist MK, Bäckhed F, Ohlsson C 2012, The Gut Microbiota Regulates Bone Mass in Mice. J Bone Miner Res Jun;27(6):1357-67

In this study, we were first to demonstrate that the gut microbiota is a major regulator of bone mass, a finding that opened a completely new research field (518 citations).

4. Jansson JO, Palsdottir V, Hagg DA, Schele E, Dickson SL, Anesten F, Bake T, Montelius M, Bellman J, Johansson ME, Cone RD, Drucker DJ, Wu J, Aleksic B, Tornqvist AE, Sjogren K, Gustafsson JA, Windahl SH, Ohlsson C. Body weight homeostat that regulates fat mass independently of leptin in rats and mice. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2018; 115:427-432

I identified a homeostatic regulation of body weight (“gravitostat”), depending on body weight sensing in osteocytes within the bone in rodents. In a subsequent human translational randomized clinical trial, we demonstrated that increased weight loading reduces body weight and fat mass in obese subjects (EClinicalMedicine 2020, 22:100338).

5. Nilsson KH, Henning P, Shahawy ME, Nethander M, Andersen TL, Ejersted C, Wu J, Gustafsson KL, Koskela A, Tuukkanen J, Souza PPC, Tuckermann J, Lorentzon M, Engström Ruud L, Lehtimäki T, Tobias JH, Zhou S, Lerner UH, Richards JB, Movérare-Skrtic S, Ohlsson C RSPO3 increases trabecular bone mass via cell-autonomous effect in osteoblasts in mice and is directly associated with trabecular bone mineral density and indirectly with fractures in humans 2021 Nature Communications 12:4923

We identified the WNT modulator RSPO3 to be causally associated with trabecular bone mass and fracture risk in humans using Mendelian Randomization analyses. Subsequent mechanistic studies revealed that RSPO3 increases trabecular bone mass via a cell-autonomous effect in osteoblasts in mice.

6. Trajanoska K… several authors …Ohlsson C, Richards JB, Rivadeneira F (Ohlsson C shared last author). Assessment of the genetic and clinical determinants of fracture risk: genome wide association and mendelian randomisation study. BMJ. 2018, 362:k3225.

I am shared senior author of this large-scale international project characterizing the genetic determinants of fracture risk. In addition, we used these data in Mendelian Randomization analyses to identify causal clinical risk factors for fractures.

7. Estrada et al multiple authors (182 authors) but Ohlsson C is shared senior author. Genome-wide meta-analysis identifies 56 bone mineral density loci and reveals 14 loci associated with risk of fracture Nature Genetics 2012 Apr 15;44(5):491-501.

I am shared senior author of this well-cited large-scale international project characterizing the genetic determinants of bone mineral density (1087 citation)

8. Funck-Brentano T, Grahnemo L, Hjelmgren O, Brandberg J, MD, PhD, Bergström G, Ohlsson C Associations of trabecular and cortical volumetric bone mineral density with Coronary Artery Calcification score: the SCAPIS Pilot study JAMA Cardiology 2021 6:238

In this recent article, we demonstrate that the associations for trabecular and cortical bone mineral density with coronary artery calcification, surprisingly, are in opposite directions. This suggests a differential role of trabecular and cortical bone on the risk of coronary artery calcification. We propose that distinct pathophysiological mechanisms exist for the trabecular vs cortical bone in the bone-vascular axis.

9. Vandenput L, Kindblom JM, Bygdell M, Nethander M, Ohlsson C. Pubertal timing and adult fracture risk in men: A population-based cohort study. PLoS Med 2019; 16(12): e1002986

10. Ohlsson C, Bygdell M, Sonden A, Rosengren A, Kindblom JM. Association between excessive BMI increase during puberty and risk of cardiovascular mortality in adult men: a population-based cohort study. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol 2016, 4:1017-1024

In these two clinical epidemiology studies (publications no. 9-10), we used our recently established unique population-based Gothenburg cohort with detailed childhood growth data and information on later adult diseases. We demonstrated that pubertal timing, and thereby the onset of adult sex steroid exposure, predicts adult fracture risk, while BMI change specifically during puberty is a major predictor of adult cardiovascular mortality.