David Engblom, Professor of Neurobiology at Linköping University in Sweden, was awarded the 2026 Onkel Adam Prize for outstanding research at the Faculty of Medicine at Linköping University, according to a June 24 announcement. Engblom's work focuses on understanding how the brain contributes to feelings of illness during various medical conditions.
Engblom has dedicated his career to studying how inflammation in the body affects brain function and influences behavior. He said that becoming a researcher happened by chance during his medical studies, but he ultimately continued on this path. The award jury described him as someone who "represents a research achievement of exceptional scientific excellence which has resulted in a series of prestigious awards and grants."
"On a day like this, I'm very happy that I became a scientist. I think you should keep jumping at opportunities throughout life. If you have very rigid ideas from the beginning about what to do, you might miss a lot of opportunities that pop up along the way," said Engblom.
In addition to his research achievements, Engblom has been recognized for his teaching contributions at Linköping University. He teaches primarily on the medical program and has received the "Kandidat Kork" teacher award five times from students.
Lena Jonasson, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at Linköping University and head of the award committee's nomination process, said, "We're delighted that David Engblom is awarded the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences' largest and most prestigious research award. In addition to outstandingly fine research, David also makes significant contributions in education and collegial contexts."
The prize carries an award value this year of SEK 400,000 given directly to Engblom as an individual. He acknowledged those who contributed alongside him over time: "Research is in many respects teamwork. At the beginning of your career as a researcher, you're actively involved in the experiments and doing practical research work, but my role now is more like coaching a football team. I'm no longer the one who scores the goals; the research team does." The Onkel Adam Prize was established in 2020 through a donation by Bengt Normann to promote medical research while honoring Carl Anton Wetterbergh (Onkel Adam), who was active as physician, author, publicist and politician in Linköping during the nineteenth century.
