Markus Juonala profile picture
Markus
Juonala
Professor, Internal Medicine
Professor
Cardiovascular epidemiology, Young Finns Study, i3c consortium

Contact

+358 29 450 2754
+358 50 478 3572

Areas of expertise

Internal medicine
endocrinology
cardiovascular risk

Biography

Professor Markus Juonala (MD, PhD, University of Turku) is a specialist in internal medicine and endocrinology at the Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland. Since 2001, he has been conducting research on longitudinal studies examining the importance of childhood risk factors on later cardiovascular health. His PhD work was based primarily on the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study (University of Turku, April 2005). Since 2008, he has had a major involvement in the development of the International Childhood Cardiovascular Cohort (i3C) Consortium that combines the efforts of the main longitudinal studies worldwide. In June 2014, he was appointed as Professor of Internal Medicine at the University of Turku. In 2014-2015 and 2018-2019 he has been working as the Dame Elisabeth Murdoch Fellow in Murdoch Childrens Research Institute (MCRI). 

His career publications total is 270 (h-index 44) with published highlights including a first-author paper in the New England Journal of Medicine, the first-ranked general medicine journal, one paper in JAMA, the third-ranked general medicine journal and 30 papers (11 as first/last author) published in either the number one, two, or three ranked cardiovascular disease journals (17 in Circulation, five in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, eight in the European Heart Journal). 

Teaching

Teaching responsibilities: 1) Internal medicine for medical students, 2) Internal medicine specialisation programme for MDs

Special interest areas: Acute internal medicine, endocrinology, lipidology

  

Research

Professor Juonala’s principal research focus has been to provide novel information on the effects of childhood risk factors on cardiovascular health in adulthood. Beginning from the summer of 2008 he has led a research group within the Young Finns Study and i3c consortium with special interest on cardiometabolic risk factors. The most important findings of his research have provided information on childhood and early adulthood risk factors for atherosclerosis, suggesting that childhood risk factors, such as dyslipidaemia, elevated blood pressure and smoking, predict early atherosclerosis and its progression independent of adult risk factors levels. Concerning cardiometabolic risk factors, his group has been able to show that overweight and metabolic syndrome diagnosed either in childhood or adulthood is predictive of carotid atherosclerosis and its progression in adulthood. However, at the time of obesity epidemic, the most important findings concern the reversibility of cardiovascular risk. His work has demonstrated that although overweight and metabolic syndrome are predictive of early atherosclerosis, favourable changes in lifestyle associated with weight maintenance or reduction improve cardiovascular health.

 


Publications

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Assessment of plasma ceramides as predictor for subclinical atherosclerosis (2021)

Atherosclerosis Plus
Mishra Pashupati P., Mishra Binisha H., Lyytikäinen Leo-Pekka, Hilvo Mika, Juonala Markus, Kähönen Mika, Hutri-Kähönen Nina, Fotiadis Dimitrios I., Raitakari Olli T., Laaksonen Reijo, Lehtimäki Terho
(Vertaisarvioitu alkuperäisartikkeli tai data-artikkeli tieteellisessä aikakauslehdessä (A1))

Dietary Pattern Trajectories from Youth to Adulthood and Adult Risk of Impaired Fasting Glucose: A 31-year Cohort Study (2021)

Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism
Wu Feitong, Pahkala Katja, Juonala Markus, Rovio Suvi P., Sabin Matthew A., Rönnemaa Tapani, Buscot Marie-Jeanne, Smith Kylie J., Männistö Satu, Jula Antti, Lehtimäki Terho, Hutri-Kähönen Nina, Kähönen Mika, Laitinen Tomi, Viikari Jorma S.A., Raitakari Olli T., Magnussen Costan G.
(Vertaisarvioitu alkuperäisartikkeli tai data-artikkeli tieteellisessä aikakauslehdessä (A1))

Physical inactivity from youth to adulthood and adult cardiometabolic risk profile (2021)

Preventive Medicine
Kallio Petri, Pahkala Katja, Heinonen Olli J., Tammelin Tuija H., Pälve Kristiina, Hirvensalo Mirja, Juonala Markus, Loo Britt-Marie, Magnussen Costan G., Rovio Suvi, Helajärvi Harri, Laitinen Tomi P., Jokinen Eero, Tossavainen Päivi, Hutri-Kähönen Nina, Viikari Jorma, Raitakari Olli T.
(Vertaisarvioitu alkuperäisartikkeli tai data-artikkeli tieteellisessä aikakauslehdessä (A1))

Methylation status of nc886 epiallele reflects periconceptional conditions and is associated with glucose metabolism through nc886 RNAs (2021)

Clinical Epigenetics
Marttila S, Viiri LE, Mishra PP, Kühnel B, Matias-Garcia PR, Lyytikäinen LP, Ceder T, Mononen N, Rathmann W, Winkelmann J, Peters A, Kähönen M, Hutri-Kähönen N, Juonala M, Aalto-Setälä K, Raitakari O, Lehtimäki T, Waldenberger M, Raitoharju E
(Vertaisarvioitu alkuperäisartikkeli tai data-artikkeli tieteellisessä aikakauslehdessä (A1))