Valtteri Wirta

Head of Unit: Clinical Genomics Stockholm, Karolinska Institutet

valtteri.wirta@ki.se

Keywords

Bioinformatics, Cancer, genomics, precision diagnostics precision medicine, rare inherited diseases translational research, sequencing, transcriptomics

Key publications

Tesi B, Robinson KL, Abel F, Díaz de Ståhl T, Orrsjö S, Poluha A, Hellberg M, Wessman S, Samuelsson S, Frisk T, Vogt H, Henning K, Sabel M, Ek T, Pal N, Nyman P, Giraud G, Wille J, Pronk CJ, Norén-Nyström U, Borssén M, Fili M, Stålhammar G, Herold N, Tettamanti G, Maya-Gonzalez C, Arvidsson L, Rosén A, Ekholm K, Kuchinskaya E, Hallbeck AL, Nordling M, Palmebäck P, Kogner P, Smoler GK, Lähteenmäki P, Fransson S, Martinsson T, Shamik A, Mertens F, Rosenquist R, Wirta V, Tham E, Grillner P, Sandgren J, Ljungman G, Gisselsson D, Taylan F, Nordgren A. Diagnostic yield and clinical impact of germline sequencing in children with CNS and extracranial solid tumors-a nationwide, prospective Swedish study.
Lancet Reg Health Eur. 2024 Mar 19;39:100881. doi: 10.1016/j.lanepe.2024.100881. PMID: 38803632; PMCID: PMC11129334.

Öfverholm I, Wallander K, Haglund C, Chellappa V, Wejde J, Gellerbring A, Wirta V, Renevey A, Caceres E, Tsagkozis P, Mayrhofer M, Papakonstantinou A, Linder-Stragliotto C, Bränström R, Larsson O, Lindberg J, Lin Y, Haglund de Flon F. Comprehensive Genomic Profiling Alters Clinical Diagnoses in a Significant Fraction of Tumors Suspicious of Sarcoma.
Clin Cancer Res. 2024 Jun 14;30(12):2647-2658. doi: 10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-24-0384. PMID: 38573684.

Wadensten E, Wessman S, Abel F, Diaz De Ståhl T, Tesi B, Orsmark Pietras C, Arvidsson L, Taylan F, Fransson S, Vogt H, Poluha A, Pradhananga S, Hellberg M, Lagerstedt-Robinson K, Raj Somarajan P, Samuelsson S, Orrsjö S, Maqbool K, Henning K, Strid T, Ek T, Fagman H, Olsson Bontell T, Martinsson T, Puls F, Kogner P, Wirta V, Pronk CJ, Wille J, Rosenquist R, Nistér M, Mertens F, Sabel M, Norén-Nyström U, Grillner P, Nordgren A, Ljungman G, Sandgren J, Gisselsson D; Genomic Medicine Sweden Childhood Cancer Working Group. Diagnostic Yield From a Nationwide Implementation of Precision Medicine for all Children With Cancer.
JCO Precis Oncol. 2023 Jun;7:e2300039. doi: 10.1200/PO.23.00039. PMID: 37384868; PMCID: PMC10581599.

Fioretos T, Wirta V, Cavelier L, Berglund E, Friedman M, Akhras M, Botling J, Ehrencrona H, Engstrand L, Helenius G, Fagerqvist T, Gisselsson D, Gruvberger- Saal S, Gyllensten U, Heidenblad M, Höglund K, Jacobsson B, Johansson M, Johansson Å, Soller MJ, Landström M, Larsson P, Levin LÅ, Lindstrand A, Lovmar L, Lyander A, Melin M, Nordgren A, Nordmark G, Mölling P, Palmqvist L, Palmqvist R, Repsilber D, Sikora P, Stenmark B, Söderkvist P, Stranneheim H, Strid T, Wheelock CE, Wadelius M, Wedell A, Edsjö A, Rosenquist R. Implementing precision medicine in a regionally organized healthcare system in Sweden.
Nat Med. 2022 Oct;28(10):1980-1982. doi: 10.1038/s41591-022-01963-4. PMID: 36123428.

Stranneheim H, Lagerstedt-Robinson K, Magnusson M, Kvarnung M, Nilsson D, Lesko N, Engvall M, Anderlid BM, Arnell H, Johansson CB, Barbaro M, Björck E, Bruhn H, Eisfeldt J, Freyer C, Grigelioniene G, Gustavsson P, Hammarsjö A, Hellström-Pigg M, Iwarsson E, Jemt A, Laaksonen M, Enoksson SL, Malmgren H, Naess K, Nordenskjöld M, Oscarson M, Pettersson M, Rasi C, Rosenbaum A, Sahlin E, Sardh E, Stödberg T, Tesi B, Tham E, Thonberg H, Töhönen V, von Döbeln U, Vassiliou D, Vonlanthen S, Wikström AC, Wincent J, Winqvist O, Wredenberg A, Ygberg S, Zetterström RH, Marits P, Soller MJ, Nordgren A, Wirta V, Lindstrand A, Wedell A. Integration of whole genome sequencing into a healthcare setting: high diagnostic rates across multiple clinical entities in 3219 rare disease patients.
Genome Med. 2021 Mar 17;13(1):40. doi: 10.1186/s13073-021-00855-5. PMID: 33726816; PMCID: PMC7968334.

SciLifeLab / Contact / Valtteri Wirta

The research infrastructure Clinical Genomics Stockholm (CGS) provides advanced genomic analyses, including large-scale DNA and RNA sequencing, to research groups at Swedish universities, healthcare , and other public authorities. CGS plays a vital role in advancing precision medicine, particularly in areas such as cancer, rare inherited diseases and infectious diseases.

Between 2021 and 2024, Clinical Genomics Stockholm analyzed more than 130,000 samples and contributed to over 100 scientific publications. A flagship initiative focused on diagnostics for rare inherited diseases involved sequencing over 22,000 whole genomes, with approximately 40% of patients receiving a molecular diagnosis.

CGS offers comprehensive support, from planning to clinical interpretation, and aims to provide analyses with rapid turnaround times. The facility continually expands its analysis portfolio, recently incorporating long-read sequencing, optical mapping, and advanced bioinformatics tools for data interpretation. Looking ahead, key areas of focus include developing multimodal analyses, enhancing sensitive cancer diagnostics, and applying machine learning techniques to improve data interpretation.

The facility operates on a weekly schedule for analyses and has a dedicated project coordinator to assist users. Training and collaboration with national and international infrastructures are integral to its operations. CGS is also committed to sustainability by optimizing the coordination of analyses and ensuring the infrastructure is accessible to industry partners. Future plans involve further technological advancements and method development to meet evolving user needs and support scientific and clinical progress in genomics and precision medicine.