Fredrik Karpe

Fredrik Karpe is a Professor of Metabolic Medicine at the University of Oxford's Radcliffe Department of Medicine, affiliated with Pembroke College. He serves as Head of the Oxford Centre for Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism (OCDEM) and leads the Karpe, Hodson and Christodoulides Metabolic Research Group. His research focuses on adipose tissue function, obesity-related metabolic consequences, and the contrasting roles of upper vs. lower body fat distribution in diabetes and cardiovascular disease risk. Collaborating with Associate Professor Leanne Hodson, his work explores therapeutic potentials of gluteofemoral adipose tissue properties.

Dr. Karpe holds an MD/PhD and is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians (FRCP). He also serves as an Honorary Consultant Physician. His lab, the Oxford Laboratory for Integrative Physiology (Oxlip), integrates clinical and basic science approaches to metabolic disorders. Key research themes include adipocyte insulin sensitivity, lipid metabolism, and translational proteomics in sepsis.

His academic career includes over 200+ peer-reviewed publications spanning genetics of obesity, metabolic pathways, and clinical endocrinology. Notable contributions include studies on adipose progenitor cells, Mendelian randomization for cardiometabolic traits, and postprandial lipid metabolism mechanisms. He has pioneered methodologies linking body fat distribution to bone health and cardiovascular outcomes through multi-ethnic cohort studies.

Current initiatives focus on translating adipose tissue biology insights into novel therapies for metabolic diseases. His work is supported by collaborative networks across Oxford's biomedical research institutes and international partnerships in metabolic medicine.