The spindle-assembly checkpoint (SAC) is a safety mechanism which secures accurate chromosome segregation during mitosis.

Transplantation of labial salivary glands to the eyelids for patients with dry eye appears to give excellent results clinically.

Streptomyces bacteria are a valuable source of natural products, many of which are used in the clinic or in biotechnology.

Stellar feedback is a crucial ingredient in the evolution of galaxies.

In this work, we illustrate unconventional approaches towards the fabrication of edge functionalized graphene nanostructures and bidimensional architectures in polymeric and metallic supports, with an outlook towards molecular sensing devices.

Monoacylglycerol lipase (MAGL) is the principal enzyme responsible for hydrolysis of the endocannabinoid 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG). MAGL inhibition provides several potential therapeutic opportunities, including anti-nociceptive, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer activity.

Freshwater is an important resource, but at a great risk of species decline due to habitat loss, pollution and over-exploitation, and invasive alien species.

Streptomyces are filamentous bacteria that produce more than two-thirds of known antibiotics.

Streptomyces are bacteria abundant in soil that participate in diverse and complex interactions. These bacteria are the main producers of the antibiotics we currently use in the clinic.

Promotores: Prof.dr. E.F. van Dishoeck, Prof.dr. C.P. Dullemond

This thesis investigates a pharmacological challenge model induced by Toll-like receptor 7 (TLR7) activation, focusing on skin inflammation and its implications for early drug development.

Global healthcare is on the verge of an antibiotic availability crisis as bacteria have evolved resistance to nearly all known antibacterials. Identifying new antibiotics that operate via novel modes-of-action is therefore of high priority.

Streptomyces are prolific producers of enzymes and secondary metabolites, including more than 50% of all clinical antibiotics. This makes them highly attractive for medical, biotechnological, and industrial purposes.

The molecular mechanisms that instigate a healthy cell to become malignant are fueled by (epi)genetic alterations in so-called driver genes.

PhD at Molecular Biology and Biochemistry Department, University of Malaga - Spain

The goal of target discovery is to identify and validate proteins and biological pathways that are involved in the disease process. Modulating these target proteins and pathways with small molecules, therapeutic proteins or other biomolecules (e.g. mRNA) could deliver an effective and safe drug or v…

Single-molecule spectroscopy has become a powerful method for using organic fluorescent molecules in numerous applications.

Promotor: Prof.dr. J. Brouwer, Co-promotor: Dr. Remus Th. Dame

Streptomyces present a valuable platform for natural product discovery. Lugdunomycin is a novel angucycline-derived polyketide from Streptomyces sp QL37, with unprecedented skeleton and antimicrobial activity.

The mycorrhizal symbiosis is among the most widespread species interactions on Earth⁠. This thesis focuses on orchid mycorrhiza, a unique mycorrhizal type that has caught scientists’ attention for centuries⁠.

The CMCB brings together a diverse range of unique expertise in microbial cell biology. Members of the CMCB investigate both model and non-model organisms, bacteria and archaea, pathogens and non-pathogens.

Filamentous Actinobacteria, such as Streptomyces, produce a plethora of chemically diverse bioactive metabolites that have found applications across medicine, agriculture and biotechnology.

Marc Koper’s research focuses on electrocatalysis and electrochemical surface science for sustainable energy and chemistry. Reactions of interest are the redox reactions of the oxygen/hydrogen cycle (water oxidation, hydrogen evolution), the carbon cycle (reduction of carbon dioxide, oxidation of small…

Promotor: Prof.dr. A. P. IJzerman, Co-Promotor: Dr. L.H. Heitman

Bacteriophages, or phages for short, are the most abundant biological entity in nature. They shape bacterial communities and are a major driving force in bacterial evolution.

The mission in this division, headed by Laura Heitman, is to design and synthesize novel and better ligands for drug targets. Drug discovery is a lengthy but inspiring adventure. It is often an interplay between academic institutes and pharmaceutical industry, in which scientists at university develop…

This thesis pioneers diatom molecular identification and quantification through genome-scale methods, with four key aims: (i) reviewing DNA/RNA sequencing methods in aquatic biomonitoring to highlight their strengths and limitations;

N-acylethanolamines (NAEs), which include the endocannabinoid anandamide, represent an important family of signaling lipids in the brain. The lack of chemical probes that modulate NAE biosynthesis in living systems hamper the understanding of the biological role of these lipids.

The bacterial cell wall is a nearly universal structure that offers protection and gives the cell its shape. However, environmental stressors, such as cell wall-targeting antibiotics and hyperosmotic conditions, can induce bacteria to shift to a wall-deficient state. It is unknown whether the lack of…

Kinase inhibitors are key therapeutic agents, particularly in oncology, yet their clinical efficacy is often hampered by off-target effects and limited understanding of their cellular target profiles.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are the most abundant class of organic compounds in space. The PAH field evolves from the constant interaction between experimentalists, theorists, modellers and observers. While laboratory research and quantum chemical calculations together set up the molecular…

Neurodegenerative diseases pose a large medical and societal challenge. The etiology of these diseases is still poorly understood, which makes drug discovery for these diseases difficult.

Animal Sciences’ contribution to the Bioactive Molecules research theme includes research on molecules from natural sources, such as plants, insects, and snake venom, with the aim to identify novel anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, and anti-diabetic agents.

Animal Sciences’ contributions to the Development & Disease research theme include the mechanisms and evolution of embryonic development, the development of cognitive mechanisms, and animal models for understanding mechanisms of human disease.

Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is an important bulk chemical that is used in various industrial processes. More than 95% of the H2O2 used in industry is made via the anthraquinone process during which a large amount of energy is going to waste.

Are you looking for a research project? We have projects available for motivated 6–9-month internship students with particular interest in organic/polymer synthesis, formulation development, gene delivery, protein delivery, and the preliminairy in vitro screening of drug delivery platforms. Students…

A neolithic settlement on the Dutch North Sea coast c. 3500 CAL BC.

The article offers a comparative systematic literature review of the principles, norms, and strategies associated with Security by Design and Privacy by Design

While bioinformatics methods deal with the analysis of sequence information (be it proteins or DNA), the field of cheminformatics is concerned with the analysis of small-molecule datasets.

In surface science there is great effort to move from studying simple, flat model surfaces in vacuum to investigating more complex model catalysts in gas environments (in situ). This thesis gives three examples of such studies using microscopy and spectroscopy.

How can we make agricultural production systems more sustainable as the worldwide demand for healthy, safe food continues to grow? How can we develop healthy new food crops that have higher yields while requiring fewer harmful chemicals?

The company Azafaros was established in 2018 to translate innovative science from Leiden University and Amsterdam University Medical Center into novel disease-modifying treatment modalities for rare genetic metabolic disorders such as lysosomal storage diseases.

Doctoral Thesis

In this article, the authors summarise the literature on the effects of multilevel governance on governments’ policy responses to Covid-19.

BACKGROUND: Explant human skin equivalents (Ex-HSEs) can be generated by placing a 4mm skin biopsy onto a dermal equivalent. The keratinocytes migrate from the biopsy onto the dermal equivalent, differentiate and form the epidermis of 1(st) generation Ex-HSEs. This is especially suitable for the expansion…

M. Danhof, Co-promotor: O.E. Della Pasqua

The Dick Stufkens Prize 2021 for the best PhD thesis of the Holland Research School of Molecular Chemistry (HRSMC) has been awarded to Klaas van Leest for his thesis 'Open- Shell Cobalt Complexes with Redox-Active Ligands; Electronic Structure and Nitrene Transfer Reactivity'. Van Leest, who is now…