Adenosine diphosphate ribosylation (ADP-ribosylation) is a fascinating post-translational modification (PTM) that plays a role in a variety of cellular processes and is associated with several diseases, including cancer and viral infections.

Biological chemist Nathaniel Martin is going to test an alternative antibiotic that can combat common resistant bacteria such as MRSA. For this purpose, he will receive 350,000 euros from the NWO's NACTAR programme. ‘We want to know how safe and effective our antibiotic is in a realistic situation.’

While the Netherlands was in lockdown because of the coronavirus, PhD candidate Koen Rijpkema began his research into the same virus. In the lab, he developed molecules that can inhibit an important viral enzyme.