The cannabinoid CB2 receptor (CB2R) represents a promising therapeutic target for various forms of tissue injury and inflammatory diseases. Although numerous compounds have been developed and widely used to target CB2R, their selectivity, molecular mode of action and pharmacokinetic properties have…

Twenty years from now, the world population is estimated to be around 8.7 billion people, compared to the current 7.3 billion. In combination with the improvements in living standards and the corresponding growth in consumption, this will result in an enormous increase in the demand for food, consumables,…

The Science faculties of Universitas Indonesia (UI) and the Universiteit Leiden signed agreements on Tuesday April 12 that will strengthen cooperation between the Faculties. The agreements were signed at the closing of a two day visit of a delegation from Indonesia. The delegation, which was led by…

The master’s specialisation Computer Science and Science Communication and Society at Leiden University bridges the gap between experts and the public by combining high quality research in computer science with extensive training in science communication.

The aim of the research described in this thesis was to use structure-based design to optimise multiple properties of aryl sulfoxide monoacylglycerol lipase inhibitors as anti-inflammatory analgesics.

This thesis advance our understanding and the application of molecular catalysts relevant to the reduction of oxygen as well as reduction of nitrite.

The extensive use of electronic communication channels and other devices has opened new possibilities for collecting data on human behavior. This information is sometimes openly accessible, but largely part of administrative registration systems that are not open to the broader public. The data provides…

Today, everybody and everything produces data. People produce large amounts of data in social networks and in commercial transactions. Medical, corporate, and government databases continue to grow. Sensors continue to get cheaper and are increasingly connected, creating an Internet of Things, and generating…

To be eligible for Chemistry at Leiden University, you must meet the following admission requirements.

The Data-Driven Drug Discovery Network (D4N) is an initiative by researchers from Leiden University and collaborators to join efforts in applying and developing novel techniques from data science to drug discovery and related topics from bioinformatics.

How do museum visitors interpret the authenticity of museum objects? How can we support visitors' meaningful interactions with real objects?

Since May, Assistant professor BioTherapeutics Lu Su works in our faculty. Although she is still young, she already worked in many different fields and co-operated on two publications in big scientific journals. How did she become so successful and what motivates her to keep researching the possibilities…

Heterogeneous catalyzed processes are highly significant to the chemical industry. Dissociative chemisorption (DC) of molecules on surfaces is always considered as a step with a high degree of rate control for heterogeneous catalysis.

Research and design are becoming more and more important in international science education. In The Netherlands, two recently introduced subjects focus on research and design activities in the classroom: O&O (research and design) and NLT (nature, life and technology). This research aims to look at what…

The concept behind GraspOS is to build the European Federated Open Metrics Infrastructure in a decentralised way, where: different types of data come together to create metrics; tools and services are developed to improve EU or global infrastructures but are also shared with national or institutional…

The ability to collect and interpret huge quantities of data has become indispensable to society and academia. Leiden University is a knowledge and expertise centre for data science that places the emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation.

Promotor: H.S. Overkleeft, Co-promotor: M. van der Stelt

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.

From where litter ends up to which languages are spoken in Leiden and The Hague: over 50 interesting, surprising, complex and entertaining questions were sent in for the Citizen Science project to mark our 444th anniversary. Not one but two Citizen Science projects will be starting this year in Leiden…

Despite the history of studies on methanol formation from CO2, the dominant elementary reaction steps that constitute the chemical mechanism for this catalyzed process are not determined.

On this page you find all the ways through which the Institute of Psychology aims to foster Open Science.

Citizen science has recently become a widely used term, but what does it mean exactly? How does citizen science compare to crowdsourcing? And where does community archaeology stand in this discussion?

The majority of scientists, from archaeologists through to zoologists, collect enormous volumes of data. Their massive databases contain large amounts of information which is difficult for humans to filter. With a solid grounding in statistics and computer science, we can develop algorithms for analyzing…

In the last decades, activity-based protein profiling (ABPP) has emerged as a powerful chemical tool that may aid the ever-challenging drug discovery process.

The Institute of Political Science is a vibrant department with nearly 70 academic staff in Leiden and nearby The Hague.

This thesis describes a study from both a theoreticaL and an experimental point of view.

Are you thinking about studying Biomedical Sciences? Learn more and watch a short promo video.

Computational thinking, programming, and algorithms form the basic of many of the things that are shaping our world, the way we work, interact, organize ourselves, and even spend our free time with social networks, streaming media, and games. And this transformation is far from being complete, it is…

BE-OPEN is a structural project funded under the Erasmus+ Capacity Building in Higher Education action. The project is coordinated by the University of Novi Sad, Serbia. The main objective of the project is to develop conditions for the implementation of the core principles of Open Science at universities…

Are you thinking about studying Political Science? Watch the introduction video’s and learn more!

The majority of scientists, from archaeologists through to zoologists, collect huge volumes of data. Their massive databases contain large amounts of information which is difficult for humans to filter. With a solid grounding in statistics, we can develop algorithms for analysing and identifying patterns…

Are you thinking about studying Computer Science? Learn more and watch the videos. Note: As of September 2025 you can also combine this master programme with the Business Studies specialisation.

Eleven researchers from Leiden University have been awarded an Open Competition Domain Science ENW XS grant by the Dutch Research Council for their research projects. They are researching how to make software faster and greener, improve cancer detection and reduce anxiety by manipulating the biological…

In Microbial Sciences, we perform multidisciplinary research to understand the structure and function of microbes at all levels of biological organization, from small molecules and cellular structures at atomic resolution to multicellular communities.

Leiden University will be recording a brand-new series of podcasts in 2019: Science Shots. Our top scientists will talk about their research in less than 15 minutes. Tip: something to enjoy on the train journey between Leiden and The Hague, our two University cities!

The Department of Archaeological Sciences seeks to achieve the highest standards of excellence in science-driven education and archaeological research across the globe and across all periods.

Hybrid zones occur where two species meet and produce offspring (hybrids). Typically, hybrids show a considerable reduction in fitness. In this thesis two hybrid zones are treated.

The formation and evolution of galaxies is fundamentally driven by the formation of new stars out of cold gas.

This thesis describes the development and optimization of the first molecular tools to study the enzyme PLA2G4E.

Overkleeft

PhD candidates carry out a programme of independent research and additional (limited) course work, culminating in production of a PhD thesis in typically 4 years.

The master’s specialisation Bio-Pharmaceutical Sciences and Science Communication & Society at Leiden University is a two-year programme which combines research training in chemistry with one in techniques of communication.

Engineering an efficient microbial enzymatic polyethylene degradation pathway via an innovative combination of biochemistry and computational biology tools for enzyme discovery and characterization.

Leiden University and the Leiden Bio Science Park can make a significant contribution to the earning capacity of the Netherlands. This is the finding of the National Investment Agenda presented today.

This thesis explored the molecular pharmacological mechanisms of targeting CB2R via investigation of novel drug discovery concepts such as target binding kinetics, allosteric modulation and biased signaling.