Pericytes, the mural cells of blood microvessels, are important regulators of vascular morphogenesis and function that have been postulated to mechanically control microvascular diameter through as yet unknown mechanisms.

Parkinson's disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disease in the world. One of its symptoms is the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta.

Synthetic hydrogels that mimic the natural extracellular matrix in the biophysical and biochemical cues it provides to cells are in high demand, however the cell phenotypes as they are observed in vivo in numerous cases have yet to be attained.

This thesis aims to test in vitro pipelines to rapidly and cost-effectively identify molecular mechanisms that drive adverse outcomes in clinical use.

A research goal for ABS is to develop miniaturized platforms for research in (stem)cell, in-vitro systems and application in clinical and preventive research. Combined with the high throughput, this development will make it possible to study the dynamics of pathogenesis in human and cellular models…

Leiden has a long history in the treatment of blood cell cancer. Research to find better therapies never stands still. One of the potential treatments currently being worked on is a ‘living medicine’.

The LUMC iPSC Hotel offers the generation of research grade human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) from different tissue sources using state of the art reprogramming techniques.

We have developed a microfluidic platform for complex 3D organotypic cell cultures (so-called organ-on-a-chip systems) which are suited for integration in 96 or higher well plate format.

Promotor: R.C.M. Pelger Co-Promotor: G. van der Pluijm

Treatment with special stem cells seems to be a good option for suppressing the immune system in organ transplants. Researchers are trying to learn from processes that take place in the human body during pregnancy.

This minor is focused on fundamental scientific research required for discovery of new drug targets and development of new drugs. Students learn how disease and drug-induced alterations in signaling pathways can be used for the discovery of new drug targets and the development of personalized drugs.

Methods of treatment for chronic illnesses are limited. Doctors and researchers at Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC) and Leiden University are working on new therapies as an alternative for organ transplants. The goal is to cure the illnesses by restoring organs to their original function. Stem…

Chemist Roxanne Kieltyka has received an ERC Starting Grant of 2 million euros. In her lab, she creates gels that mimic the instructive material that supports cells in our body. With the grant, she aims to make these gels stiff and tough, and to create a bio-printed miniature heart ventricle.

New technology offers many new possibilities for research, such as on dementia. ‘Organ-on-a-chip’ is a new technology in which small bits of organ are grown out of stem cells on a small plastic plate. A small piece of blood vessel, heart or nerve offers many new possibilities for research, such as…

Despite being the object of intense study, embryonic development has been difficult to model due to a number of reasons. First, complex tissues can be comprised of many cell types, of which we probably only know a subset.

Promotor: R. Tijdeman, Co-promotor: C. Kraaikamp

Promotor: Prof.dr. J. Kuiper, Co-Promotor: S.C.A. de Jager

The aim of this work was to study the applicability of antigen-coated pH-sensitive microneedle arrays for effective vaccination strategies. Therefore, a model antigen (ovalbumin) was coated onto pH-sensitive (pyridine-modified) microneedle arrays to test pH-triggered antigen release by applying the…

Research and design are two activities that are becoming increasingly important in the Dutch subjects O&O (‘research and design’) and NLT ('nature, life and technology’). The dissertation of Tessa Vossen (ICLON and Faculty of Science) indicates that teachers and students understand the importance of…

Dendritic cells (DC) play a prominent role in the priming of CD8(+) T cells. Vaccination is a promising treatment to boost tumor-specific CD8(+) T cells which is crucially dependent on adequate delivery of the vaccine to DC.

The recognition that there may be more, so-called allosteric binding sites on a given receptor has also fueled our synthetic efforts. Over the last few years we have focused on many drug targets (adenosine A1, A2A and A3 receptors, the mGlu2 receptor and a classic ‘anti-target’, the hERG channel) to…

Chemical-induced organ toxicity is a major concern in the development and use of chemicals, including drugs, pesticides, industrial chemicals and cosmetics. In the last decades, the onset and progression of chemical-induced organ toxicity has been linked amongst others to perturbation of mitochondri…

The aim of this thesis is to study cell-cell interactions and the development of an assay to explore and quantify the exchange of membrane compounds.

Promotor: Prof.dr. B. van de Water, Co-promotor: L.S. Price

Mechanical forces are known to play an important role in bacterial colonies. In this dissertation, we study the self-organization at various stages of growing bacterial colonies, and focus on the mechanical effects of cell growth.

During the development of the (human) body from a single fertilized egg, organs and structures must form. The development and growth of biological forms is called morphogenesis.

The way organisms develop from the initial single-cellular state to a complex final assembly like the human body, and how the final body is maintained throughout life, is one of the greatest mysteries and it’s understanding one of the biggest scientific challenges.

Organs and tissues grown in the lab may in the future be able to cure people with organ failures. Micha Drukker, professor of Stem Cells, Developmental Biology and Technology for Innovative Drug Research, is convinced that the use of stem cells will make this possible. He will deliver his inaugural…

The research in this thesis is focused on tomographic reconstruction based on two imaging modalities in electron microscopy.

This is an Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility project of Leiden University Medical Center with Boston Children’s Hospital in the USA.

In this research group, headed by Bob Van de Water, cell signaling programs that underlie adverse drug reactions as well as cancer development and progression are unraveled. Adverse drug reactions involve cell injury in critical target organ cells which leads to the activation of cellular stress response…

Promotor: B. van de Water

Promotor: P. J. J. Hooykaas, Co-promotor: R. Offringa

A new therapy for the serious Graft-versus-Host disease

The Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), the Danstem Institute from the University of Copenhagen and the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Melbourne have received 300m euros from the Novo Nordisk foundation. The aim of this new international consortium is to bring stem-cell based therapies…

This study explores the role of linguistic data in the reconstruction of Dolgan (pre)history by analyzing contact-induced changes and using them to infer information about the nature of the contact settings in which they occurred.

Atherosclerosis, in particular rupture of atherosclerotic plaques, is the underlying cause of most heart attacks or strokes and is the leading cause of death worldwide.

Atherosclerosis is the main underlying pathology of cardiovascular disease. Atherosclerosis is caused by an immune response which is directed against (modified) lipoproteins which accumulate in the vessel wall.

Source: Mediators Inflamm (2014)

How can we broaden youth participation in STEM Learning

Promotoren: G.F.A. Kersten, W. Jiskoot, Co-promotor: J-P. Amorij

Bacteria have the ability to alter their morphology in order to adapt to changing environments.

What distinguishes a tumour cell from a healthy cell? Researchers are trying to answer this question as precisely as possible. Certain differences could eventually lead to new therapies.

We study cell-fate decision-making using embryonic stem cells as a model system. Stem cells integrate a large number of cues to direct their development into a great variety of cell types.

The research within the Division of Cell Systems and Drug Safety, headed by Prof. Bob van de Water, is focused on novel therapeutic modalities and novel concepts in early drug discovery, in order to develop more effective and safer therapeutic strategies. We generate advanced cell and computational…

The single cell group (SCG) is part of the Metabolomics & Analytics Centre Our research is centered around developing innovating analytical methods tailored for small-volume, or single cell analysis to enable metabolomics-driven systems biology in personalized health strategies. We are always on…