Atherosclerosis (thickening of the artery wall) is the most common cause of heart attacks or strokes, and one of the most common causes of death in the western world. People with this condition have to take medicine all their lives, so a vaccine for atherosclerosis would be a breakthrough.

Key publications of the Aging and Immunity group

Promotor: J. Kuiper

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.

Mouse models are commonly used to assess the immunogenicity of therapeutic proteins and to investigate the immunological processes leading to antidrug antibodies. The aim of this work was to develop a transgenic (TG) Balb/c mouse model for evaluating the immunogenicity of recombinant human insulin (insulin)…

The division of BioTherapeutics consists of the former divisions Biopharmaceutics and Drug Delivery Technology.

Immunotherapies for cancer are an emerging class of therapeutic strategies which aim to treat cancer via augmentation of the immune system.

The current hepatitis B vaccines need to be stored and transported under refrigerated conditions (2-8 degrees C). This dependence on a cold-chain is highly challenging in areas where hepatitis B virus infections are endemic.

Lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) have enabled the success of mRNA vaccines but remain limited in broader therapeutic use by challenges in delivery efficiency, targeting, and mechanistic understanding.

The Chemical Biology & Immunology (CBI) group is headed by Prof. Sander van Kasteren and Prof. Kim Bonger.

Throughout the world fundamental labour rights in supply chains are being violated. Since the Rana Plaza disaster in Bangladesh shook the world, we can no longer turn our heads away.

For more information regarding ongoing research projects, please contact Prof. Johan Kuiper.

Bacteria in the teeth tell us a lot about nutrition and disease in our ancestors. It also tells us more about the immune system. This provides clues for treating modern diseases and allergies. For a long time archaeologists were irritated by tartar on the teeth of excavated skulls. They thought that…

On 14 May 2021, Melanie Fink spoke at the conference ‘EU Responsibility in the International System: Setting the agenda’, organised by the University of Thessaloniki

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease, and vaccination may be an attractive method to induce long lasting protection against endogenous factors that contribute to the development of atherosclerosis. We have shown that for example vaccination against modified LDL or interleukin-12 limits…

The Municipality of Dronten is temporarily bailing out the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) in Ter Apel by accommodating 360 asylum seekers at the Biddinghuizen event site in the province of Flevoland. This helps the COA avoid a sky-high fine. Rowie Stolk, Assistant Professor…

Epithelial cells play a crucial role in the lungs. PhD student Ying Wang researched the effects of cigarette smoke and viruses such as COVID-19 on these epithelial cells. ‘We hope to reduce the risk of pandemics in the future.’

Undesirable associations with sex can be unlearned, but return if the circumstances change. They must therefore be unlearned in different situations. The drug D-cycloserine may help here. These are the findings of psychologist Mirte Brom.

Tuberculosis causes 1.5 million deaths yearly and anti-tuberculosis therapies are threatened by emergence of drug resistance. Development of innovative drug combinations should be accelerated with the use of translational pharmacological models. Moreover, host-directed therapies (HDT), which stimulate…

Promotores: A.H. Meijer, H.P. Spaink

Promotores: Prof.dr. J. A. Bouwstra, Prof.dr. W. Jiskoot

New or improved treatments for chronic and acute illness.

Cardiovascular diseases are still a major concern for the global health.

Projects within the theme ‘Computational Biology’ aim to employ mathematical or computational dynamical modelling approaches to discover novel concepts that are important for drug development.

For more information regarding ongoing research projects, please contact Dr. Ilze Bot.

Vaccines are an extraordinary category of biopharmaceuticals. They are usually prophylactic and come in many types, from whole bacteria to peptides and nucleic acids. They are very cost effective and almost every human on the planet is vaccinated. The latter mandates that vaccines have to be extremely…

Drug development is hampered by the limited predictive value of conventional 2D culture systems, which fail to recapitulate the complexity of the disease microenvironment and contribute to high clinical attrition rates.

Treatment and care for cancer patients is becoming increasingly advanced. For example, surgeons can now perform operations with much greater precision, and therapeutic vaccines are being developed to prompt the patient’s immune system to fight cancer. Work is also being done on better early diagnostics,…

The infectious diseases malaria and tuberculosis are responsible for 2.1 million deaths every year. Leiden researchers are currently testing a new tuberculosis vaccine.

Jason Rudall, Assistant Professor of Public International Law at the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies, has published a monograph entitled 'Responsibility for Environmental Damage'.

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Atherosclerosis is the most prominent underlying pathology of cardiovascular disease and an important cause of major adverse cardiovascular events.

The potential of liposomal cancer vaccines

Key publications of the Biologics Formulation group

Promotores: Prof.dr. E.A.L. Biessen, Prof.dr. T.J.C. van Berkel

Promotor: W. Jiskoot, Co-promotor: A. Hawe

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide.

Promotor: C.A.J. Knibbe, Co-promotor: J.J. Boelens, R.G.M. Bredius

The current COVID-19 vaccination campaign involves injecting the vaccine into muscle tissue, but injecting a smaller amount of vaccine in the skin might also provide good protection. The #wakeuptocorona crowdfunding campaign has enabled Anna Roukens (LUMC) to examine the safety and efficacy of vaccination…

In our globalised economy, goods and services are frequently produced abroad. Is it the producer or the consumer that should be held responsible for greenhouse gas emissions associated with production? Together with colleagues from Berlin, Hauke Ward of the Institute of Environmental Sciences (CML)…

The shift from response to recovery is now noticeable as the world moves past the paralyzing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. This book explores responses to the pandemic by international, regional, and local institutions, multilateral action, and crisis prevention efforts at different levels of governance,…

The United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) has published the 2017 issue in their Civil Society and Disarmament series, titled Voluntary, Non-Binding Norms for Responsible State Behaviour in the Use of Information and Communications Technology: A Commentary. The series aims to provide…

The Project “Excellence in science and innovation for Europe by adopting the concept of Responsible Research and Innovation (NewHoRRIzon)” sets out to promote the acceptance of RRI in Horizon 2020 (H2020) and beyond. It will work out the conceptual and operational basis to fully integrate RRI into European…

In this article Vanessa Newby discusses how the ANZUS states of United States, Australia, and New Zealand that sit on the fringes of the Asia-Pacific, are increasingly using their armed forces to deliver Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Response (HADR) as a way of engaging with the region.

Physics and Engineering Approaches to Biomedicine and Pharmacology