Sebastian Pomplun (LACDR) has received the 2026 Klaus Grohe Young Scientist Award, including €25,000 in research funding. The award recognises his innovative research into new strategies for targeting difficult-to-treat cancer proteins.

Louis Desdoigts (Leiden Observatory) has received the Emerging Leaders in Astronomy Software Development Prize from the Astronomical Society of Australia. He received the award for software that significantly improved the performance of the James Webb Space Telescope.

Pingtao Ding (IBL) has received a €150,000 ERC Proof of Concept grant for the GRASP project. The project uses artificial intelligence to better understand how plants respond to drought, heat and disease, with the aim of developing more climate-resilient crops.

Jan van Ruitenbeek (LION) has received an award from the PubPeer Foundation for his contribution to promoting scientific integrity. Together with colleagues, he investigated potential errors in scientific publications and contributed to transparency and quality assurance in research through the PubPeer platform.

Marc Koper (LIC) has received the Gerhard Ertl Lecture Award 2026. The prize recognises his leading research in electrochemistry and catalysis, with applications in sustainable energy and green chemistry.

Vedran Dunjko (LIACS/LION) and Jordi Tura have received €1.1 million for research into quantum‑enhanced AI  from the NWO and the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) call ‘Unconventional information processing technologies. The project explores how quantum computers can improve classical AI through new data transformations.

Joost Batenburg and Qinyu Chen (LIACS), together with Yuya Shoji, have received funding for the OPERA project from the NWO and the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) call ‘Unconventional information processing technologies. The project explores computing with light as an energy‑efficient alternative to traditional computer chips.

Rutger Hoekstra (CML) has been named a National Champion of the international Frontiers Planet Prize. He receives this recognition for research, together with Annegeke Jansen, Ranran Wang and Paul Behrens, on alternative ways to measure societal progress beyond GDP.

Ákos Kovács (IBL) has been elected as a fellow of the European Academy of Microbiology. The fellowship recognises his scientific contributions and strengthens the international network of leading microbiology researchers.

Lennart Schada von Borzyskowski (IBL) participates in a European consortium on methanol‑based biotechnology. Within the CarboNcare project, his group develops enzymes to improve methanol conversion and enable more sustainable production processes.

Two Leiden research projects have received funding from the European Biodiversa+ partnership, to which NWO makes an important financial contribution. The TIDELINES project by Jan Macher (CML) examines how beach management can protect biodiversity while maintaining essential functions such as recreation and coastal protection.

NWO and the National Science Foundation China are investing 1.1 million euros in research on urban resilience. In the Dutch‑Chinese ReSURE2 project, Arnold Tukker and Mingming Hu (CML) will develop solutions for flooding, extreme heat and biodiversity loss in cities worldwide that are increasingly affected by climate change. 

The Novo Nordisk Foundation has awarded a prestigious Gram‑negative Antibiotic Discovery Innovator (Gr‑ADI) grant of more than €3 million to an international consortium that includes Gilles van Wezel (IBL) and Jos Raaijmakers (NIOO‑KNAW). In the project Nature‑inspired discovery of novel anti‑Klebsiella drugs, the researchers work on identifying new antibiotics against Klebsiella pneumoniae.

Laura Bosmans (LACDR) has received a Dutch Heart Foundation Dekker Grant of more than €350,000. The grant enables her to establish an independent research line on the role of dendritic cells in atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease.

Marta Fiocco (MI) has received a €649,134 grant from the Dutch Children’s Cancer Foundation (KiKa) for research into respiratory support for children with cancer. Together with researchers from the Princess Máxima Center and UMC Utrecht, she will develop a predictive model to support clinical decision-making.

Leiden spin‑off Omivera has received a €450,000 NWO Take‑off Phase 2 grant to further develop its CellEKT® technology. The technology, developed by Zoë Vogelaar, Anthe Janssen and Joel Ruëgger in the laboratory of Mario van der Stelt (LIC), helps researchers determine whether new medicines reach and affect their intended targets in living cells.

Sebastian Pomplun (LACDR), together with Sylvie Noordermeer (LUMC), has received €1.18 million from the Dutch Cancer Society (KWF) for research into new treatments for BRCA1-related cancer. The project focuses on developing inhibitors of the protein EXO1 as a potential new therapy for tumours that have become resistant to existing treatments.

Five Faculty of Science researchers have received NWO Veni grants of up to €320,000 each. The grants were awarded to Anna Dawid‑Lekowska (LIACS/LION) for research on AI and quantum physics, Karina Nakashima (LION) for research into the first living structures on Earth, Margret Veltman (Hortus) for research on the origins of African grains in the Caribbean, Emily Yu (LIACS) for reliable software and hardware verification, and Felix de Zwart (LIC) for research on converting plastic waste into raw materials for detergents.

The uNMR‑NL consortium has received €3.4 million from NWO to modernise the Dutch ultrahigh‑field NMR spectroscopy infrastructure. Within the consortium, Marcellus Ubbink (LIC) leads the Leiden contribution, including the upgrade of the 600 MHz NMR infrastructure to support future life sciences research.

Six Faculty of Science researchers have received NWO Open Competition ENW-XS grants of up to €50,000 each. The projects of Pingtao Ding, Sebastian Geibel, Madeline Kavanagh, Lucía López Gandul, Ephraim Prantl and Kiki Spaninks focus on plant resilience, antivenom development, cancer metastasis, data encryption, leukaemia treatment and heat-resistant crops.

The ASCENT consortium has received €3.2 million from NWO for research into vegetation and ecosystems from space. Within the project, Marco Visser (CML), together with SRON, is developing new algorithms to improve the detection of changes in vegetation and ecosystems using satellite data.

Hermen Overkleeft (LIC) has been awarded the NWO Spinoza Prize, the highest distinction in Dutch science, including €1.5 million for further research. He receives the award for his pioneering work in chemical biology, developing innovative methods to study disease processes and enable the development of new medicines.

Reinout van Weeren (Leiden Observatory) has received funding from the NWO Open Competition ENW‑M for research into high‑energy particles in galaxy clusters. Using the LOFAR telescope, he investigates their origin and acceleration mechanisms.

Martina Vijver (CML) has received funding from the KIC mission call ‘Future Plastics’ for research into sustainable and safe plastics. The project investigates how biorefinery by-products can be transformed into recyclable and biodegradable materials.

Todor Stefanov (LIACS), together with Andy Pimentel, has received funding from the NWO Open Technology Programme for research into the design of complex digital systems. The project develops methods to automatically optimise software and hardware designs for performance and cost.

The HyNITROGEN project involving Marc Koper and Dennis Hetterscheid (LIC) has received over 20 million from NWO and the National Growth Fund GroenvermogenNL. The project focuses on sustainable production and reuse of nitrogen compounds, such as green fertilisers, using renewable energy.

Dirk Bouwmeester (LION) and Irene Groot (LIC) have received an NWO Open Technology grant for research into a circular power plant. The project focuses on plasma conversion of CO₂ into fuel as a sustainable solution for energy storage and reuse.

The project by Wessel Kraaij (LIACS) has received part of over €840,000 in funding from the NWO TDCC programme for digital competencies in Life Sciences & Health. The project Strengthening the Impact of Health Research by connecting Patient‑driven Infrastructures for Citizen Generated Data focuses on enabling the secure and effective sharing of patient‑generated data in line with FAIR principles.

Several Leiden researchers have received funding through national calls on sustainability and climate transitions. Projects by Ben van Werkhoven, Maarten Schrama and Franco Donati focus on energy‑efficient computing, climate‑resilient cities and circular product design.

Gerard van Westen (LACDR) is a co‑applicant of the national AI4Health programme, supported by NWO and partners. The programme uses artificial intelligence to improve diagnostics, personalised care and the efficiency of healthcare systems.

Five researchers at the Faculty of Science have received NWO Open Competition ENW‑XS grants for innovative and high‑risk research. The projects by Thanja Lamberts, David Poole, Emanuel Fortes Teixeira, Lu Su and Heyang Zhang focus on topics including space chemistry, PFAS detection, cell migration, organoids and CAR‑T therapy.

Amanda Foks (LACDR), together with Menno van Zelm and Marvin van Luijn (Erasmus MC), and Joost Beltman (LACDR), in collaboration with Monika Wolkers (Amsterdam UMC), have received ZonMw Open Competition grants. The projects focus on the role of atypical B cells in disease and on improving T‑cell‑based cancer therapies.

A consortium involving Leiden researchers has received €1.3 million from NWO and Cellular Agriculture Netherlands for research into sustainable production of milk proteins without cows. In the FungCows project, Arthur Ram (IBL) works on developing fungi that can produce caseins via precision fermentation for more affordable and sustainable vegan cheese.

Max van Duijn appointed Chair of The Young Academy (KNAW), where he focuses on supporting early-career researchers, strengthening the connection between science and society, and promoting the resilience of academia.

Anne‑Grete Märtson (LACDR) has received a KNAW Beijerink Early Career Award of €12,500. The funding supports her research on antiviral therapies and will be used to establish a new consortium in antiviral pharmacology.

Two research projects involving Leiden scientists have received funding from the NWO Open Technology Programme. These include a project by Dennis Hetterscheid and Grégory Schneider (LIC), which receives €903,247 to develop PFAS‑free membranes for electrolysers, and a project by Arthur Ram (IBL), which receives €967,070 for the discovery and development of new enzymes for biotechnological and medical applications.

Three Leiden researchers have been awarded a Vici grant from the Dutch Research Council, receiving up to 1.5 million euros each to support ‘adventurous, talented and pioneering researchers’. The grants go to Matthias Barz (LACDR) for developing man‑made antibodies and Reinout van Weeren (Leiden Observatory) for research into the first galaxy clusters.

The Leiden spin‑off Omivera has received a seed investment from UNIIQ to accelerate the development of its new CellEKT technology. This technology, developed by Joel Rüegger (LIC) and colleagues in the laboratory of Mario van der Stelt (LIC), uses kinome profiling to better understand how cancer drugs work in living cells.

The Royal Holland Society of Sciences and Humanities (KHMW) has elected six Leiden professors as members. Among them are Sense Jan van der Molen (LIC) and Gilles van Wezel (IBL), who joined the KHMW on 9 February.

Violeta Gamez Rosas (Leiden Observatory) has won the Chesneau Prize 2025 for the best PhD thesis in high‑angular‑resolution astrophysics. Her research on the galactic core NGC 1068 provided new insights into its structure and physical processes.

PhD candidate Mike Daas has been awarded the Stieltjes Prize for best mathematics thesis. His dissertation was recognised for its originality, depth and elegant approach.

Tadé Whenu has won the 2026 Rachel Carson Graduation Prize for his Master’s thesis in Industrial Ecology. His research on the circular economy and the Rotterdam Resource Station highlights how different forms of value can be created and assessed.

Master’s student Gijs van der Velden (CML) has received the Stans Award for the best CML Master’s thesis. His research, supervised by Yali Si, used GPS tracking to provide new insights into the resting and foraging behaviour of pond bats.