In this thesis, a system pharmacology approach, integrating metabolomics, pharmacology and chemical biology, was applied to understand and modulate the endocannabinoid system across different model systems (cells, zebrafish, mice and humans).

The predication of the effect (efficiency and toxicity) of a drug in a patient is very important in (i) clinical decision support and (ii) the development of novel drug treatments. We apply our technology and methods to find biomarkers for key disease pathways and toxicity in clinical studies and in…

Medical Biochemistry is a section of the Leiden Institute of Chemistry at Leiden University. The section is headed by Prof. Dr. Hans Aerts.

The Horizon 2020 project Sybil-AA (Systems Biology of Alcohol Addiction) focuses on modeling and validating disease state networks in human and animal brains for understanding pathophysiology, predicting outcomes and improving therapy in alcohol addiction. Alcohol addiction, the most severe form of…

Promotor: J. van der Greef, T. Hankemeier; Co-promotor: H.A. van Wietmarschen

Research projects

PhD Defence

Prof. Elizabeth de Lange is concerned with the allocation of resources for the conduct of science towards the goal of best serving the public interest. Also, while she underscores that there is still the need for using animals in drug research, she is concerned about this use, and advocates the use…

PhD Defence

PhD Defence

PhD Defence

PhD Defence

PhD Defence

In this research project, we aimed to obtain more insight in the role of mast cells in the immune driven disorders rheumatoid arthritis and atherosclerosis.

Mechanobiology is a major area in biology, however, mechanics is currently a missing element in drug development pipelines. This has led to a high cost for the society. Mechanotoxicity of drugs often appears as a long-term side effect of drugs, and has led to removal of drugs from the market. Furthermore,…

In this thesis, mathematical modeling and simulation was applied as a tool to inform quantitative decision making in oncology drug discovery and development.

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.

Grants awarded to molecular physiology research

Neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson’s disease (PD), are increasing in prevalence due to the aging population. Despite extensive study, these diseases are still not fully understood and the lack of personalised treatment options that can target the cause of the diseases, rather than the symptoms,…

Through metabolism, biochemical processes give rise to the complexity of life. Acquired and inborn errors in metabolism underlie many diseases occurring in man. The challenge for present day medical biochemistry is to find, and integrate, pieces of information at molecular, cell and organismal level…

The Faculty of Medicine

The ambition of the Analytical BioSciences and Metabolomics group led by Thomas Hankemeier is to develop innovative analytical strategies for metabolomics-driven health monitoring and systems biology studies. Understanding the intricate balance between health, disease and adaptation to challenges relies…

Can thrips resistance in strawberry be explained based on secondary metabolite profiles and plant morphological traits?

Previous research has found important inter-individual differences in the pharmacokinetics (PK) of morphine in special populations such as children, the morbidly obese or the critically ill.

An overview of research themes and projects at ABS.

How to improve the method in quantifying the combined effects of metal-based chemicals?

This research area is focused on the development and application of novel concepts and models in the emerging area of quantitative systems pharmacology (QSP).

Knowledge on how to adjust a drug dose in special patient populations such as (prematurely born) neonates or children, obese individuals or critically-ill patients, is not only crucial for novel compounds, but also for existing drugs which are often used in an off-label manner in these special patient…

Through metabolism, biochemical processes give rise to the complexity of life. Acquired and inborn errors in metabolism underlie many diseases occurring in man. The challenge for present day medical biochemistry is to find, and integrate, pieces of information at molecular, cell and organismal level…

We are interested in the efficacy and safety of new drugs and novel means to decipher these aspects. Hence, we employ advanced imaging and high-throughput screening techniques next to computational approaches such as chem- and bioinformatics.

Can we bring novel treatment options to the clinic for UM patients with liver metastases?

... which build on self-regulation and stress-regulation theories and considers the modification of cognitions as a mediator of therapeutic change.

Cognitive decline (amongst other problems with attention, concentration, memory) is a common symptom in patients with a variety of brain disorders and has been related to healthy ageing as well. People suffering from cognitive deficits are often significantly hampered in their day-to-day functioning…

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…

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Key publications of the Quantitative Pharmacology group

Key publications of the Predictive Pharmacology group.

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…

Chemical biology research at the Leiden Institute of Chemistry is aimed at understanding biological processes at the molecular level to strengthen the knowledge base of human health and disease. The approach to achieve this goal is a fundamental chemical one; with the aid of chemical probes biological…

Depression has traditionally been linked to increased inflammation. Innovative research by psychologist Eiko Fried refutes this popular assumption. He shows that specific depression symptoms such as sleeping problems explain this relationship. Publication in Psychological Medicine .

Researchers from the Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC) are working on the first diagnostic test for leprosy that can be used outside a laboratory. This will not only reliably diagnose leprosy, but also be cheap and easy to use. Leprosy mainly occurs in low-income countries. A double challenge…

Professor by Special Appointment of Clinical Neuropharmacology Geert Jan Groeneveld will deliver his inaugural lecture entitled ‘The importance of the biomarker’ on 11 March 2022. According to him, new genetic knowledge will revolutionise drug research.

A large multidisciplinary team of experts on ageing has secured over €8.5m for a major study of which factors and solutions promote healthy ageing and increase vitality. The LUMC and the Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research (LACDR) are two of the centres involved in this national research projec…

As a student in the MSc Chemistry programme offered by the Leiden Institute of Chemistry (LIC) you will focus your studies on one of the two main research areas of the LIC. Students in the research area Chemical Biology will study fundamental biological and biomedical problems to understand physiological…

On Friday May 3rd 2013 NWO has announced that Dr. Mario van der Stelt, Division of Bio-Organic Synthesis (LIC) and Dr. Laura Heitman, Division of Medicinal Chemistry (LACDR), have been awarded with an ECHO-STIP grant for their project, entitled: “Novel target engagement biomarkers for better drug ca…

Ariane Briegel wants to use bacteria to detect cancer at an early stage. Together with postdoc Alise Muok, she is developing a method to quickly and cheaply test the urine of patients for the presence of suspicious molecules. They receive a grant of approximately 150,000 euros from the Dutch Cancer…

The BioMedical Metabolomics Facility Leiden (BMFL) offers a highly structured environment for advanced metabolomics studies. BMFL builds on fully validated, state-of-the-art platforms that each cover a part of the human metabolism and together span the complete human metabolome.

The master's specialisation Clinical Neuropsychology consists of three main parts: the mandatory and elective courses, a thesis and an internship.

In this research group, headed by Laura Heitman, novel receptor concepts in drug discovery are studied, aiming to increase the effectivity of medicines. Many drugs act via so-called G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) and therefore our research is mainly focused on understanding and improving drug-receptor…