This thesis focuses on two processes involved in fighting infections: metabolism and immune cell motility and navigation.

Living cells on topographically-controlled substrates: Understanding Cell Motility in a Quasi-3D Environment

During embryonic growth, cells proliferate, differentiate, and collectively migrate to form different tissues at the right position and time in the body.

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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.

The group of Dr. Roxanne Kieltyka designs and synthesizes molecules that self-assemble into polymeric materials using specific non-covalent interactions. These substrates can be used for numerous applications in medicine ranging from disease detection to cell delivery depending on the (bio)molecular…

In this thesis, we aimed to better understand the underlying mechanisms involved in TNBC progression and metastasis formation and discover new targets to reduce breast cancer related deaths.

Discovery of metastasis promoting candidate drug targets

Decision support tool for cell therapy commercialization and business development

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’.

Mechanical interactions between cells and their environment play an important role in many biological processes.

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

BioSolar Cells is a five-year research project in which ten knowledge institutions and 45 private industries work together.

Actin Polymerization and Membrane Physics in Living Cells: Analysis of cell spreading mechanisms

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.

In this project innovative technology for photovoltaics cells is developed and analysis of ecological and health related risks are explicitly accounted for.

Cardiovascular disease is a major global burden and atherosclerosis is the main underlying pathological process.

The CMCB brings together microbial cell biology expertise in Leiden. It aims at optimal resonance between the groups and maximal exploitation of the available infrastructure and to develop innovative cross-boundary technology platforms.

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

Almost all bacteria are enveloped by a cell wall that provides cellular protection.

Which brain cell does what, when Parkinson's disease arises? It won't be long before this jigsaw is solved piece by piece. Ahmed Mahfouz, computational biologist, combines bio-knowledge from Leiden with algorithms from Delft and is getting closer to finding the key.

An overview of the research at the Cancer Dug Target Discovery group.

PhD Defence

The loss of T-cell homeostasis and tolerance towards self-antigens is the underlying cause of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases like atherosclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis or type I diabetes. Traditionally, the treatment of these diseases consisted on systemic immune suppression, which can entail…

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.

Cardiovascular syndromes are the major cause of death in Western societies.

Cell adhesion signaling

Atherosclerosis is the most important underlying process that drives cardiovascular disease, and is characterized by an accumulation of cholesterol which triggers an inflammatory response in the vessel wall.

From molecule, to cell, to organism. The high-level drug research at the Cell Observatory aimes at reducing the spread of cancer and developing new medicines for tuberculosis.

The word ¨pyroptosis¨ can be understood as ¨fiery falling¨, which describes the bursting of pro-inflammatory signals from the dying cell. Our observations indicate that pyroptosis also ¨spreads like wildfire¨ and once a cell dies via pyroptotic cell death, neighbouring cells are more prone to die as…

Science, Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research (LACDR)

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.

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,…

We aim to engineer streptomycetes to fully exploit their potential for natural product productions, by a rational design and evolution approach.

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.

Source: Biosens Bioelectron, Volume 74, pp. 233-42 (2015)

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

Visualization of biomolecules in living cells by tagging with gold nanoparticles.

The Mathematical Institute is responsible for the research and education in mathematics and statistics at Leiden University.

Promotores: Prof.dr. M.K. Richardson, Prof.dr. H.P. Spaink

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.

What is the role of cell wall-deficiency in the persistence of tuberculosis?

A new type of tripodal squaramide-based supramolecular hydrogels is developed and studied.

This research group is interested in the physics of living cells, especially their cytoskeleton dynamics under defined external stimuli.

We focus on a better understanding of the mechanisms of cancer drug resistance and metastasis.

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

This functional genomics project aims at understanding the biology of the underlying mycelium differentiation and autolysis processes in much more detail.

Promotor: Huub J.M. de Groot, Co-promotor: Francesco Buda