Having a chronic somatic condition can result in a variety of impairments in patients’ daily lives, including not only physical complaints such as pain, itch, and fatigue, but also problems of negative mood and impairments in social relationships. Next to disease characteristics, individual difference…

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

Promotor: J. van der Greef; Co-promotor: E. van Wijk, M. Wang

In this thesis, two potential therapeutic targets for diabetic nephropathy were dentified and investigated. First, we show that glomerular clusterin is upregulated in diabetic nephropathy and demonstrated that recombinant clusterin protein can protect the podocytes against oxidative stress in vitro.…

Imagine that you have a chronic skin condition, characterized by red patches of itchy, scaly skin. You regularly notice people staring at your skin and sense their reluctance to shake your hand. Or imagine that you have Parkinson's Disease, causing your hands to tremble and making it difficult for you…

Promotores: Prof.dr. C.A.J. Knibbe, Prof.dr. D. Tibboel (EMC, R’dam)

The major aim is to develop, evaluate, and implement disease-generic cognitive-behavioral interventions through the internet in order to optimize tailored health care for patients with chronic somatic conditions.

How can the development of constrictions in the blood vessels be reversed?

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

Promotor: Prof.dr. J. Kuiper

What are the most important perpetuating factors of chronic fatigue and chronic fatigue syndrome and which interventions are effective in influencing these factors?

To make the right clinical decisions or develop effective diagnostic tests and treatments, it is important to understand the underlying mechanisms of a condition or behavior.

LUMC researchers are looking for factors that point to illness at an early stage.

LUMC researchers are looking for factors that point to illness at an early stage.

Persistent somatic symptoms are long term symptoms that lack a clear medical explanation. These symptoms have a high prevalence where most people know someone who experiences such symptoms or they experience such symptoms themselves. Symptoms can vary greatly in and between people. While one person…

Studying the impact of urbanisation on the respiratory health of past Dutch populations (1200-1850 CE).

Development & Disease is one of the four research themes of the Institute of Biology Leiden.

Lysosomal storage disorders (LSDs) are a group of orphan diseases characterized by lysosomal dysfunction or impaired lysosomal catabolism and affect collectively about 1 in 5000 live births.

Soil is a home for an unbelievable diversity and abundance of microbial life that is essential for supporting life on our planet.

Bone research provides plenty of detailed data about the health of a person or a group. This data is not only used to reconstruct the past but also to fight disease today.

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

Schistosomiasis is an acute and chronic disease caused by blood dwelling parasitic trematodes of the genus Schistosoma, and it is classified as the second most socioeconomically devastating parasitic disease, second only to malaria.

Can we find and commercialise new treatments for chronic disease that affect our ageing population? And how can we customise this research and development programme to the small but highly-developed Netherlands research economy?

PhD Defence

Animal Sciences’ contributions to the Development & Disease research theme include the mechanisms and evolution of embryonic development, the development of cognitive mechanisms, and animal models for understanding mechanisms of human disease.

Inflammatory skin diseases such as psoriasis and atopic dermatitis can severely impact both the physical and social aspect of a patient’s life. Aberrant inflammatory responses are thought to be a major causative factor in these disorders, but an abundance of different factors contribute to the development…

PhD Defence

The precise psychobiological mechanisms leading to chronic physiological stress responses have not been sufficiently explained, although stress is a major risk factor for disease and early death. A problem for conventional stress theory is that most of these responses seem to occur in situations without…

This thesis describes biochemical investigations of glucocerebrosidase (GBA), the lysosomal β- glucosidase that is deficient in Gaucher disease (GD).

PhD Defence

Microbial Sciences'contribution to the Development & Disease research theme is to perform world-class research to understand cellular morphogenesis, growth, development and virulence of microbes.

As a result of an increased life expectancy, more people suffer from chronic diseases and discomfort. Elderly patients may have multiple diseases simultaneously, with concomitant multiple medications.

We know this, but we don’t act on it: eat healthily, move more, address our stress levels and sleep well. Internist and Professor of Diabetology Hanno Pijl is fascinated by the effect that a healthy lifestyle can have on health. He researches how this lifestyle is achievable and satisfying, for patients…

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease affecting millions of people world-wide.

Plant Sciences' contribution to the Development & Disease research theme is to unravel the processes that allow plants to adapt to changing abiotic and biotic environmental conditions or stresses, with the aim to contribute to the sustainable production of food, flowers and bio-based products using…

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

Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease are the most common neurodegenerative disorders. Unfortunately, no effective treatments are currently available to halt the progression of these neuroinflammatory diseases [1].

Prediction of human (CNS) target site concentrations in health and disease In the vision of Prof. de Lange we will only be able to predict human (central nervous system, CNS) target site concentrations and effects if we perform systematic, condition-dependent, integrative, and strictly quantitative…

M. Danhof, Co-promotor: O.E. Della Pasqua

PhD Defence

How is inflammation in tuberculosis controlled by interplay between autophagy and inflammasome signalling?

Social and Behavioural Sciences, Psychology

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most frequent neurodegenerative disorder and the primary cause of dementia. The neuropathological features of AD include the occurrence of senile plaques, neurofibrillary tangles, decreased synaptic density, and loss of neurons. An obstacle in the study and treatment…

How can we develop new chemical biology tools and approaches to understand and interfere with glucosylceramide metabolism in relation to Gaucher disease?

Cardiovascular diseases are among the most frequent causes of death in the world. The main underlying pathology of cardiovascular diseases is the development of atherosclerosis in the medium and large-sized arteries.

An important hormone excreting gland in the human body is the pituitary