A semi-empirical version of the specific reaction parameter approach to density functional theory (SRP-DFT) has been remarkably successful at predicting dissociative chemisorption probability vs. incidence energy curves for reactions on metal surfaces. New quantum Monte Carlo (QMC) calculations on the…

Recently, the PhD thesis of Lolu Danso Eweje appeared entitled ’Development of human skin equivalents to unravel the impaired skin barrier in atopic dermatitis skin’.

Increasing above- and belowground biodiversity in arable leek cultivation to stimulate pest control by natural enemies.

Promotor: Prof.dr. M. Danhof, Co-promotor: E.C.M. de Lange

eLaw colleagues Bart Custers and Helena Ursic have a new publication in the peer-reviewed journal The European Data Protection Law Review.

Soil ecologists Emilia Hannula (Leiden) and Elly Morriën (UvA) received the Golden Medal of Teylers Tweede Genootschap on 5 November. They received the prize for their submission to a competition on sustainable soil management.

The lipid matrix of the skin's stratum corneum plays a key role in the barrier function, which protects the body from desiccation. The lipids that make up this matrix consist of ceramides, cholesterol, and free fatty acids, and can form two coexisting crystalline lamellar phases: the long periodicity…

Pharmacologist Walter Boiten developed a new method to determine the amount of lipids in a person's skin. With this method he tested the effects of a new cream he developed for eczema patients. The first results are promising. Boiten defends his dissertation on 15 January.

A collaboration between the IBL and LUMC has resulted in the discovery that the polymerase theta enzyme is essential for the integration of Agrobacterium T-DNA into the genome of plants. The finding means a break-through for the development of more efficient systems for targeted genome modification…

Explore the unknown in order to be able to innovate in the distant future.

Steering soil microbiomes for better crop quality: the holy grail to improve human health?

With an ageing population it is becoming increasingly important to find means to repair cells, tissue and organs through regenerative medicine.

Promotor: Prof.dr. W.J.G.M. Peijnenburg, Co-promotor: Dr. ing. M.G. Vijver

Nadia Soudzilovskaia (CML), Martijn Bezemer (IBL / NIOO) and Harrie van der Hagen (ecologist at Dunea) gave an interview to NPO1 Radio about the TERRA-Dunes project.

How is Pol θ responsible for T-DNA integration, and how do other DNA double-strand break repair pathways interact with Pol θ? How may we manipulate T-DNA integration to stimulate error-free integration at a predetermined genomic site?

The rapidly increasing commercial application of metallic nanoparticles within products will inevitably enhance the amount of NPs being released into soil.

PhD defence

PhD defence

Restoring a natural plant environment on exhausted agricultural lands and in nature areas is difficult. We can speed this up by steering the soils towards the desired situation. This is what Martijn Bezemer, newly appointed Professor of Ecology of Plant-Microbe-Insect interactions at Leiden University’s…

Efficient gene-targeting during meiosis

Wanted for the Re-pair study!

The clinical potential of applying synthetic lethality to cancer treatment is famously demonstrated by the BRCA1/PARP1 paradigm: a tumor specific defect in BRCA1 – a component of the DNA double-strand break (DSB) repair pathway homologous recombination (HR) – results in a remarkable sensitivity to PARP1…

1. To what extent do metallic NPs added to soil extractions change the activity, abundance, or community composition of microbes? 2. How do the effects of metallic NPs on soil microbes differ from the effects of the ions shedding from corresponding NPs?

Lecture

How the global distribution of vegetation stands dominated by arbuscular and ectomycorrhizal plants relate to principle aspects of belowground carbon accumulation processes?

It is mostly rainfall and soil acidity that determine which microbes survive in a particular habitat and which do not. This knowledge is important for maintaining biodiversity. Leiden environmentalists contributed to the research. Publication in Nature on 1 August.

PhD defence

Methods of treatment for chronic illnesses are limited. Doctors and researchers at Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC) and Leiden University are working on new therapies as an alternative for organ transplants. The goal is to cure the illnesses by restoring organs to their original function. Stem…

This projects investigates spatial relations between soils and other resources and the urban layout of a classic Maya center in Campeche, Mexico.

Microbiome composition of the spermosphere and the rhizosphere of wild and modern bean accessions grown in an agricultural and a native soil from Colombia was characterized by metagenomics and cultivation-dependent approaches.

There is considerable need for improved skin models to develop safe and efficient drugs for skin delivery as well as for cosmetic and chemical product testing on the skin.

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…

How are the epidermal lipid pathways involved in health and disease.

The complex pathophysiology of immuno-dermatological disorders is multifactorial, including environmental, skin microbiome, (epi)genetic and immune dysregulation conditions. This project primarily focuses on the orphan disease mycosis fungoides, a subtype of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. The current pathophysiological…

Do e-waste workers display enhanced effects of adverse health effects due to informal e-waste processing in Nigeria? Is there a difference between the health outcomes of the exposed and the control groups? Are there difference in health effects within and between job groups (collectors, dismantlers,…

Inactivating mutations in BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes predispose to several types of cancer.

Promotor: E.F. Smets Co-promotor: J. Geml

Streptomyces are bacteria abundant in soil that participate in diverse and complex interactions. These bacteria are the main producers of the antibiotics we currently use in the clinic.

Promotor: E.F. Smets, Co-promotor: J. Geml