How can we find novel natural products from Actinomycetes that act as growth modulators on mammalian cells? Can we harvest and develop the potential of these novel compounds for industrial and medical biotechnology?

Bispecific antibodies with one Fab arm binding to effector cells, such as T-cells and NK-cells, while the other Fab arm recognizing a tumor associated antigen (TAA) can be used to redirect these effector cells for tumor specific killing. Using bispecific antibodies to treat hematological cancers is…

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…

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

In this research group, headed by Bob Van de Water, cell signaling programs that underlie adverse drug reactions as well as cancer development and progression are unraveled. Adverse drug reactions involve cell injury in critical target organ cells which leads to the activation of cellular stress response…

For more information regarding ongoing research projects, please contact Dr. Ilze Bot.

A recent archaeology of Trio movements

This is an Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility project of Leiden University’s Faculty of Medicine with Haramaya University in Ethiopia.

The Cardiovascular Pharmacology research group headed by Ilze Bot aims to elucidate the mechanisms that underlie atherosclerotic plaque destabilization, which is the key process that leads to acute cardiovascular syndromes such as a myocardial infarction or stroke.

In this research group, headed by Prof. Erik Danen, the aim is to unravel cellular signaling mechanisms in normal and diseased cells, with a long-standing interest in cell adhesion signaling. In complex multicellular organisms such as ourselves, a division of labor emerges where different tissues and…

How do Central African refugees navigate through uncertainty in a new and hostile environment in the DR Congo?

In this thesis, we will utilize embryonic zebrafish tumour models to understand the interaction between engrafted human cancer cells and macrophages from the host, test drug administration modalities and anti-cancer efficacies of newly-developed PDT and PACT compounds, and test a light-triggered liposomal…

Despite the fact that gold nanoparticles (GNPs) are one of the most studied nanoparticles, there is still a necessity for new approaches allowing for effective protective coating to enable wider use of GNPs in biomedical applications.

New technology offers many new possibilities for research, such as on dementia. ‘Organ-on-a-chip’ is a new technology in which small bits of organ are grown out of stem cells on a small plastic plate. A small piece of blood vessel, heart or nerve offers many new possibilities for research, such as…

In this project, we aim to obtain a quantitative understanding of the role of the immune system in tumor regression, of the role of tumor cell heterogeneity in cancer growth and of tumor cell migration properties.

This is an Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility project of Leiden Law School with the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik.

This is an Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility project of the Faculty of Humanities with Université Mohamed VI Polytechnique.

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

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is the deadliest common cancer, with only 8% of patients surviving for five years. One reason for this poor outcome is that current chemotherapy treatments are highly toxic, often leaving patients too sick to receive treatment or forcing doctors to lower the dose…

Proteases degrade matrix molecules in the atherosclerotic plaque, thereby reducing atherosclerotic plaque stability. Mast cells, that contain proteases such as tryptase and chymase, have been identified at the site of rupture in specimens of human coronary arteries and their number in the plaque was…

What is the role of auxin in the initiation and process of somatic embryogenesis?

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease, and vaccination may be an attractive method to induce long lasting protection against endogenous factors that contribute to the development of atherosclerosis. We have shown that for example vaccination against modified LDL or interleukin-12 limits…

The Immune Activation and Tolerance group is headed by Dr. Bram Slütter. Vaccination is an experimental, but promising, treatment strategy for atherosclerosis. Previous work has shown that immunization of mice with modified LDL particles can reduce atherosclerotic lesion development, however such vaccines…

Leiden biophysicist Stefan Semrau was granted an NWO Vidi earlier this month. He will use the grant to study the role of electricity in embryonic development and tissue regeneration.

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.

We have developed a microfluidic platform for complex 3D organotypic cell cultures (so-called organ-on-a-chip systems) which are suited for integration in 96 or higher well plate format.

Integrins play an essential role in multicellular life by connecting cells to the extracellular matrix.

This is a facility where research groups or small companies can apply for space if they need to culture human or animal cells.

The cell observatory equipment is hosted by several institutes. Each of the institutes maintain their own instruments A detailed list of equipment can be found below per institute

Within the ICM 2018 project, Leiden University cooperated with 25 partner universities from 14 countries. In total, 97 mobilities were granted to this project - 65 mobilities were realised (some mobilities had to be ended prematurely due to covid-19, others were finished online).

Shape and biological function are tightly connected. Physical descriptions are used to connect the shape of a biological system with its function.

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.

Mechanical forces are known to play an important role in bacterial colonies. In this dissertation, we study the self-organization at various stages of growing bacterial colonies, and focus on the mechanical effects of cell growth.

What are the biological effects of Chinese herbal medicine in regulation of cancer cell metastasis?

The research described in this thesis focused on identifying novel drug targets and synergistic combinations for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), a virulent subtype of breast cancer with a dismal prognosis and limited therapeutic options.

Key publications of the Cardiovascular Pharmacology group

With cancer, a person’s body cells grow uncontrollably. Putting together a detailed picture of how this comes about makes it possible to develop efficient therapies. Researchers at the Leiden University Medical Centre (LUMC) and Leiden University are working together to gain a better understanding…

This is an Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility project of Leiden University’s Faculty of Science with University of Tunis El Manar in Tunesia.

This is an Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility project of Leiden University (university wide) with Al-Quds University in Palestine.

This is an Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility project of Leiden University College with Bayero University Kano and Nigerian Army University Biu in Nigeria.

This is an Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility project of Leiden University’s Faculty of Science with National University of Singapore in Singapore.

This is an Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility project of Leiden University’s Faculty of Medicine with Fundacao Oswaldo Cruz in Brazil.

This is an Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility project of Leiden University’s Faculty of Medicine with Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Center in Tanzania.

This is an Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility project of Leiden University’s Faculty of Science with Ilia State University in Georgia.

PhD defence

Study why and how, in countries around the world, people mobilize around ethnic, racial, religious and social identities, and explore the role of political institutions in mitigating conflicts that arise from such mobilization.

Can light-activatable ruthenium compounds be used as a more selective anticancer treatment?