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.

Despite being the object of intense study, embryonic development has been difficult to model due to a number of reasons. First, complex tissues can be comprised of many cell types, of which we probably only know a subset.

In this thesis, we describe the potential of cell mechanical phenotyping for immune cell characterization, diagnosis, drug testing, as well as treatment of disease.

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

Promotor: Prof.dr. J. Kuiper

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

The aim of this thesis was to study phage infection in Streptomyces, focused on cell wall-deficient cells. Bacteriophages (or phages in short) attach to the cell wall of bacteria after which they replicate and lyse the host cell.

This work describes the use of click-to-release chemistry to get spatiotemporal control over immunocytokine activity. Until now, immunocytokines (cytokines coupled to a tumor-targeting-moiety) remained active throughout the body, being able to bind their respective receptors, causing mild to severe…

In this article, Jasmijn Boeken, explores in which ways the defining characteristics of the different zones can be found in the digital sphere.

Cell-based medicinal products (CBMPs), such as CAR T cells, are highly complex biopharmaceutical products offering various treatment options for serious illnesses such as cancer or autoimmune diseases.

Epithelial-mesenchymal plasticity (EMP) and tumor cell migration play an important role in cancer progression, and an improved understanding of the mechanisms underlying these concepts is essential for developing new targeted approaches.

There is a need for alternative methods to replace, reduce and refine (3R) animal experimentation. Combining experimental data from high-throughput in vitro studies with in silico modeling is a promising approach to unravel the effect of chemicals on living cells and to gain a better understanding of…

This thesis advances our understanding of lipid uptake, a vital first step in lipid metabolism, by developing innovative click chemistry-based tools to study how immune cells internalize lipids.

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

The emergence of complex diseases resulting from abnormal cell-cell signaling and the spread of infectious diseases caused by pathogens are significant threats to humanity. Unraveling the dynamic mechanisms underlying cell-cell signaling and infectious disease spreading is crucial for effective disease…

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

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.

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

Het primaire doel van de leerstoel is het uitvoeren en bevorderen van wetenschappelijk onderzoek naar de rol van het militaire instrument in hedendaagse conflicten en het verhogen van de kennis daarover in de Nederlandse maatschappij.

Aspergillus niger is an important industrial producer of organic acids and enzymes producing large amounts of spent fungal biomass.

Traditional drug discovery approaches have been hampered by (in vitro) cell-culture models that poorly represent the situation in the human body.

In de specialisatie War and Peace Studies, onderdeel van MSc Crisis and Security Management, krijg je een grondig inzicht in de geschiedenis, theorieën en de huidige en toekomstige beleidsuitdagingen met betrekking tot oorlog, oorlogsvoering en de multidimensionale bevordering van vrede.

This dissertation aims to advance understanding of amoeboid single cell migration under the influence of changing physicochemical environmental properties. The particular focus is on the relatively unknown influence of differing physical properties in the extracellular environment, such as the migratory…

Acute cardiovascular syndromes, including myocardial infarction or stroke, are the principal cause of death in the Western society. The main underlying pathology of cardiovascular diseases is atherosclerosis, which is caused by the accumulation of lipids and inflammatory cells in the vessel wall, in…

There is an urgent need for more physiologically relevant cell culture methods to guide compound selection in pre-clinical stages of the drug development pipeline.

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

In this thesis, we have studied cell images from two types of cells, including pollen grains and the immune cells, neutrophils. These images are captured using a bright field microscope and a confocal microscope.

The bacterial cell wall is a nearly universal structure that offers protection and gives the cell its shape. However, environmental stressors, such as cell wall-targeting antibiotics and hyperosmotic conditions, can induce bacteria to shift to a wall-deficient state. It is unknown whether the lack of…

De onderzoeksgroep Oorlog, Vrede en Rechtvaardigheid (WPJ) richt zich op de complexe vraagstukken van mondiale conflicten, vrede en rechtvaardigheid, waarbij onderwijskwaliteit een kernfunctie is. Theorie en praktijk komen hier samen, wat een dynamische leeromgeving creëert voor zowel stafleden als…

De onderzoeksgroep War, Peace and Justice onderzoekt de samenhang tussen oorlog, vrede en gerechtigheid. Met een multidisciplinaire aanpak brengen onderzoekers en praktijkdeskundigen nieuwe inzichten in conflict, duurzame vrede en mensenrechten, met bijzondere aandacht voor gender en veiligheid.

CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that human macrophages can be induced to exert direct anti-tumor activity against osteosarcoma cells. Our observation that the induction of macrophage anti-tumor activity by L-MTP-PE required IFN-gamma may be of relevance for the optimization of L-MTP-PE therapy in…

Wiskunde en Natuurwetenschappen, Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research (LACDR)

In order to gain a better insight into the basis of the rapid jasmonic acid (JA)-mediated stress response, an integrated approach using a targeted high-resolution mass spectrometry-based (HRMS) platform, was conducted to monitor the metabolism of JA using the model system of cell suspension cultures…

Bas Rietjens en zijn collega's onderzochten de oorlog tussen Rusland en Oekraïne en onderzochten deze veelvoud aan facetten en hun onderlinge verbanden.

This thesis describes the design and synthesis of fragments of various cell wall carbohydrates of the Streptococcus species, including the branched Group B-specific antigen (GBC) of Group B Streptococcus, glycerol phosphate (GroP) modified group A carbohydrate (GAC), and the O-acetylated type 1 capsular…

Streptomyces are multicellular, Gram-positive bacteria in the phylum of actinobacteria which produce a high amount of bioactive natural products of which the expression is tightly coordinated with the life cycle.

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

Aan de hand van een reeks case studies in Irak, Moldavië en Servië gedurende het post-Koude Oorlogstijdperk, onderzoekt dit boek asymmetrische conflicten waarbij de strijdende partijen een grote ongelijkheid in machtsposities vertonen.

Promotores: Prof.dr. G.F.A. Kersten, W. Jiskoot, Co-promotor: J-P. Amorij

Synthetic hydrogels that mimic the natural extracellular matrix in the biophysical and biochemical cues it provides to cells are in high demand, however the cell phenotypes as they are observed in vivo in numerous cases have yet to be attained.

Cytotoxic T-cells (CTLs) are involved in the clearance of viruses and killing of tumor cells.

Promotor: C.A.J. Knibbe, Co-promotor: J.J. Boelens, R.G.M. Bredius

Promotor: Prof.dr. R. Verpoorte, Co-Promotores: N.R. Mustafa, A.E. Schulte

Promotie

Wiskunde en Natuurwetenschappen, Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research (LACDR)

Schuurman onderzoekt hoe Rusland zijn geheime operaties tegen Europese landen laat escaleren.

Light-Harvesting Complex II (LHCII) is responsible for light absorption and excitation energy transfer in plants and photosynthetic algae, while in high light it undergoes conformational changes by which it quenches excitations to prevent photodamage.