The spindle-assembly checkpoint (SAC) is a safety mechanism which secures accurate chromosome segregation during mitosis.

Plant-microbe interaction resulted in different physio/chemical responses by host plant and interacting rhizobacteria.

Promotor: A. Kros

Promotor: H.S. Overkleeft, Co-promotor: M. van der Stelt

In this thesis, bioorthogonal chemistry is combined with correlative light-electron microscopy to selectively label and study pathogenic intracellular bacteria within the host immune cell.

Diacylglycerol lipases (DAGLα and DAGLβ) are responsible for the biosynthesis of the endocannabinoid 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) in the brain and peripheral tissues. Selective DAGLβ inhibitors have been proposed as a potential treatment for inflammatory diseases with reduced potential for central…

Curved single crystals provide variable, but well-defined surface structures.

Promotor: M.T.M. Koper, Co-Promotor: L.B.F. Juurlink

A large diversity of exoplanetary systems has been found, but it is still unclear what drives this diversity.

Promotor: A. Kros

In this thesis, we present new laboratory data of interstellar dust analogues.

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.

Bicarbonate buffer is largely found in nature due to its ability to regulate pH variations around neutral values. As the pH changes, so does the speciation of the buffer.

Large areas of space are filled by molecular clouds that consist of gas and dust grains that are the remnants of dead stars. When these clouds start collapsing, the decreasing temperature and increasing density cause gas particles to start accreting onto dust grain surfaces.

Lysosomal acid glucosylceramidase (GBA1) is a lysosomal enzyme that degrades glucolipids with its main substrate being glucosylceramide (GlcCer). Defects in the GBA1 gene lead to glycosphingolipidosis Gaucher disease (GD), in which the hydrolysis of GlcCer is impaired and therefore, it accumulates in…

Carbonaceous asteroids preserve a record of early solar system processes, where minerals and organic molecules, like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), offer clues to planetary evolution and prebiotic chemistry.

The long-held desire - to link structure directly to function and to explain molecular mechanisms based on basic chemical or physical principles - is finally coming closer, satisfying not only our scientific curiosity but also offering new solutions to the many challenges in the field of health, energy…

Promotor: Prof.dr. B. van de Water

Parkinson's disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disease in the world. One of its symptoms is the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta.

Every organisms in the tree of life faces the same challenge: the length of its DNA exceeds the volume of the cell it needs to fit in. Several strategies have evolved to solve this problem, one of them being the expression of proteins that bind and organize the DNA.

Promotor: Prof.dr. M. Ubbink

Organic amendments applied to agricultural fields can partially offset our carbon emissions to the atmosphere and improve the resilience of agriculture to the effects of climate change. Driving these benefits, however, are complex and poorly understood interactions between organic amendment properties,…

Promotor: P.J.J. Hooykaas, Co-Promotor: E.J. van der Zaal

Promotor: B. van de Water

The investigations described in this thesis lay out strategies aimed at advancing antibiotic research and development. The examples presented revolve around two main approaches: understanding drug-target interactions and target identification.

Bacterial chemosensory arrays are protein assemblies that are the key structural and functional component for motile bacteria to sense their internal or environmental chemical signals.

Promotor: Prof.dr. J.P. Abrahams, Prof.dr. M. van Heel

Promotor: Jaap Brouwer, Co-promotor: Remus Th. Dame

Stars like the sun are born in large molecular clouds existing from gas and dust. During the formation process, the chemical composition of the material can be altered drastically by the changing physical conditions.

With increasing carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere and their detrimental effect on the global climate, modern society needs to push for more renewable energy sources. Storing widely accessible and abundant solar energy in chemical bonds in the form of molecular fuel via artificial photosynthesis…

Metals surfaces form a group of effective catalysts for the reaction of small molecules such as hydrogen (H2).

Solute carrier (SLC) transporters are a large and diverse class of relatively understudied transmembrane proteins.

The research aims to explore the evolutionary adaptability of enzymes and the impact of temperature on protein evolution pathways, using M. tuberculosis β-lactamase BlaC as the object of study. Enzymes inherently embody a delicate balance between activity and stability, and the acquisition of new enzymatic…

The focus of this thesis is how stars like our Sun and planets like Jupiter, Saturn, and Earth are formed.

Promotor: Prof.dr. P.G.L Klinkhamer, Co-promotor: K. Vrieling

Promotor: Prof.dr. A. Doelman, Co-promotor: V. Rottschäfer

Promotor: E. Bouwman, Co-Promotor: S. Bonnet

Streptomyces present a valuable platform for natural product discovery. Lugdunomycin is a novel angucycline-derived polyketide from Streptomyces sp QL37, with unprecedented skeleton and antimicrobial activity.

We have conducted a full spectral line survey of the 3-13 micron region of two massive protostars, AFGL 2591 and AFGL 2136, for the first time at high spectral resolution.

Several single-stranded RNA viruses make use of Xrn1-resistant RNAs in their 3’ untranslated regions of their genome RNAs in order to increase their pathogenicity.

This thesis studied in depth the energy use and CO2 emissions of the industrial sector in China.

Streptomyces are prolific producers of enzymes and secondary metabolites, including more than 50% of all clinical antibiotics. This makes them highly attractive for medical, biotechnological, and industrial purposes.

This research delves into a region of space known as the interstellar medium (ISM), which is essentially the area between the stars filled with gas and dust.

Glucocorticoids are potent anti-inflammatory drugs widely used clinically to treat various inflammatory and immune conditions. However, two main clinical problems limit their use. GCs trigger severe side effects and they induce acquired glucocorticoid resistance, especially during chronic systemic treatment…

Planets are formed in disks of gas and dust around young stars.

Carbohydrates, or sugars, are the most diverse and most abundant biomolecules known. However, the isolation of carbohydrate samples in sufficient amounts and purity is often impractical or even impossible, so the chemical synthesis of glycosides becomes relevant. The glycosylation reaction, in which…

The four possible segments A, T, C and G that link together to form DNA molecules, and with their ordering encode genetic information, are not only different in name, but also in their physical and chemical properties.

Membrane fusion is a vital process in living organisms and is mediated by zipper-like proteins.

Promotor: J.G.E.M. Fraaije, Co-Promotor: A. Kros

Protein–protein complexes are formed via transient states called encounter complexes that greatly influence the formation of the stereospecific complex.