Promotor: G.R. de Snoo

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.

Complex Organic Molecules (COMs) have been detected in objects across different stages of stellar evolution.

Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is an important bulk chemical that is used in various industrial processes. More than 95% of the H2O2 used in industry is made via the anthraquinone process during which a large amount of energy is going to waste.

The confinement of molecular catalysts in metal-organic frameworks has the potential to lead to significant improvements in selectivity, long term activity and catalyst stability.

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,…

Understanding how chemical complexity emerges during star formation requires connecting molecular material preserved in interstellar ices with that observed in the gas phase after protostellar heating begins.

In this Ph.D. thesis we study the interaction of low energy electrons with thin materials, namely layered materials (graphene, hexagonal boron nitride, molybdenum disulfide) and organic films. At these low energies the quantum mechanical wavelength of the electron wave function is in the order of a…

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.

An objective of this research was to achieve direct, well-defined and non-rate-limiting electron transfer between respiratory enzymes and the electrode surface by means of 'Q-wires'.

Less than 1 in 10 drug candidates that enter phase 1 clinical trials actually gets approved for human use.

This thesis is largely an experimental study on the formation of solid-state simple and complex organic molecules in the H2O-rich and CO-rich ice phases of dense interstellar clouds and dark cores.

Carbohydrates, alongside proteins and nucleic acids, constitute a crucial and versatile family of biomolecules present in all life forms. They manifest as monosaccharides, oligosaccharides, and polysaccharides, covalently bonded to proteins and fats. Carbohydrates are integral to plant and arthropod…

This thesis systematically studies the physicochemical properties of non-planar, propeller-shaped, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The synthesis of several so-called propellerenes is described on a gram scale, using optimized procedures aimed at using less hazardous reagents and reducing the amount…

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…

Promotor: H.V.J. Linnartz

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

Promotor: G.A. van der Marel, Co-promotor: J.D.C. Codée

This thesis describes the synthesis and biochemical evaluation of a variety of cyclophellitol based activity-based probes and inhibitors targeting various endo- and exo-acting retaining glycosidases. In the last two decades a variety of probes and inhibitors for (hemi)cellulose degrading enzymes have…

This thesis aims to investigate the effect of tripartite interaction between microbial inoculants, the plant, and herbivore insects on the rhizosphere microbiome and volatilome. We investigated the rhizosphere microbiome and volatilome of tomato plants exposed to insect herbivory and/or inoculated with…

This dissertation presents a new perspective on the life, work and character of the Dutch physical chemist Jacobus Henricus van ’t Hoff, first recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, and one of the most important and colourful scientists in Dutch history. The image of Van ’t Hoff that emerges from…

Promotor: Prof.dr. G.P. van Wezel

Promotores: H.S. Overkleeft, G.A. van der Marel, Co-Promotor: R.G. Boot

Large parts of the research described in this Thesis aims at the development of oligopeptide-masked toxins and their in situ immunoproteasome-mediated activation.

In this thesis, the discovery and optimization is described of chemical tools to study the N-acylethanolamine (NAE) biosynthetic pathway.

This Thesis describes the synthesis of D-alanylated ribitol-based wall teichoic acids from S. aureus to probe their interaction with immune-binding partners.

The glycosylation reaction is a pivotal reaction in creating new and complex oligosaccharides.

Sphingolipids are important membrane compounds with a variety of functions. In mammalian cells, different enzymes are involved in the metabolism of sphingolipids, but interruption of this metabolism process leads to different diseases.

Glycosidases are essential in fundamental biological processes and are responsible for the degradation of most (oligo)saccharides, glycolipids and glycoproteins.

Organic molecules in interstellar space are important as they influence the structure of galaxies and star formations. Studying catalytic processes in space allows us to understand how molecular species are formed and chemically evolved in the interstellar medium and solar system objects.

The work in this thesis has been focused on two subjects. The first is the assembly of alginate oligosaccharides and the generation of building blocks for the enzymatic synthesis of alginate, and the second is the total synthesis of large fragments of the zwitterionic SP1 polysaccharide.

To this day, all cyclophellitol-based inhibitors and ABPs have been close analogues of their natural substrate counterparts. As a result, these probes showed high selectivity towards their target glycosidases.

Promotores: Prof.dr. T.H.W. Bäck, Prof.dr. M. Bongards (Cologne University)

This thesis examines the link between simple molecules and the underlying structure and chemistry within protoplanetary disks - the birthplaces of planets.

Antibiotic resistance, caused by widespread use of antibiotics, leads to bacterial infections that are difficult, if not impossible, to treat and is a major worldwide health concern.

Promotor: E. F. van Dishoeck, Co-promotor: C. Walsh

Design and synthesis of two 3-substituted swainsonine derivatives with the aim to improve the potency and selectivity towards Golgi alpha-mannosidase II.

The thesis describes the development, synthesis and biological evaluation of several proteasome inhibitor designs. Mainly, this work focusses on designing proteasome inhibitors that selectively inhibit the immunoproteasome, while leaving the constitutive proteasome mostly, if not completely, untouch…

Thesis focused on uncovering the underlying mechanisms of the lysosomal storage disorders Gaucher's disease using chemical tools, biochemical assays and lipidomics.

The chemical synthesis of inhibitors and probes targeting endo-glycosidases.

Synthetic methodlogy is described, aiding in the synthetic preparation of putative inhibitors of retaining and inverting glycosidases and glycosyl transferases. All constructs are cyclophellitol-based cyclitols.

Het proefschrift omschrijft de chemische synthese van fenolische glycolipiden van verschillende mycobacteriën met het doel om deze te kunnen gebruiken voor immunologisch onderzoek.

In this thesis the combinatorial use of bioorthogonal labelling and Electron Microscopy (EM)-based imaging techniques is explored to enable observations of specific molecular targets in their ultrastructural context within the cell.

Afscheidscollege

This thesis describes the development of a variety of mannosylated conjugates. Antigen presenting cells bear mannoside recognizing receptors that actively transport antigen into the cell. This thesis exploits this feature for the development of improved vaccines.

Promotor: H.S. Overkleeft, Co-Promotor: B.I. Florea

This thesis describes research aimed at discovering inhibitors selective for either of the two endoplasmic reticulum α-glucosidases, ER-I and ER-II, with the overarching goal of discovering new antiviral agents to treat viruses that rely on host N-glycosylation for proliferation.

Climate change is a challenge for both current and future generations. New biological resources have to be developed in order to meet the demand for energy as well as the demand for food.

In order to be able to develop effective medicine and treatments to prevent or cure autoimmune diseases or cancer we need to understand the mechanisms how they arise and what drives their course.Unravelling the fundamental molecular mechanisms influencing the onset and course of diseases such as allergies,…