Vidi 2021

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Changing minds by reshaping memories

Dr. V.A. van Ast, University of Amsterdam

A memory from the past brings up emotions in the present. However, the evoked emotions by memories can be changed – either for better or for worse – by the simple act of remembering. This forms the basis of psychotherapy. But why does remembering make some evoked emotions worse, and others better? This question determines whether “confronting the past” – a common approach in psychotherapy – will actually be effective. The researchers will unravel how the act of remembering can modify emotions evoked by past memories, and reveal how this memory flexibility can be harnessed to alleviate psychological disorders.

Finding network structure beyond the spectrum: new frontiers and new methods

Dr. A. Abiad Monge, Eindhoven University of Technology

This project seeks to deduce structural properties of a graph from the graph spectrum. Properties such as connectedness, diameter and regularity, are known to be related to the spectrum of a graph. Nevertheless, for most relevant graph structures the problem remains open, and the existing spectral tools are not sufficient, indicating that genuinely new methods are needed. We tackle this important challenge by strengthening and unifying spectral methods and combining them with tools from combinatorial optimization, group theory and discrete potential theory.

The suction cups of the cuttlefish revealed

Dr. G.J. Amador, Wageningen University

In less time than the blink of an eye, a cuttlefish sticks to its prey using soft, muscular tentacles lined with many small suction cups. By investigating how these animals attach quickly and reversibly to various objects and surfaces, researchers will learn how to develop better synthetic grippers for applications in soft robotics and agriculture, as well as contribute to understanding their evolution.

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Investigating Metabolic And Genetic Electrolyte disturbances in THE KIDNEY (IMAGE-the-KIDNEY)

Dr. J.H.F. de Baaij, Radboudumc, Department of Physiology

Patients with type 2 diabetes and patients with rare DNA mutations develop magnesium deficiencies because they lose too much magnesium in the urine. This research will develop of new kidney cells models and imaging methods to measure magnesium reabsorption in cells and animals. These innovative approaches will allow to increase our understanding of the disease and will allow to test new therapeutics.

The odd one out: What we may learn from entrepreneurs with a physical or cognitive impairment

Dr. R.M. Bakker, Erasmus University Rotterdam

The inclusion of individuals with a physical or cognitive impairment is an important societal concern. We often think of such impairments in terms of their negative consequences. What if there were positive implications too? Consider, for example, the resilience of someone having had to overcome a disabling disease or impairment. Through a series of (field) experiments, this research will examine if smart interventions may serve to attenuate the negative stigma that surrounds people with disabilities, and thereby offer opportunities for emancipation and business creation.

Under pressure: studying the causes and consequences of societal threats

Dr. B.N. Bakker, University of Amsterdam

With a pandemic, climate change, and terrorist attacks, we have seen threats that could have, or will in the future, fundamentally alter our way of life. The perceptions of threat can disrupt society as threat fuels protest, support for anti-democratic policies, and even leads to violence. In this project, the researchers will study how people perceive and regulate threats and adopt political attitudes and behaviours to counter these threats. The project will inform citizens how to deal with the threats of the 21st century and prevent threats from disrupting society.

Outside of genes in epilepsy

Dr. T.S.Barakat, Erasmus MC

Severe epilepsy is often caused by gene mutations. In most patients, the genetic cause cannot be identified. Here, we will focus on the non-coding genome, to find alterations that might lead to epilepsy, located outside protein-coding genes. Mutations in such regulatory elements are known to cause disease, but have not been studied in epilepsy. We will change this, using novel technology and stem cell disease modelling. This will increase our knowledge on how epilepsy originates, will lead to new diagnostics and might on the long term lead to novel therapies.

How positive interactions between plants can help fight climate change

Dr. K.E. Barry, Utrecht University

Grasslands are a cornerstone ecosystem in Western Europe yet are being lost globally at an alarming rate. Climate change requires urgent solutions that restore the resilience of these grasslands. I propose that restoring positive interactions between plant species in grasslands will increase their potential to adapt to and mitigate future climate change. I plan to make this nature-based climate solution a reality by uncovering the positive plant actors and examining the consequences of seeding them into former farms.

Sustainable learning of Artificial Intelligence from large-scale noisy data

Dr. K. Batselier, Delft University of Technology

Computer models play an essential role in modern society. Learning models from data is not sustainable due to the ever-growing requirement of computational power. I will develop ground breaking methods that will learning model from data much faster and with a much smaller carbon footprint than currently needed.

COMPOSE: combined imaging for ocular oncology

Dr. J.W.M. Beenakker, LUMC, Ophthalmology, Radiology and Radiotherapy

In this research new technologies will be developed to combine photographs of the inside of the eye with three-dimensional imaging, as is used for radiotherapy planning. To achieve this combined image, the researchers will develop methods to correct for the aberrations introduced by the eye’s optics. By combining these imaging techniques, the researchers aim to further improve therapy for ocular oncology so patients preserve more visual function after therapy.

Balls-to-the-wall: Keeping hydrogen burning with ice bullets

Dr. Ir. M. van Berkel, Dutch Institute for Fundamental Energy Research (DIFFER)

Nuclear fusion reactors produce large amounts of energy. To do this, hydrogen gas in the reactor is heated to 150 million °C. If no new hydrogen fuel is added the fusion reaction stops by itself. The only way to keep the process going is to shoot frozen (–260 °C) hydrogen pellets into the reactor at huge speed. The replenished fuel must reach the place in the reactor where fusion takes place before a pellet completely evaporates. Dr. van Berkel will develop an entirely new control approach to manage this process.

High ambitions, (s)low implementation? The politics of tracking adaptation to climate change

Dr. G.R. Biesbroek, Wageningen University

Adapting to the impacts of climate change is necessary and increasingly urgent. Governments have formulated ambitious goals, but how do we know if they actually deliver on the promises? How do we know if and when additional measures are needed? Monitoring and evaluation of climate change adaptation actions is important to answer these questions but hardly takes place in practice. In this project, the key political mechanisms that hamper the process of designing and executing evaluation are analysed, and politically sensitive interventions are developed to break through these challenges.

NUANCES: A novel approach to predict aging and degradation of historical oil paintings

Dr. E. Bosco, Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e)

Oil paintings age with time. This is due to complex physical and chemical processes that lead to changes in the visual appearance and affect the integrity and longevity of the artworks. My goal is to quantitatively predict the future conditions and the risk of degradation of historical oil paintings. This is done by developing a novel integrated, computational-experimental research strategy. The fundamental knowledge generated in this project supports informed conservation decisions and preventive conservation policies for museum collections.

Safeguarding Journalism’s Future in the Digital Age

Dr. M. Boukes, University of Amsterdam

The future of independent high-quality journalism is at stake. The fragmenting digital media landscape has drastically reduced the revenues of journalistic organizations; simultaneously, an atmosphere of distrust has been fostered regarding the “mainstream” news media. This project investigates the causes, consequences, and solutions for the declining trust in journalism as well as the public’s reduced willingness to pay for its news. We examine these processes on the micro- (individual citizens), meso- (type of news media) and macro-level (differences between countries). The findings of this project contribute to the preservation of journalism’s crucial role in our democratic society.

Can disadvantaged children excel in school if others think they can’t?

Dr. E. Brummelman, University of Amsterdam

Can children from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds excel in school if others think they can’t? This project examines why children from disadvantaged backgrounds often develop negative views of themselves and their abilities, and how these negative self-views can perpetuate socioeconomic disparities in educational achievement and mental health. To do so, this project will focus on the subtle transactions between children and their teachers. This will contribute to new insights that will help remedy inequality, so that all children, regardless of their background, can develop their skills and realize their full potential.

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How and why cells split in two?

Dr. A. Chaigne, University of Utrecht.

When an animal develops, cells divide to increase the size of the organism. The textbook description of cell division ends with two cells completely separated from each other. However, I discovered that stem cells remain connected via a small tube, called a bridge, filled with proteins. The dismantlement of bridges is crucial to cell fate. Yet, we do not know much about what bridges do and how they are maintained or destroyed. With this project, I will elucidate the molecular mechanisms controlling bridge formation and dismantlement and how the switch between bridge maintenance and destruction controls cell fate transitions.

Sequence the abnormality

Dr. Miao-Ping Chien, Erasmus MC

Tumors change over time. Abnormalities in chromosomes are a main cause for these progressive changes in the nature and composition of cells that make up a tumor. These changes can lead to therapy resistance in for instance glioblastoma, the deadliest brain cancer. Biophysicists develop a technology to identify rare cancer cells bearing severe chromosomal abnormalities and to study these cells at unprecedented resolution. They investigate the causes and consequences of abnormal chromosomes in glioblastoma and aim to generate information that can lead to improved treatment for glioblastoma.

Moire materials from one-dimensional van der Waals heterostructures

Dr. S. Conesa-Boj, Delft University of Technology

Van der Waals materials are most peculiar, since they keep functioning even when stripped bare-bones down to layers with single-atomic thickness. In the same way as with humble Lego bricks one can assemble monumental constructions, van der Waals materials can also be combined such than novel unexpected properties emerge, such as electrical currents that can flow indefinitely. This research will design novel classes of van der Waals materials based on a one-dimensional, pillar-like configuration suitable for building blocks of nanometer-sized electronic circuits and ultra-secure quantum communications and study them with atomic resolution using electron-based microscopes.

Achieving animate properties with odd robotic matter

Dr. C. Coulais, Institute of Physics, University of Amsterdam

Can we create materials that can autonomously move and perform tasks even in unpredictable environments? This research will introduce a novel type of robotic materials that are materials made of robots instead of atoms, and which will be capable of autonomously rolling, crawling and swimming in complex terrains.

Cannabis: the highs and lows for brain health

Dr. J. Cousijn, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Department of Psychology, Education & Child Studies

Cannabis has two faces. One that helps users feel better and one that actually causes problems. This research teaches us how this is possible. In medical and non-medical users from different countries, we investigate which characteristics of users and their environment can best tell us who will experience which highs and low.

E‑ciently simulating stochastic processes in curved spaces

Dr. Ir. S.G. Cox, Amsterdam University

Stochastic differential equations in curved spaces are key models in applications ranging from cell biology to image- and speech recognition. As the solution to such equations cannot be given explicitly, practitioners rely on various approximation methods. However, for many of these approximation methods it is unknown whether they converge to the true solution, and if so, how fast. My goal is to establish convergence (rates) for methods that are currently used in practice, as well as to develop new methods that are either more efficient, or can be applied to a larger class of problems.

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External control over your internal focus

Dr. F. van Ede, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Department of Experimental and Applied Psychology

The human brain acts as the interface between the inner (mental) and the outer (physical) worlds. In this project, the researchers will uncover how external visual sensations automatically draw attention to matching internal representations held in visual working memory, and how such externally driven selective memory activation may be utilised to experimentally manipulate the formation of long-term memory traces. 

Living on the edge: unravelling the secrets of selenium hyperaccumulator plants

Dr. A van der Ent, Wageningen University & Research

Few plant species are capable of accumulating exceptionally high concentrations of selenium, but the mechanistic basis of this fascinating natural phenomenon is largely unknown. The aim of this research is to resolve and comprehend, the ecology, physiology, and molecular biology of selenium hyperaccumulation, as a recent adaptation of plants to a highly selective environment. This information may be used in the future to improve the selenium status in crops to ultimately address selenium deficiency in humans.

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Foams for Catalytic Upcycling of Plastics (FoCUs)

Dr. Ir., J.A., Faria Albanese, University of Twente

Plastics are an essential part of modern society. Unfortunately, only a small fraction of these materials is recycled (9%) the rest is incinerated (12%) and released to the environment (79%). While conventional recycling can be increased, the inferior properties of the recycled materials, relative to virgin plastics, hinders economic profitability. The FOCUS project tackles this issue by developing new catalytic materials and processes that can “upcycle” plastics into added value chemicals.

Needle-free injections: ultrafast microjets for minimal skin damage

Dr. ir. D. Fernandez Rivas, University of Twente

Injecting without needles is challenging because all skins are different. The study of fast travelling tiny droplets impacting on soft substrates will give researchers knowledge to inject without harming the skin. It will also enable the determination of skin properties for vaccinations, cosmetics, and other uses, where needles are feared.

What does religion mean for integration? The role of religious reasoning

Prof. Dr. F. Fleischmann, University of Amsterdam

Most immigrants to Europe are more religious than non-migrants and religion is frequently conceived of as a barrier to immigrant integration in predominantly secular societies. Previous research on the relationship between religiosity and immigrant integration has yielded inconclusive results, but was limited to religious practices and the subjective importance of religion. Differences in how individuals reason about religion have not yet been systematically considered. This project examines literal vs. symbolic approaches to religion as additional explanation of immigrant integration and aims to explain individual and group differences in religious reasoning between three religious minority groups in the Netherlands.

Lettercraft and epistolary performance in early medieval Europe

Dr. R. Flierman, Utrecht University

How did medieval societies use the letter and who were among its users? This project approaches the medieval letter as a performative medium that was read out aloud, translated and circulated in public. It explores how the letter was thus able to establish lines of communication between diverse social groups and across political boundaries and language-barriers, making it an essential tool for conflict-resolution and consensus-building in a world with rudimentary infrastructure and limited public order.

Saving reality with exotic causality

Dr. S.M. Friederich, University of Groningen, Faculty of Philosophy and University College Groningen

Quantum theory is the framework for all modern physics. As such, it is extremely successful. But that success is puzzling because quantum theory seems in tension with an idea that science otherwise takes for granted: that there is a single objective reality. This research sets out to fulfil a hope of Einstein: to develop an interpretation of quantum theory as an unproblematic probabilistic theory of a single reality. Such an interpretation will likely entail some exotic form of causality, either unmediated action at a distance, or perhaps even causal influences backwards in time.

Switching Gears: Mechanisms that drive Transmission and Evolution of Mosquito-borne Viruses

Dr. Ir. J.J. Fros, Wageningen University and Research

Mosquito-borne viruses continuously switch replication between humans and mosquitoes. These viruses have evolved genetic characteristics that are optimal for replication in vertebrate hosts, but suboptimal for replication in mosquitoes. This project will elucidate the molecular mechanisms in mosquitoes that govern the low-level, but persistent replication of the relatively poorly adapted mosquito-borne viruses. The findings will extend our knowledge on virus evolution and invertebrate immunity against viruses, which can strengthen the design of viruses with a host/mosquito-specific replicative phenotype and spark novel ways to intervene with mosquito-borne virus transmission cycles.

The enigmatic triangle of cluster headache, sleep and the biological clock

Dr. R. Fronczek, Leiden University Medical Centre

People with cluster headache suffer from such excruciating pain attacks that the disease has often been called ‘suicide headache’. As the attacks often strike during sleep, patients desperately beg for normal night-rest. This inquiry clarifies how cluster headache attacks are related to sleep and the biological clock; and whether two therapies that specifically work on this can give people with cluster headache a good night’s sleep again.

Universal invariants in Calabi–Yau geometry

Dr. L. Fu, Radboud University

As an attempt to reconcile the theoretic incoherence between Quantum Mechanics and Einstein’s General Relativity, certain physicists model our universe as a 10-dimensional geometric object with 4 empirically observable dimensions consisting of space and time, together with 6 additional “hidden” dimensions that are controlled by the so-call Calabi–Yau threefolds in mathematics. This project proposes to study such Calabi–Yau geometric objects in arbitrary dimensions, from the point of view of universal invariants in algebraic geometry.

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Impact of obesity on the start of life

Dr. R. Gaillard, Erasmus MC, Sophia Children’s  Hospital - Department of Pediatrics

Obesity of the mother, before and during pregnancy, leads to increased risks of cardiovascular diseases in their offspring. It is not known how maternal obesity increases this risk of adverse offspring health outcomes. This research examines the impact of maternal obesity on the development of the placenta and the embryo in the earliest phase of life, the subsequent effects on offspring cardiovascular health throughout the life-course and potential next steps to prevent these detrimental effects in offspring.

When metabolism attacks DNA

Dr. J. I. Garaycoechea, Hubrecht Institute

DNA carries the instructions to life but is also constantly damaged, causing mutation and disease. Sunlight and cigarette smoke are common damaging agents, but DNA is also attacked by chemicals produced by our own cells. This proposal will uncover what these chemicals are, how they change DNA and how this contributes to disease.

American foreign policy and liberalism

Dr. A.J. Gawthorpe, Leiden University, Institute for History

Historians and specialists of international politics often write about how the United States helped to build an international order based on liberal politics and economics after World War 2. But is this what American leaders actually set out to do? This project uses the methodology of intellectual history to show that the commitment of postwar American leaders to liberalism was always mixed with other concerns, like expanding American power or protecting racial inequality at home. Recognizing this makes the simple story of an American-created liberal international order insufficient for understanding either their time or ours.

Theorizing Freedom from Below

Dr. D. Gädeke, Utrecht University, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies

Most theories of freedom focus on the state of being free. But can we fully understand what freedom means without the experience of unfreedom? This project will investigate how the way in which we think about freedom changes when rethinking freedom from the perspective of people who struggled to become free.

Violence in prisons

Dr. E.F.J.C. van Ginneken, Leiden University, Institute for Criminal Law and Criminology

Why do violent prison incidents occur? This research project will answer this question by investigating the circumstances leading up to violent incidents, including the motivation of perpetrators. This project will develop and use new methods to study prison violence, with the ultimate goal to improve the safety of prisoners and staff.

Gender differences in susceptibility to cognitive conditions due to the X-chromosome

Dr. M.C. Gontan, Erasmus MC

Men and women have different chances to suffer from cognitive conditions. For example, autism has a higher frequency in men and anxiety conditions occur more in women. Because women have two X-chromosomes and men only one, women have to silence one X-chromosome. How this works is not well known and may explain some male-female differences. The researchers will investigate the silencing of the X-chromosome and hope to find an explanation for the mentioned gender differences.

Fast neurons of our cognition

Dr. N.A. Goriounova, VU Amsterdam

Our ability to think, reason, solve problems, depends on the activity of neurons in our brain. Recent studies show that our neurons can generate fast signals to process large amount of information, but the mechanisms behind this fast signalling are unknown. This research will study how specialized types of human neurons generate and maintain fast signals. By looking at gene expression in these neurons we will understand how these neurons achieve fast computation and link to cognition.

There’s something in the air! Our chemistry uncovered

Dr. J.H.B. de Groot, Radboud University

How can we explain the chemistry between us? Our sense of smell is a mysterious and delicate sense. In this project the researchers will discover the actual molecules that cause us to take over another person’s emotions like fear. How smells contribute to intimacy and safety within our romantic relationships will also be uncovered. And how strongly does (long-during) smell loss, like we seen with COVID-19, the quality of our relationships and of our own life? These are uncharted territories that are relevant now because they directly impact the life quality of people longing for more scientific knowledge and recognition.

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Identification of Targets for the Antibiotics of the Future

Dr. S.M. Hacker, Leiden University

Multi-drug resistant bacteria are important threats to the human health and are predicted to annually cause up to 10 million deaths by the year 2050. Therefore, antibiotics with novel modes-of-action are urgently needed. To efficiently identify new target proteins for antibiotics, the researchers will develop innovative compounds that strongly engage proteins through chemical bond formation. Using these compounds, they will comprehensively understand, which binding sites in pathogenic bacteria can be targeted with antibiotics. In this way, they will deliver many starting points for the development of antibiotics with novel modes-of-action.

Hydrogen Bubbles Quantified

Dr. ir. J.W. Haverkort (Delft University of Technology)

Green hydrogen can be produced through electrolysis of water. The efficiency of this process can be improved by better understanding and influencing the behaviour of bubbles generated at the electrodes. A unique new physical model describing the complex interaction between electrodes, bubbles, and flows will provide the necessary insight. After experimental validation, it will be used to design improved electrodes and the next generation of innovative, efficient, safe, and highly compact electrolysers.

Mitigating health inequity by creating inclusive Patient Reported Outcome Measures

Dr. L. Haverman, Amsterdam UMC

Patient centered care is increasingly acknowledged as fundamental to effective health care delivery. To fully understand what is important to patients, questionnaires can be used. The answers provide direct feedback for  discussion in the examination room, which, among other benefits, improves quality of life. Patients with low literacy or multiple disabilities and those who do not speak or understand Dutch, are unable to complete the questionnaires. This leads to increased health care inequity. This research focuses on developing questionnaires that can be completed by all patients, so that everyone can benefit from optimal care.

Space duster on sunlight

Dr. M.J. Heiligers, Delft University of Technology

SWEEP investigates the idea of a “shuttlebus” to clean up space debris. It picks up debris objects and transports them to a place where they no longer pose a threat to satellites. It does so in a sustainable manner using a wafer-thin mirror to “sail” on the stream of solar photons.

Do malaria parasites enhance their own transmission?

Dr. F.J.H. Hol, Radboud UMC

Unfortunately, mosquitoes are extremely good at spreading disease by biting people and transmitting parasites. However, we do not know if parasites make mosquitoes even more hungry for blood, and once in our body it is unclear how the parasite finds its way to the bloodstream. By developing new technologies, this research will unravel how interactions between mosquitoes and parasites shape malaria transmission.

Equal opportunities? Differential teaching practices as reinforcer of ethnic and socioeconomic gaps in academic adjustment

PhD, T.E. Hornstra, Utrecht University

Education is not the “great equalizer” it intends to be. There are increasing educational inequalities between students with different socio-economic and cultural backgrounds. Many students who start their educational career in primary education in a disadvantaged position are not able to catch up. This project aims to examine how primary school teachers through their everyday interactions with students reinforce these differences in the long term or how they can reduce them.

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Towards a better prediction of language skills: integrating brain, child, and parental characteristics in the first 1,001 days

Dr. C.M.M. Junge, Utrecht University, Helmholtz Institute

Not everyone develops comparable language skills. The first 1,001 days from conception onwards prove critical for language skills and brain development alike. Unknown is whether these two developmental processes are related. The YOUth cohort study follows >2,000 children’s brain development starting in pregnancy. This project assesses their full language profiles when the same children are 3‐6 years old. Next, researchers link language skills to children’s prenatal brain development and the emergence of social brain networks in infancy. Researchers also take into account child‐ and parental characteristics. This will improve interventions for children in need of speech and language therapy.

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Bad fat? Improving lipid metabolism to treat Alzheimer’s disease

Dr. R.H.N. van der Kant, Amsterdam UMC, Alzheimer Center

Genetic risk factors that increase the risk for Alzheimer’s disease have a major role in brain fat metabolism and immune function. This research will investigate how fat accumulation in the brain contributes to the development of Alzheimer’s disease, and will develop new pharmaceutical interventions that can prevent or treat the disease.

Democratizing Cloud Application Programming

Dr. A. Katsifodimos, Delft University of Technology

Every single tap on our phone or click on our laptop triggers computations taking place in the cloud, a computational infrastructure offered on demand. Only very few skilled, and hard to hire programmers can program cloud applications that operate at internet scale. This research project sets out to change this.

People management: too much of a good thing?

Prof. dr. E. Knies, Utrecht University

Work pressure, high burn-out rates, and labour shortages are highly topical health and education sector issues that put quality of public service provision under pressure. People management by managers is often presented as a solution for these important societal issues. However, might it also be part of the problem? Can well-intended people management have unintended negative effects for employee performance and well-being? This project systematically studies this dark side of people management in these sectors, provides insights into the optimal level of support for employees, and develops relevant tools to prevent the dark side from occurring.

Molecular information processing in self‐organised networks

Dr. Ir. P.A. Korevaar, Radboud University

Living matter is entirely driven by chemistry, and acts as a “chemical computer” where chemical signals are exchanged and processed to direct the spontaneous build‐up of organisms. In synthetic materials, this enables fundamentally new potential where functions – motion, growth, shape‐transformation – are directed via molecular information processing, rather than traditional electronics. The researchers will demonstrate this principle in networks of self‐assembling wires, which spontaneously grow, transfer chemical signals between sender and receiver agents and thereby – via a cascade of input‐output steps – direct the self‐organization of patterns. This might lead to e.g. neuromorphic sensors or self‐adapting lab‐on‐a‐chip applications.

Network calculus

Dr. I. Kryven, Utrecht University

Calculus is a powerful tool in mathematics, allowing scientists to write and solve equations with functions as unknowns. Mathematicians will develop a theory that for the first time will allow the usage of calculus for networks too. The theory will be of great importance to scientists wanting to understand how networks evolve in time.

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Visualizing the dynamics of gene regulation

Dr. T.L. Lenstra, Netherlands Cancer Institute

Transcription factors turn on genes at the correct moment in the correct cell type. In this study, we will apply advanced microscopy techniques to visualize individual transcription factor molecules inside cells, while simultaneously measuring when genes are activated. The results will reveal how transient transcription factor binding to DNA regulates the dynamics of gene expression.

Do corporate boardroom quotas impact gender equality beyond leadership?

Dr. Z. Lippényi, University of Groningen

A growing number of European countries adopt corporate boardroom quota’s to ensure a more equal representation of women in leadership positions. It is unknown in what ways quota’s impact inequality in earnings and job careers between men and women beyond the leadership of large enterprises. This research project creates a new data infrastructure linking administrative data and surveys to map out multiple pathways how the impact of quota’s trickle down within organizations and spill over within the business community.

Computational models to improve regenerative heart valve prostheses

Dr. ir. S. Loerakker, Eindhoven University of Technology

In the future, it may be possible to replace diseased heart valves with biodegradable valves that transform inside the human body into living, healthy heart valves. So far, however, this regenerative process has often resulted in unpredictable and variable outcomes. The goal of this project is to develop computational models to understand and predict heart valve regeneration, to ultimately calculate what the design criteria for a biodegradable heart valve prosthesis are to develop into a living, healthy, and functional heart valve.

How does oxygen allow to unravel the atmospheric carbon dioxide signal?

Dr. I.T. Luijkx, Wageningen University

The climate changes due to increasing amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) in our atmosphere. This research will use atmospheric measurements of oxygen to better understand how much of the measured CO2 signals in north-west Europe are coming from fossil fuel combustion and how much from the biosphere. This gives important new information necessary to know how much temperature will increase in the future. This is highly relevant during this time of energy transition to reach the goals of the Paris agreement.

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Aging in place: are the healthcare reforms working?

Dr. J.L. MacNeil Vroomen, Amsterdam UMC, Internal Medicine-Geriatrics

European countries spend billions on long-term care for their aging population. Many have implemented reforms to keep future care affordable, often with a focus on staying at home longer. Yet nobody has evaluated if these reforms are actually reducing costs nor – even more importantly – if they work for the people receiving care and the family/friends who increasingly support them. This research develops a method to evaluate aging in place, compare countries and recommend to countries which reforms work best for all involved.

Word formation in polysynthetic languages

Dr. M. Mazzoli, University of Groningen

Polysynthetic languages can build very complex words which translate as entire sentences in languages like English and Dutch. Little is known about how these languages form new complex words based on established language patterns. This project surveys three polysynthetic languages, to check whether the productivity of word formation patterns is related to their levels of activation in language processing. Most polysynthetic languages are currently endangered. Knowledge about polysynthetic word formation will be instrumental in producing pedagogical resources to foster language learning, in collaboration with the communities in which fieldwork is conducted.

Tapping the potential of plant chemistry through computation

Dr. M.H. Medema, Wageningen University & Research

Plants produce a great diversity of valuable compounds, which they use to defend themselves against pathogens and herbivores, and to recruit beneficial microorganisms. These molecules constitute a key source of medicines and crop protection agents for society. The ability to produce these molecules is encoded in specific sets of genes. By designing smart computer algorithms, the researchers aim to identify such genes and their relationships, in order to discover new biosynthetic pathways, link them to their metabolic products and analyse their evolution across plant species.

mRNA nanotechnology for therapeutically rebalancing the immune system in disease

Dr. R. van der Meel, Eindhoven University of Technology

Carefully designed immunotherapy is an innovative strategy to effectively treat disease. This project proposes a new concept whereby nanoparticles composed of natural building blocks are generated to deliver mRNA drugs to specific immune cell populations. Using this approach, the immune response can be stimulated to precisely and actively attack tumors. The current program will yield new nanotechnology for precision immunotherapy.

When colorectal cancer gets nervous

Dr. V. Melotte, MUMC – Pathologie

Even though it is currently well established that neurons within the colorectal tumor-microenvironment negatively impact patients prognosis, knowledge regarding their contribution to colorectal carcinogenesis remains a black box. In this project I will perform an in-depth characterization of these tumor-associated-neurons by identifying their origin and molecular profile. Moreover I will investigate how these neurons regulate colorectal cancer hallmarks.

Solving Continuous Problems with Guarantees

Ass. Prof. T. Miltzow, Utrecht University

We will study so‐called ER‐complete problems. Those are algorithmic problems that are continuous and whose parts interact in a highly complex and non‐linear fashion. This makes those algorithmic problems much more challenging than NP‐complete problems. The algorithmic landscape on ER‐complete problems is split into practical methods without guarantees on the run time and theoretical methods without any reasonable chance of solving real life instances. We will develop methods that have run‐time guarantees and can solve at least medium sized real world instances.

Exploiting gamma-delta (gd) T cells as innovative agents of cancer immunotherapy

Dr. N.F. de Miranda, Leiden University Medical Center

Cancer immunotherapy makes use of cells or molecules from our immune system to fight cancer. It is a very successful strategy to treat cancer but not yet effective in the majority of cancer patients. To extend the benefit of cancer immunotherapy to more patients new immunotherapeutic approaches must be developed. This project aims at exploring the potential of a type of immune cell (gamma delta (gd) T cell) that shows great promise as a novel immunotherapeutic agent.

Playful Time Machines: A Study of the Mechanics, Dynamics, and Aesthetics of the Past in Video Games

Dr. A.A.A. Mol, Leiden University, Institute for the Arts in Society/Leiden University Centre for Digital Humanities

Increasingly, we experience the past not through textbooks, museum visits, or even television, but through video games like Assassin’s Creed and Battlefield. In this project a team of game and heritage researchers will undertake the first comprehensive study of how these ‘playful time machines’ reshape our relationship with the past.

Responsible Decentralized Data Architectures

Dr. H.F. Mühleisen, Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica

Private data is currently centralized into the data silos of Google and friends. There you, the data producer and rightful owner, no longer have access to or control over what happens to it. This has created all sorts of privacy nightmares in the past and needs to change. We propose a new, de-centralized data storage architecture where your data stays under your control, for example inside your phone. At the same time, limited central access to data remains possible, so you can still enjoy the same functionality as before.

Protein Dress Up gone wrong

Dr. M.P.C. Mulder, Leiden UMC

Posttranslational modification of proteins, such as for instance the attachment of the ubiquitin protein, regulates many biological cellular processes. These modifications are controlled by a complex enzymatic system, with more dan 700 players in the ubiquitin network, and disruption within these systems could lead to diseases such as cancer and neurodegeneration. Detailed insights into the mechanism behind this is however yet to be obtained, thus slowing the development of targeted medicines for treatment of these diseases. The researchers aim to develop chemical tools to finally unravel the workings of these systems paving the road towards medical treatment.

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Reconstructing networks from uncertain time-evolving data

Dr. L. Peel, Maastricht University

Data collection activities are subject to errors, including systematic and random errors. This project will develop methods to deal with uncertain time-evolving network data enabling more effective study of complex systems within and around us from our cellular biology to our social interactions.

Fano varieties: rational points and beyond

Dr. M. Pieropan, Utrecht University

How many grid cells in a circle? How fast does this number grow when we increase the circle radius? What if we require that the cells lie in a certain pattern? What if we replace the circle by a different shape? The mathematicians will develop a new framework to solve problems of this type that arise in the geometric setting of counting rational points (the grid) of bounded height (the shape) on Fano varieties (the pattern).

Intercept 1000-fold more minuscule messengers in blood to improve diagnosis

Dr. Ir. E. van der Pol, Biomedical Engineering & Physics, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC

Blood contains small messengers. These messengers contain relevant information, which are useful for early diagnosis of diseases such as cancer. These messengers, however, are hidden within the blood, which hampers their detection. To detect a sufficient number of messengers, a much faster search is essential. Therefore, in project 1E3 researchers will develop new technologies to detect these messengers 1,000-fold faster than currently possible. These ultrafast technologies will provide clinicians with a new source of information, thereby enabling earlier diagnosis of disease.

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Vulnerability in the Digital Administrative State

Professor S.H. Ranchordas, University of Groningen, Faculteit Rechtsgeleerdheid

Digital government often incorrectly assumes that citizens have access to the Internet, have average literacy and digital skills, and can exercise their rights before public bodies. However, at some point in their lives most citizens will struggle with exercising their rights before government, particularly when they are required to engage with complex digital forms. This project conceptualizes the concept of administrative vulnerability as a new form of inequality and investigates how this problem can be solved.

Unravelling the synaptic code of memory

Dr. P. Rao-Ruiz, VU Amsterdam

Memory formation and its storage requires strengthening of connections between sparsely distributed neurons that are activated at the time of learning. In this project, researchers will causally pinpoint and connect the neurobiological processes that underlie and regulate this strengthening, in order to identify the precise synaptic code of successful memory formation.

Are watersheds getting wetter or drier?

Dr. ing. R. Rietbroek, University of Twente

In a warming world, researchers expect that wetter regions become wetter while drier regions become drier. However, this doesn’t necessarily hold for all regions. This research will use satellite observations to see how atmospheric transport of moisture and river discharge are changing the water cycle and sea level. It will focus on the region around the North Sea and in the Greater Horn of Africa.

Promising algorithms for supporting decision making under uncertainty

Dr. W. Romeijnders, University of Groningen

A major uncertainty for decision makers is that it is unknown what the future will bring. However, mathematical techniques can be used to calculate optimal decisions based on trends, probability distributions and scenarios to minimize costs or risks. This can be of considerable help in decision making where major interests are at stake, but it is not feasible with the current state of science. Using a smart idea, researchers at the University of Groningen will develop promising new algorithms. These will be applied to design a hydrogen supply chain for the Northern Netherlands and to asset-liability management for pension funds.

Differences in enslavement

Dr. M. van Rossum, International Institute of Social History

This project researches how the ways in which people were enslaved (for example by war, debt or birth) influenced life under slavery and resistance to it by enslaved. The research compares the impact through personal narratives from court records from the entire early modern Dutch colonial empire in the Indonesian archipelago, Indian and Atlantic Ocean.

Nu-BHPs (Nucleoside-BHPs as new proxies for paleo-temperature and paleo-pH)

Dr. D. Rush, Royal NIOZ

Past climate reconstructions are used in modelling approaches to forecast future climate change. It is essential that the measurements of past climate are accurate. However, precisely reconstructing past atmospheric temperature is a major challenge as there are few available methods to measure this climate variable. Researchers in this project will develop organic geochemical tools to reconstruct past temperature as well as soil pH, in order to improve existing climate models and better predict future climate change.

Equilibrium shapes from nonlocal interactions

Dr. W.M. Ruszel, Universiteit van Utrecht

The understanding of surface structures of crystals plays a central role in many fields including physics, chemistry and material science. Some interatomic forces in crystals can be approximated by an interacting particle system. Many interesting physical systems have nonlocal interactions decaying polynomially including van der Waals, Coulomb and dipolar forces. In this proposal we aim at developing a mathematical microscopic theory for equilibrium shapes from nonlocal interactions.

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Towards a better Anthropocene for freshwater fish

Dr. A.M. Schipper, Radboud Institute for Biological and Environmental Sciences

The global diversity of freshwater fish species is threatened by a variety of human pressures, including global warming, land use, chemical pollution and habitat fragmentation. This project aims to analyse the cumulative impacts of these pressures and evaluate the effectiveness of large-scale conservation measures based on a new global model of freshwater fish diversity.

Teaching enzymes new tricks

Dr. S. Schmidt, University of Groningen

The pharmaceutical and chemical industries are highly polluting industries. The use of nature’s catalysts (enzymes) can play a major role in solving this problem. Yet, several traditional chemical reactions cannot be performed by existing enzymes. This project aims to expand the catalogue of enzymes and teach them new tricks to manufacture pharmaceuticals, fine chemicals, and cosmetics of our everyday life in a sustainable way.

Kidney and blood

Dr. R.K. Schneider, Erasmus MC

Our kidneys and blood are in a continuous cross-talk as kidneys filters our blood. One major open question is how this cross-talk is changed when the kidney function decreases or when blood cells become abnormal in a blood cancer. Clinical data indicate that this understanding is urgently needed as patients with reduced kidney function have an abnormal blood production and patients with blood cancer have reduced kidney function. We aim to protect the kidney from losing its function in blood cancer and to maintain a normal production of blood cells in kidney disease.

Robots at work: Bridging the gap between the robot development and workplace use

Dr. A. Sergeeva, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

Despite robots increasingly entering our work lives, we know surprisingly little about their impact on jobs. This study will explain our work is changing once robots are entering work settings to serve as partners of humans. By following over several years, how robots are developed in the lab and used “in the wild” I will reveal unexpected consequences of robots for the task, team and role dimensions of work. The findings will then be fed back to engineering labs, implementors and policymakers to ensure that future generation of robots is designed to support rather than undermine our work lives.

Balancing Mitochondria and Protein Aggregation in Alzheimer's disease

Dr. V. Sorrentino, Amsterdam UMC, Medical Biochemistry Department

During Alzheimer’s disease, mitochondria, the energy producing-units in the brain cells, produce less energy. This leads to altered protein homeostasis and the brain accumulates detrimental protein aggregates, resulting in time in memory loss and cognitive deficiency. Nowadays neurodegeneration research mainly focuses on deleting aggregates by means of antibodies, which is only possible in late states of the disease. In the current project, the researchers instead want to identify how healthy mitochondria can fight toxic protein aggregates, with the aim to reverse early signs of Alzheimer’s disease.

Inborn errors of immunity in humans suffering from severe staphylococcal infections

Dr. A.N. Spaan, University Medical Center Utrecht

Staphylococcus aureus is a bacterium that causes superficial infections in most humans. Some previously healthy individuals, however, develop a life-threatening disease upon infection. What explains the tremendous interindividual variability between humans in the severity of their infection? This project will investigate if the severe infections in previously healthy but critically ill patients is explained by inborn errors of their immunity to Staphylococcus aureus.

Game Theory Empowered by Data Science and Control Theory to Improve Metastatic Cancer Treatment

Dr. K. Stankova, Delft University of Technology

This research investigates novel game theoretic models and combines these with data science and control theory to improve standard of care in cancer treatment. With these models a physician will be able to anticipate the cancer cells’ response to the treatment and subsequently steer the eco-evolutionary dynamics of the cancer cells towards better patient outcomes. This research will in particular focus on Stage IV non-small cell lung cancer. The methodology itself will also be applicable for treatment of other diseases and in domains where we attempt to preserve or contain evolving resources (e.g., pest management, fisheries management, antibiotic resistance management).

Two-coloured laser light to control the Einstein Telescope

Dr. S. Steinlechner, Maastricht University

The Einstein Telescope uses laser light to precisely monitor the distance between two freely hanging mirrors placed several kilometres apart, to search for traces of gravitational waves that are passing by. The mirrors are made from large silicon crystals and require a specific laser colour for best sensitivity. This research shows how combining this laser light with another laser colour can control the mirrors to an extremely stable position, letting the Einstein Telescope listen to the faintest waves.

Pushing the frontier of hybridization: unlocking hidden eco-evo dynamics through Environmental DNA (eDNA)

Dr. K. Stewart, Leiden University

Invasive hybridization is a common cause of global biodiversity loss. I aim to optimize DNA collected from the environment (eDNA) as a tool to understand the causes and consequences of hybridization between native and invasive species. The knowledge gained can be used to manage invasion dynamics and mitigate future hybridization.

Targeting chromatin environment around DNA replication fork to destabilize tumor cell proliferation

Dr. N. Taneja, Erasmus Medical Center

Unregulated DNA replication can provide limitless proliferation potential to tumor cells. The mechanisms regulating DNA replication machinery are poorly understood. This research focuses on identifying the specific chromatin organization signatures during replication in cancer cells and target those to cause instability of DNA replication process in cancer cells.

Perfect perovskites and how to make them

D.S. Tao, Technical University Eindhoven

Metal halide perovskites are promising materials for efficient and low-cost solar cells. However, their stability very much depends on how they are made. The researchers will use large-scale computer simulations to understand how processing parameters influence the crystallization reactions and to propose strategies for fabricating the ultimate stable perovskites.

Exploring uncharted territory: the landscape of immune cell activity in cancer

Dr. D.S. Thommen, Netherlands Cancer Institute

Cancers resemble geographic maps where, like large cities alternating with less populated regions, infiltrating immune cells either cluster in large groups or are scattered throughout the tumor. In this study, researchers will investigate how the location of immune cells in the tumor influences their function and their activation by immunotherapy. The results will allow them to understand how tumors do or do not respond to immunotherapy and how this can be used to improve immunotherapy treatment.

Take it personally: A cognitive neuroscience approach to getting a grip on depression

Dr. M.J. van Tol, University Medical Center Groningen

Complete recovery in daily life functions is difficult to obtain after a depression. Staying focused and getting things done remains challenging for long, which puts an individual at risk for relapse. This project aims to elucidate how the brain can enter a focused mode more easily and investigates how setting important personal goals can help achieve that. This could help to recover fully and to prevent relapse.

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The internal dialogue: how our organs communicate via tiny nano-bubbles

Dr. F.J. Verweij, Utrecht University

Almost every cell in our body releases nanometer-sized extracellular vesicles (EV) that are essential for communication with other cells, located nearby or even at distant locations in our body. Yet, owing to their miniscule size, much of how these EVs behave in real life remains enigmatic. Using novel microscopy approaches and transparent fish, we will tap into this communication pathway to better understand the biology of EVs, and how they function in the healthy and diseased gut, in particular during cancer metastasis.

Beyond the boundary: smart air circulation strategies for improved light and energy use efficiency in controlled environment agriculture

Dr SRM Vialet-Chabrand, Wageningen University and Research

A well-growing crop consumes so much CO2 that the low rate of CO2 diffusion in the surrounding layer of still air compared to the consumption rate of leaves can limit photosynthesis. Until now, air CO2 enrichment in the greenhouse has been the main solution to increase the CO2 available for photosynthesis. However, efforts to have CO2-neutral greenhouses in 2040 require an alternative approach. Increasing our knowledge on how forced air circulation within a plant canopy can maintain high and homogeneous CO2 levels near the plant will help improve photosynthesis and allow high yield with less supply of CO2.

How do neurons predict the future?

Dr. M.A. Vinck, Donders Centre for Neuroscience, RU

How do brain cells predict the future? We will use multiple fine electrodes to record from large neuronal ensembles in multiple brain areas simultaneously and study how these neurons predict future motion trajectories. We will study how predictive processing results from interactions between brain areas and different cell types.

Physics-informed data-driven modelling and control of floating wind turbines

Dr. Ir. A. Viré, Delft University of Technology

Floating offshore wind energy has been identified as a key enabler in order to make Europe climate neutral by 2050. A barrier to the deployment of large floating wind farms is the level of flow unsteadiness and associated uncertainty around the rotor, whose dynamics is vastly different from that of existing bottom-mounted wind turbines. The blades can interact with their wake, hence decreasing annual energy production and turbine lifetime. This research will develop a new probabilistic surrogate model for the unsteady aerodynamics of floating turbines, trained on physics-based models and suitable for control of floating wind turbines.

Life on exoplanets? To the limits of the largest telescopes with noiseless detectors

Dr. Ir. P.J. de Visser, SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research

‘Are we alone?’ is an old question, which we could answer in the coming decades because of the recent discovery of thousands of exoplanets. The Extremely Large Telescope which is currently being built, will be able to characterize rocky planets around red stars. However, to operate at its intrinsically high resolution, such a telescope requires extremely accurate correction of the distortion of the light by the Earth’s atmosphere. Therefore, we will demonstrate adaptive optics with novel, noiseless superconducting detectors, which can determine the colour of each incoming photon.

Arithmetic intersections of geodesics

Dr. J.B. Vonk, Leiden University

Geodesics describe the shortest path between two points on a curved surface, like trajectories of airline flights travelling across the globe. Vonk uses new techniques in algebra to understand how special geodesics cross each other, or collide, and applies these insights to resolve currently open questions in number theory.

Strengthening Transgender Care for Youth

Dr. A.L.C. de Vries, Amsterdam UMC, location VUmc

Medical transgender care for youth is confronted with overwhelming increases in referrals. This project aims to provide better evidence base of the current care model. In addition, in collaboration with adolescents, their parents and care providers, a decision making framework will be developed.

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Why plant stem cells do not like oxygen

Dr. D.A. Weits, Utrecht University

Heavy rainfall and flooding cause low oxygen levels in plants leading to crop losses. Curiously, the plant’s stem cells, which produce leaves and flowers, function permanently at very low oxygen levels. Previous research showed that low oxygen concentrations are even necessary for optimal plant development. To investigate why this is the case, the researchers will develop new biosensors that can detect low oxygen concentrations in plant tissue, and they will investigate if the oxygen concentration regulates the development of new leaves. This new knowledge can be used to increase plant growth or improve submergence tolerance of crops.

Robots with a gentle touch

Dr. M. Wiertlewski, Delft University of Technology

Robots have improved working conditions by handling dirty, dangerous, or dull tasks present in many industry sectors; however tiring manual labour is still necessary in sectors such as agriculture, recycling or care, where a soft touch is required to grasp and handle delicate objects. To be skillfull, robots need to perceive the texture, shape and softness of the object in hand and to detect when it can potentially slip, via their sense of touch. Using machine learning and new tactile sensors, I will endow new dexterous robots with the sense of touch inspired by the remarkable human tactile perception.

Big Data: Learning to see the wood for the trees

Dr. I. Wilms, Maastricht University

Fine-grained data are nowadays omnipresent in our society: smartphones, sensors, the internet and social media offer endless opportunities to collect near real-time data on a large group of individuals or products simultaneously. When one wants to use such data to support economic decision making, should these fine-grained data be used as is or might their granularity actually complicate information retrieval from them? Researchers develop new statistical methods that learn how to appropriately aggregate such fine-grained data for more reliable decision making.

Hearing more than sound

Dr. A.B. Wong, Erasmus MC Rotterdam

The perception of sound can often be enhanced by stimulus from a different sense. For instance, lip-reading helps the understanding of speech. This fundamental brain function, called “multisensory integration”, depends on putting the right information at the right place at the right time. Researchers will use microscopy and electric recordings to investigate how brain cells connect and communicate with each other, and uncover how they integrate sound information with information from other senses.

A gut feeling about rheumatoid arthritis

Dr. D. van der Woude,  Leiden University Medical Center

Rheumatoid arthritis is caused by a fault in the immune system, that takes a wrong turn years before disease onset. However, the factors that reinforce the abnormalities in the immune system and ultimately lead to disease are still unknown. This project will shed light on the role of gut content (such as food and microbes) in driving the immune system further down the path towards rheumatoid arthritis. This will provide clues as to whether in the future, a change in diet or a new treatment to modulate gut content, may be able to prevent this disease.

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How does our internal state influence perception?

Dr. F. Zeldenrust, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour RU

We perceive the world through the activity of networks of brain cells. Perception is an active process. To perceive the world, the brain adapts constantly to our position in and expectations of the world, but also to our internal states such as arousal, attention and uncertainty. This is done through substances called neuromodulators. The researchers will study how these neuromodulators affect the activity of single brain cells and networks of those, in order to understand how perception is performed by networks of brain cells, and how this is influenced by these neuromodulators.

Making finance sustainable? A comparative perspective on investment politics

Dr. N.A.J. van der Zwan, Leiden University, Institute of Public Administration

Despite increasing legislation and regulation for the financial sector, large investors such as pension funds or insurance companies are still guided by profit motives rather than environmental sustainability. This research compares the inner workings of financial systems in different European countries and teaches us which institutional frameworks and policy processes best encourage large investors to invest sustainably.

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Finding network structure beyond the spectrum: new frontiers and new methods

Dr. A. Abiad Monge, Eindhoven University of Technology

This project seeks to deduce structural properties of a graph from the graph spectrum. Properties such as connectedness, diameter and regularity, are known to be related to the spectrum of a graph. Nevertheless, for most relevant graph structures the problem remains open, and the existing spectral tools are not sufficient, indicating that genuinely new methods are needed. We tackle this important challenge by strengthening and unifying spectral methods and combining them with tools from combinatorial optimization, group theory and discrete potential theory.

The suction cups of the cuttlefish revealed

Dr. G.J. Amador, Wageningen University

In less time than the blink of an eye, a cuttlefish sticks to its prey using soft, muscular tentacles lined with many small suction cups. By investigating how these animals attach quickly and reversibly to various objects and surfaces, researchers will learn how to develop better synthetic grippers for applications in soft robotics and agriculture, as well as contribute to understanding their evolution.

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How positive interactions between plants can help fight climate change

Dr. K.E. Barry, Utrecht University

Grasslands are a cornerstone ecosystem in Western Europe yet are being lost globally at an alarming rate. Climate change requires urgent solutions that restore the resilience of these grasslands. I propose that restoring positive interactions between plant species in grasslands will increase their potential to adapt to and mitigate future climate change. I plan to make this nature-based climate solution a reality by uncovering the positive plant actors and examining the consequences of seeding them into former farms.

Sustainable learning of Artificial Intelligence from large-scale noisy data

Dr. K. Batselier, Delft University of Technology

Computer models play an essential role in modern society. Learning models from data is not sustainable due to the ever-growing requirement of computational power. I will develop ground breaking methods that will learning model from data much faster and with a much smaller carbon footprint than currently needed.

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How and why cells split in two?

Dr. A. Chaigne, University of Utrecht.

When an animal develops, cells divide to increase the size of the organism. The textbook description of cell division ends with two cells completely separated from each other. However, I discovered that stem cells remain connected via a small tube, called a bridge, filled with proteins. The dismantlement of bridges is crucial to cell fate. Yet, we do not know much about what bridges do and how they are maintained or destroyed. With this project, I will elucidate the molecular mechanisms controlling bridge formation and dismantlement and how the switch between bridge maintenance and destruction controls cell fate transitions.

Sequence the abnormality

Dr. Miao-Ping Chien, Erasmus MC

Tumors change over time. Abnormalities in chromosomes are a main cause for these progressive changes in the nature and composition of cells that make up a tumor. These changes can lead to therapy resistance in for instance glioblastoma, the deadliest brain cancer. Biophysicists develop a technology to identify rare cancer cells bearing severe chromosomal abnormalities and to study these cells at unprecedented resolution. They investigate the causes and consequences of abnormal chromosomes in glioblastoma and aim to generate information that can lead to improved treatment for glioblastoma.

Moire materials from one-dimensional van der Waals heterostructures

Dr. S. Conesa-Boj, Delft University of Technology

Van der Waals materials are most peculiar, since they keep functioning even when stripped bare-bones down to layers with single-atomic thickness. In the same way as with humble Lego bricks one can assemble monumental constructions, van der Waals materials can also be combined such than novel unexpected properties emerge, such as electrical currents that can flow indefinitely. This research will design novel classes of van der Waals materials based on a one-dimensional, pillar-like configuration suitable for building blocks of nanometer-sized electronic circuits and ultra-secure quantum communications and study them with atomic resolution using electron-based microscopes.

Achieving animate properties with odd robotic matter

Dr. C. Coulais, Institute of Physics, University of Amsterdam

Can we create materials that can autonomously move and perform tasks even in unpredictable environments? This research will introduce a novel type of robotic materials that are materials made of robots instead of atoms, and which will be capable of autonomously rolling, crawling and swimming in complex terrains.

Efficiently simulating stochastic processes in curved spaces

Dr. Ir. S.G. Cox, Amsterdam University

Stochastic differential equations in curved spaces are key models in applications ranging from cell biology to image- and speech recognition. As the solution to such equations cannot be given explicitly, practitioners rely on various approximation methods. However, for many of these approximation methods it is unknown whether they converge to the true solution, and if so, how fast. My goal is to establish convergence (rates) for methods that are currently used in practice, as well as to develop new methods that are either more efficient, or can be applied to a larger class of problems.

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Living on the edge: unravelling the secrets of selenium hyperaccumulator plants

Dr. A van der Ent, Wageningen University & Research

Few plant species are capable of accumulating exceptionally high concentrations of selenium, but the mechanistic basis of this fascinating natural phenomenon is largely unknown. The aim of this research is to resolve and comprehend, the ecology, physiology, and molecular biology of selenium hyperaccumulation, as a recent adaptation of plants to a highly selective environment. This information may be used in the future to improve the selenium status in crops to ultimately address selenium deficiency in humans.

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Foams for Catalytic Upcycling of Plastics (FoCUs)

Dr. Ir., J.A., Faria Albanese, University of Twente

Plastics are an essential part of modern society. Unfortunately, only a small fraction of these materials is recycled (9%) the rest is incinerated (12%) and released to the environment (79%). While conventional recycling can be increased, the inferior properties of the recycled materials, relative to virgin plastics, hinders economic profitability. The FOCUS project tackles this issue by developing new catalytic materials and processes that can “upcycle” plastics into added value chemicals.

Switching Gears: Mechanisms that drive Transmission and Evolution of Mosquito-borne Viruses

Dr. Ir. J.J. Fros, Wageningen University and Research

Mosquito-borne viruses continuously switch replication between humans and mosquitoes. These viruses have evolved genetic characteristics that are optimal for replication in vertebrate hosts, but suboptimal for replication in mosquitoes. This project will elucidate the molecular mechanisms in mosquitoes that govern the low-level, but persistent replication of the relatively poorly adapted mosquito-borne viruses. The findings will extend our knowledge on virus evolution and invertebrate immunity against viruses, which can strengthen the design of viruses with a host/mosquito-specific replicative phenotype and spark novel ways to intervene with mosquito-borne virus transmission cycles.

Universal invariants in Calabi–Yau geometry

Dr. L. Fu, Radboud University

As an attempt to reconcile the theoretic incoherence between Quantum Mechanics and Einstein’s General Relativity, certain physicists model our universe as a 10-dimensional geometric object with 4 empirically observable dimensions consisting of space and time, together with 6 additional “hidden” dimensions that are controlled by the so-call Calabi–Yau threefolds in mathematics. This project proposes to study such Calabi–Yau geometric objects in arbitrary dimensions, from the point of view of universal invariants in algebraic geometry.

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When metabolism attacks DNA

Dr. J. I. Garaycoechea, Hubrecht Institute

DNA carries the instructions to life but is also constantly damaged, causing mutation and disease. Sunlight and cigarette smoke are common damaging agents, but DNA is also attacked by chemicals produced by our own cells. This proposal will uncover what these chemicals are, how they change DNA and how this contributes to disease.

Fast neurons of our cognition

Dr. N.A. Goriounova, VU Amsterdam

Our ability to think, reason, solve problems, depends on the activity of neurons in our brain. Recent studies show that our neurons can generate fast signals to process large amount of information, but the mechanisms behind this fast signalling are unknown. This research will study how specialized types of human neurons generate and maintain fast signals. By looking at gene expression in these neurons we will understand how these neurons achieve fast computation and link to cognition.

Identification of Targets for the Antibiotics of the Future

Dr. S.M. Hacker, Leiden University

Multi-drug resistant bacteria are important threats to the human health and are predicted to annually cause up to 10 million deaths by the year 2050. Therefore, antibiotics with novel modes-of-action are urgently needed. To efficiently identify new target proteins for antibiotics, the researchers will develop innovative compounds that strongly engage proteins through chemical bond formation. Using these compounds, they will comprehensively understand, which binding sites in pathogenic bacteria can be targeted with antibiotics. In this way, they will deliver many starting points for the development of antibiotics with novel modes-of-action.

Do malaria parasites enhance their own transmission?

Dr. F.J.H. Hol, Radboud UMC

Unfortunately, mosquitoes are extremely good at spreading disease by biting people and transmitting parasites. However, we do not know if parasites make mosquitoes even more hungry for blood, and once in our body it is unclear how the parasite finds its way to the bloodstream. By developing new technologies, this research will unravel how interactions between mosquitoes and parasites shape malaria transmission.

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Molecular information processing in self‐organised networks

Dr. Ir. P.A. Korevaar, Radboud University

Living matter is entirely driven by chemistry, and acts as a “chemical computer” where chemical signals are exchanged and processed to direct the spontaneous build‐up of organisms. In synthetic materials, this enables fundamentally new potential where functions – motion, growth, shape‐transformation – are directed via molecular information processing, rather than traditional electronics. The researchers will demonstrate this principle in networks of self‐assembling wires, which spontaneously grow, transfer chemical signals between sender and receiver agents and thereby – via a cascade of input‐output steps – direct the self‐organization of patterns. This might lead to e.g. neuromorphic sensors or self‐adapting lab‐on‐a‐chip applications.

Network calculus

Dr. I. Kryven, Utrecht University

Calculus is a powerful tool in mathematics, allowing scientists to write and solve equations with functions as unknowns. Mathematicians will develop a theory that for the first time will allow the usage of calculus for networks too. The theory will be of great importance to scientists wanting to understand how networks evolve in time.

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Visualizing the dynamics of gene regulation

Dr. T.L. Lenstra, Netherlands Cancer Institute

Transcription factors turn on genes at the correct moment in the correct cell type. In this study, we will apply advanced microscopy techniques to visualize individual transcription factor molecules inside cells, while simultaneously measuring when genes are activated. The results will reveal how transient transcription factor binding to DNA regulates the dynamics of gene expression.

How does oxygen allow to unravel the atmospheric carbon dioxide signal?

Dr. I.T. Luijkx, Wageningen University

The climate changes due to increasing amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) in our atmosphere. This research will use atmospheric measurements of oxygen to better understand how much of the measured CO2 signals in north-west Europe are coming from fossil fuel combustion and how much from the biosphere. This gives important new information necessary to know how much temperature will increase in the future. This is highly relevant during this time of energy transition to reach the goals of the Paris agreement.

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Tapping the potential of plant chemistry through computation

Dr. M.H. Medema, Wageningen University & Research

Plants produce a great diversity of valuable compounds, which they use to defend themselves against pathogens and herbivores, and to recruit beneficial microorganisms. These molecules constitute a key source of medicines and crop protection agents for society. The ability to produce these molecules is encoded in specific sets of genes. By designing smart computer algorithms, the researchers aim to identify such genes and their relationships, in order to discover new biosynthetic pathways, link them to their metabolic products and analyse their evolution across plant species.

Solving Continuous Problems with Guarantees

Ass. Prof. T. Miltzow, Utrecht University

We will study so‐called ER‐complete problems. Those are algorithmic problems that are continuous and whose parts interact in a highly complex and non‐linear fashion. This makes those algorithmic problems much more challenging than NP‐complete problems. The algorithmic landscape on ER‐complete problems is split into practical methods without guarantees on the run time and theoretical methods without any reasonable chance of solving real life instances. We will develop methods that have run‐time guarantees and can solve at least medium sized real world instances.

Responsible Decentralized Data Architectures

Dr. H.F. Mühleisen, Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica

Private data is currently centralized into the data silos of Google and friends. There you, the data producer and rightful owner, no longer have access to or control over what happens to it. This has created all sorts of privacy nightmares in the past and needs to change. We propose a new, de-centralized data storage architecture where your data stays under your control, for example inside your phone. At the same time, limited central access to data remains possible, so you can still enjoy the same functionality as before.

Protein Dress Up gone wrong

Dr. M.P.C. Mulder, Leiden UMC

Posttranslational modification of proteins, such as for instance the attachment of the ubiquitin protein, regulates many biological cellular processes. These modifications are controlled by a complex enzymatic system, with more dan 700 players in the ubiquitin network, and disruption within these systems could lead to diseases such as cancer and neurodegeneration. Detailed insights into the mechanism behind this is however yet to be obtained, thus slowing the development of targeted medicines for treatment of these diseases. The researchers aim to develop chemical tools to finally unravel the workings of these systems paving the road towards medical treatment.

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Reconstructing networks from uncertain time-evolving data

Dr. L. Peel, Maastricht University

Data collection activities are subject to errors, including systematic and random errors. This project will develop methods to deal with uncertain time-evolving network data enabling more effective study of complex systems within and around us from our cellular biology to our social interactions.

Fano varieties: rational points and beyond

Dr. M. Pieropan, Utrecht University

How many grid cells t in a circle? How fast does this number grow when we increase the circle radius? What if we require that the cells lie in a certain pattern? What if we replace the circle by a different shape? The mathematicians will develop a new framework to solve problems of this type that arise in the geometric setting of counting rational points (the grid) of bounded height (the shape) on Fano varieties (the pattern).

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Unravelling the synaptic code of memory

Dr. P. Rao-Ruiz, VU Amsterdam

Memory formation and its storage requires strengthening of connections between sparsely distributed neurons that are activated at the time of learning. In this project, researchers will causally pinpoint and connect the neurobiological processes that underlie and regulate this strengthening, in order to identify the precise synaptic code of successful memory formation.

Are watersheds getting wetter or drier?

Dr.-ing. R. Rietbroek, University of Twente

In a warming world, researchers expect that wetter regions become wetter while drier regions become drier. However, this doesn’t necessarily hold for all regions. This research will use satellite observations to see how atmospheric transport of moisture and river discharge are changing the water cycle and sea level. It will focus on the region around the North Sea and in the Greater Horn of Africa.

Nu-BHPs (Nucleoside-BHPs as new proxies for paleo-temperature and paleo-pH)

Dr. D. Rush, Royal NIOZ

Past climate reconstructions are used in modelling approaches to forecast future climate change. It is essential that the measurements of past climate are accurate. However, precisely reconstructing past atmospheric temperature is a major challenge as there are few available methods to measure this climate variable. Researchers in this project will develop organic geochemical tools to reconstruct past temperature as well as soil pH, in order to improve existing climate models and better predict future climate change.

Equilibrium shapes from nonlocal interactions

Dr. W.M. Ruszel, Utrecht University

The understanding of surface structures of crystals plays a central role in many fields including physics, chemistry and material science. Some interatomic forces in crystals can be approximated by an interacting particle system. Many interesting physical systems have nonlocal interactions decaying polynomially including van der Waals, Coulomb and dipolar forces. In this proposal we aim at developing a mathematical microscopic theory for equilibrium shapes from nonlocal interactions.

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Towards a better Anthropocene for freshwater fish

Dr. A.M. Schipper, Radboud Institute for Biological and Environmental Sciences

The global diversity of freshwater fish species is threatened by a variety of human pressures, including global warming, land use, chemical pollution and habitat fragmentation. This project aims to analyse the cumulative impacts of these pressures and evaluate the effectiveness of large-scale conservation measures based on a new global model of freshwater fish diversity.

Teaching enzymes new tricks

Dr. S. Schmidt, University of Groningen

The pharmaceutical and chemical industries are highly polluting industries. The use of nature’s catalysts (enzymes) can play a major role in solving this problem. Yet, several traditional chemical reactions cannot be performed by existing enzymes. This project aims to expand the catalogue of enzymes and teach them new tricks to manufacture pharmaceuticals, fine chemicals, and cosmetics of our everyday life in a sustainable way.

Game Theory Empowered by Data Science and Control Theory to Improve Metastatic Cancer Treatment

Dr. K. Stankova, Delft University of Technology

This research investigates novel game theoretic models and combines these with data science and control theory to improve standard of care in cancer treatment. With these models a physician will be able to anticipate the cancer cells’ response to the treatment and subsequently steer the eco-evolutionary dynamics of the cancer cells towards better patient outcomes. This research will in particular focus on Stage IV non-small cell lung cancer. The methodology itself will also be applicable for treatment of other diseases and in domains where we attempt to preserve or contain evolving resources (e.g., pest management, fisheries management, antibiotic resistance management).

Two-coloured laser light to control the Einstein Telescope

Dr. S. Steinlechner, Maastricht University

The Einstein Telescope uses laser light to precisely monitor the distance between two freely hanging mirrors placed several kilometres apart, to search for traces of gravitational waves that are passing by. The mirrors are made from large silicon crystals and require a specific laser colour for best sensitivity. This research shows how combining this laser light with another laser colour can control the mirrors to an extremely stable position, letting the Einstein Telescope listen to the faintest waves.

Pushing the frontier of hybridization: unlocking hidden eco-evo dynamics through Environmental DNA (eDNA)

Dr. K. Stewart, Leiden University

Invasive hybridization is a common cause of global biodiversity loss. I aim to optimize DNA collected from the environment (eDNA) as a tool to understand the causes and consequences of hybridization between native and invasive species. The knowledge gained can be used to manage invasion dynamics and mitigate future hybridization.

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Targeting chromatin environment around DNA replication fork to destabilize tumor cell proliferation

Dr. N. Taneja, Erasmus Medical Center

Unregulated DNA replication can provide limitless proliferation potential to tumor cells. The mechanisms regulating DNA replication machinery are poorly understood. This research focuses on identifying the specific chromatin organization signatures during replication in cancer cells and target those to cause instability of DNA replication process in cancer cells.

Perfect perovskites and how to make them

Dr. S. Tao, Technical University Eindhoven

Metal halide perovskites are promising materials for efficient and low-cost solar cells. However, their stability very much depends on how they are made. The researchers will use large-scale computer simulations to understand how processing parameters influence the crystallization reactions and to propose strategies for fabricating the ultimate stable perovskites.

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The internal dialogue: how our organs communicate via tiny nano-bubbles

Dr. F.J. Verweij, Utrecht University

Almost every cell in our body releases nanometer-sized extracellular vesicles (EV) that are essential for communication with other cells, located nearby or even at distant locations in our body. Yet, owing to their miniscule size, much of how these EVs behave in real life remains enigmatic. Using novel microscopy approaches and transparent fish, we will tap into this communication pathway to better understand the biology of EVs, and how they function in the healthy and diseased gut, in particular during cancer metastasis.

How do neurons predict the future?

Dr. M.A. Vinck, Donders Centre for Neuroscience, RU

How do brain cells predict the future? We will use multiple fine electrodes to record from large neuronal ensembles in multiple brain areas simultaneously and study how these neurons predict future motion trajectories. We will study how predictive processing results from interactions between brain areas and different cell types.

Life on exoplanets? To the limits of the largest telescopes with noiseless detectors

Dr. Ir. P.J. de Visser, SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research

‘Are we alone?’ is an old question, which we could answer in the coming decades because of the recent discovery of thousands of exoplanets. The Extremely Large Telescope which is currently being built, will be able to characterize rocky planets around red stars. However, to operate at its intrinsically high resolution, such a telescope requires extremely accurate correction of the distortion of the light by the Earth’s atmosphere. Therefore, we will demonstrate adaptive optics with novel, noiseless superconducting detectors, which can determine the colour of each incoming photon.

Arithmetic intersections of geodesics

Dr. J.B. Vonk, Leiden University

Geodesics describe the shortest path between two points on a curved surface, like trajectories of airline flights travelling across the globe. Vonk uses new techniques in algebra to understand how special geodesics cross each other, or collide, and applies these insights to resolve currently open questions in number theory.

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Why plant stem cells do not like oxygen

Dr. D.A. Weits, Utrecht University

Heavy rainfall and flooding cause low oxygen levels in plants leading to crop losses. Curiously, the plant’s stem cells, which produce leaves and flowers, function permanently at very low oxygen levels. Previous research showed that low oxygen concentrations are even necessary for optimal plant development. To investigate why this is the case, the researchers will develop new biosensors that can detect low oxygen concentrations in plant tissue, and they will investigate if the oxygen concentration regulates the development of new leaves. This new knowledge can be used to increase plant growth or improve submergence tolerance of crops.

Hearing more than sound

Dr. A.B. Wong, Erasmus MC Rotterdam

The perception of sound can often be enhanced by stimulus from a different sense. For instance, lip-reading helps the understanding of speech. This fundamental brain function, called “multisensory integration”, depends on putting the right information at the right place at the right time. Researchers will use microscopy and electric recordings to investigate how brain cells connect and communicate with each other, and uncover how they integrate sound information with information from other senses.

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How does our internal state influence perception?

Dr. F. Zeldenrust, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour RU

We perceive the world through the activity of networks of brain cells. Perception is an active process. To perceive the world, the brain adapts constantly to our position in and expectations of the world, but also to our internal states such as arousal, attention and uncertainty. This is done through substances called neuromodulators. The researchers will study how these neuromodulators affect the activity of single brain cells and networks of those, in order to understand how perception is performed by networks of brain cells, and how this is influenced by these neuromodulators.

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Changing minds by reshaping memories

Dr. V.A. van Ast, University of Amsterdam

A memory from the past brings up emotions in the present. However, the evoked emotions by memories can be changed – either for better or for worse – by the simple act of remembering. This forms the basis of psychotherapy. But why does remembering make some evoked emotions worse, and others better? This question determines whether “confronting the past” – a common approach in psychotherapy – will actually be effective. The researchers will unravel how the act of remembering can modify emotions evoked by past memories, and reveal how this memory flexibility can be harnessed to alleviate psychological disorders.

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The odd one out: What we may learn from entrepreneurs with a physical or cognitive impairment

Dr. R.M. Bakker, Erasmus University Rotterdam

The inclusion of individuals with a physical or cognitive impairment is an important societal concern. We often think of such impairments in terms of their negative consequences. What if there were positive implications too? Consider, for example, the resilience of someone having had to overcome a disabling disease or impairment. Through a series of (field) experiments, this research will examine if smart interventions may serve to attenuate the negative stigma that surrounds people with disabilities, and thereby offer opportunities for emancipation and business creation.

Under pressure: studying the causes and consequences of societal threats

Dr. B.N. Bakker, University of Amsterdam

With a pandemic, climate change, and terrorist attacks, we have seen threats that could have, or will in the future, fundamentally alter our way of life. The perceptions of threat can disrupt society as threat fuels protest, support for anti-democratic policies, and even leads to violence. In this project, the researchers will study how people perceive and regulate threats and adopt political attitudes and behaviours to counter these threats. The project will inform citizens how to deal with the threats of the 21st century and prevent threats from disrupting society.

High ambitions, (s)low implementation? The politics of tracking adaptation to climate change

Dr. G.R. Biesbroek, Wageningen University

Adapting to the impacts of climate change is necessary and increasingly urgent. Governments have formulated ambitious goals, but how do we know if they actually deliver on the promises? How do we know if and when additional measures are needed? Monitoring and evaluation of climate change adaptation actions is important to answer these questions but hardly takes place in practice. In this project, the key political mechanisms that hamper the process of designing and executing evaluation are analysed, and politically sensitive interventions are developed to break through these challenges.

Safeguarding Journalism’s Future in the Digital Age

Dr. M. Boukes, University of Amsterdam

The future of independent high-quality journalism is at stake. The fragmenting digital media landscape has drastically reduced the revenues of journalistic organizations; simultaneously, an atmosphere of distrust has been fostered regarding the “mainstream” news media. This project investigates the causes, consequences, and solutions for the declining trust in journalism as well as the public’s reduced willingness to pay for its news. We examine these processes on the micro- (individual citizens), meso- (type of news media) and macro-level (differences between countries). The findings of this project contribute to the preservation of journalism’s crucial role in our democratic society.

Can disadvantaged children excel in school if others think they can’t?

Dr. E. Brummelman, University of Amsterdam

Can children from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds excel in school if others think they can’t? This project examines why children from disadvantaged backgrounds often develop negative views of themselves and their abilities, and how these negative self-views can perpetuate socioeconomic disparities in educational achievement and mental health. To do so, this project will focus on the subtle transactions between children and their teachers. This will contribute to new insights that will help remedy inequality, so that all children, regardless of their background, can develop their skills and realize their full potential.

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Cannabis: the highs and lows for brain health

Dr. J. Cousijn, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Department of Psychology, Education & Child Studies

Cannabis has two faces. One that helps users feel better and one that actually causes problems. This research teaches us how this is possible. In medical and non-medical users from different countries, we investigate which characteristics of users and their environment can best tell us who will experience which highs and low.

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External control over your internal focus

Dr. F. van Ede, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Department of Experimental and Applied Psychology

The human brain acts as the interface between the inner (mental) and the outer (physical) worlds. In this project, the researchers will uncover how external visual sensations automatically draw attention to matching internal representations held in visual working memory, and how such externally driven selective memory activation may be utilised to experimentally manipulate the formation of long-term memory traces.

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What does religion mean for integration? The role of religious reasoning

Prof. Dr. F. Fleischmann, University of Amsterdam

Most immigrants to Europe are more religious than non-migrants and religion is frequently conceived of as a barrier to immigrant integration in predominantly secular societies. Previous research on the relationship between religiosity and immigrant integration has yielded inconclusive results, but was limited to religious practices and the subjective importance of religion. Differences in how individuals reason about religion have not yet been systematically considered. This project examines literal vs. symbolic approaches to religion as additional explanation of immigrant integration and aims to explain individual and group differences in religious reasoning between three religious minority groups in the Netherlands.

Lettercraft and epistolary performance in early medieval Europe

Dr. R. Flierman, Utrecht University

How did medieval societies use the letter and who were among its users? This project approaches the medieval letter as a performative medium that was read out aloud, translated and circulated in public. It explores how the letter was thus able to establish lines of communication between diverse social groups and across political boundaries and language-barriers, making it an essential tool for conflict-resolution and consensus-building in a world with rudimentary infrastructure and limited public order.

Saving reality with exotic causality

Dr. S.M. Friederich, University of Groningen, Faculty of Philosophy and University College Groningen

Quantum theory is the framework for all modern physics. As such, it is extremely successful. But that success is puzzling because quantum theory seems in tension with an idea that science otherwise takes for granted: that there is a single objective reality. This research sets out to fulfil a hope of Einstein: to develop an interpretation of quantum theory as an unproblematic probabilistic theory of a single reality. Such an interpretation will likely entail some exotic form of causality, either unmediated action at a distance, or perhaps even causal influences backwards in time.

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American foreign policy and liberalism

Dr. A.J. Gawthorpe, Leiden University, Institute for History

Historians and specialists of international politics often write about how the United States helped to build an international order based on liberal politics and economics after World War 2. But is this what American leaders actually set out to do? This project uses the methodology of intellectual history to show that the commitment of postwar American leaders to liberalism was always mixed with other concerns, like expanding American power or protecting racial inequality at home. Recognizing this makes the simple story of an American-created liberal international order insufficient for understanding either their time or ours.

Theorizing Freedom from Below

Dr. D. Gädeke, Utrecht University, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies

Most theories of freedom focus on the state of being free. But can we fully understand what freedom means without the experience of unfreedom? This project will investigate how the way in which we think about freedom changes when rethinking freedom from the perspective of people who struggled to become free.

Violence in prisons

Dr. E.F.J.C. van Ginneken, Leiden University, Institute for Criminal Law and Criminology

Why do violent prison incidents occur? This research project will answer this question by investigating the circumstances leading up to violent incidents, including the motivation of perpetrators. This project will develop and use new methods to study prison violence, with the ultimate goal to improve the safety of prisoners and staff.

There’s something in the air! Our chemistry uncovered

Dr. J.H.B. de Groot, Radboud University

How can we explain the chemistry between us? Our sense of smell is a mysterious and delicate sense. In this project the researchers will discover the actual molecules that cause us to take over another person’s emotions like fear. How smells contribute to intimacy and safety within our romantic relationships will also be uncovered. And how strongly does (long-during) smell loss, like we seen with COVID-19, the quality of our relationships and of our own life? These are uncharted territories that are relevant now because they directly impact the life quality of people longing for more scientific knowledge and recognition.

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Equal opportunities? Differential teaching practices as reinforcer of ethnic and socioeconomic gaps in academic adjustment

PhD, T.E. Hornstra, Utrecht University

Education is not the “great equalizer” it intends to be. There are increasing educational inequalities between students with different socio-economic and cultural backgrounds. Many students who start their educational career in primary education in a disadvantaged position are not able to catch up. This project aims to examine how primary school teachers through their everyday interactions with students reinforce these differences in the long term or how they can reduce them.

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Towards a better prediction of language skills: integrating brain, child, and parental characteristics in the first 1,001 days

Dr. C.M.M. Junge, Utrecht University, Helmholtz Institute

Not everyone develops comparable language skills. The first 1,001 days from conception onwards prove critical for language skills and brain development alike. Unknown is whether these two developmental processes are related. The YOUth cohort study follows >2,000 children’s brain development starting in pregnancy. This project assesses their full language profiles when the same children are 3‐6 years old. Next, researchers link language skills to children’s prenatal brain development and the emergence of social brain networks in infancy. Researchers also take into account child‐ and parental characteristics. This will improve interventions for children in need of speech and language therapy.

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People management: too much of a good thing?

Prof. dr. E. Knies, Utrecht University

Work pressure, high burn-out rates, and labour shortages are highly topical health and education sector issues that put quality of public service provision under pressure. People management by managers is often presented as a solution for these important societal issues. However, might it also be part of the problem? Can well-intended people management have unintended negative effects for employee performance and well-being? This project systematically studies this dark side of people management in these sectors, provides insights into the optimal level of support for employees, and develops relevant tools to prevent the dark side from occurring.

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Do corporate boardroom quotas impact gender equality beyond leadership?

Dr. Z. Lippényi, University of Groningen

A growing number of European countries adopt corporate boardroom quota’s to ensure a more equal representation of women in leadership positions. It is unknown in what ways quota’s impact inequality in earnings and job careers between men and women beyond the leadership of large enterprises. This research project creates a new data infrastructure linking administrative data and surveys to map out multiple pathways how the impact of quota’s trickle down within organizations and spill over within the business community.

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Word formation in polysynthetic languages

Dr. M. Mazzoli, University of Groningen

Polysynthetic languages can build very complex words which translate as entire sentences in languages like English and Dutch. Little is known about how these languages form new complex words based on established language patterns. This project surveys three polysynthetic languages, to check whether the productivity of word formation patterns is related to their levels of activation in language processing. Most polysynthetic languages are currently endangered. Knowledge about polysynthetic word formation will be instrumental in producing pedagogical resources to foster language learning, in collaboration with the communities in which fieldwork is conducted.

Playful Time Machines: A Study of the Mechanics, Dynamics, and Aesthetics of the Past in Video Games

Dr. A.A.A. Mol, Leiden University, Institute for the Arts in Society/Leiden University Centre for Digital Humanities

Increasingly, we experience the past not through textbooks, museum visits, or even television, but through video games like Assassin’s Creed and Battlefield. In this project a team of game and heritage researchers will undertake the first comprehensive study of how these ‘playful time machines’ reshape our relationship with the past.

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Vulnerability in the Digital Administrative State

Prof. Mr. dr. S.H. Ranchordas, University of Groningen, Faculteit Rechtsgeleerdheid

Digital government often incorrectly assumes that citizens have access to the Internet, have average literacy and digital skills, and can exercise their rights before public bodies. However, at some point in their lives most citizens will struggle with exercising their rights before government, particularly when they are required to engage with complex digital forms. This project conceptualizes the concept of administrative vulnerability as a new form of inequality and investigates how this problem can be solved.

Promising algorithms for supporting decision making under uncertainty

Dr. W. Romeijnders, University of Groningen

A major uncertainty for decision makers is that it is unknown what the future will bring. However, mathematical techniques can be used to calculate optimal decisions based on trends, probability distributions and scenarios to minimize costs or risks. This can be of considerable help in decision making where major interests are at stake, but it is not feasible with the current state of science. Using a smart idea, researchers at the University of Groningen will develop promising new algorithms. These will be applied to design a hydrogen supply chain for the Northern Netherlands and to asset-liability management for pension funds.

Differences in enslavement

Dr. M. van Rossum, International Institute of Social History

This project researches how the ways in which people were enslaved (for example by war, debt or birth) influenced life under slavery and resistance to it by enslaved. The research compares the impact through personal narratives from court records from the entire early modern Dutch colonial empire in the Indonesian archipelago, Indian and Atlantic Ocean.

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Robots at work: Bridging the gap between the robot development and workplace use

Dr. A. Sergeeva, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

Despite robots increasingly entering our work lives, we know surprisingly little about their impact on jobs. This study will explain our work is changing once robots are entering work settings to serve as partners of humans. By following over several years, how robots are developed in the lab and used “in the wild” I will reveal unexpected consequences of robots for the task, team and role dimensions of work. The findings will then be fed back to engineering labs, implementors and policymakers to ensure that future generation of robots is designed to support rather than undermine our work lives.

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Big Data: Learning to see the wood for the trees

Dr. I. Wilms, Maastricht University

Fine-grained data are nowadays omnipresent in our society: smartphones, sensors, the internet and social media offer endless opportunities to collect near real-time data on a large group of individuals or products simultaneously. When one wants to use such data to support economic decision making, should these fine-grained data be used as is or might their granularity actually complicate information retrieval from them? Researchers develop new statistical methods that learn how to appropriately aggregate such fine-grained data for more reliable decision making.

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Making finance sustainable? A comparative perspective on investment politics

Dr. N.A.J. van der Zwan, Leiden University, Institute of Public Administration

Despite increasing legislation and regulation for the financial sector, large investors such as pension funds or insurance companies are still guided by profit motives rather than environmental sustainability. This research compares the inner workings of financial systems in different European countries and teaches us which institutional frameworks and policy processes best encourage large investors to invest sustainably.

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COMPOSE: combined imaging for ocular oncology

Dr. J.W.M. Beenakker, LUMC, Ophthalmology, Radiology and Radiotherapy

In this research new technologies will be developed to combine photographs of the inside of the eye with three-dimensional imaging, as is used for radiotherapy planning. To achieve this combined image, the researchers will develop methods to correct for the aberrations introduced by the eye’s optics. By combining these imaging techniques, the researchers aim to further improve therapy for ocular oncology so patients preserve more visual function after therapy.

Balls-to-the-wall: Keeping hydrogen burning with ice bullets

Dr. Ir. M. van Berkel, Dutch Institute for Fundamental Energy Research (DIFFER)

Nuclear fusion reactors produce large amounts of energy. To do this, hydrogen gas in the reactor is heated to 150 million °C. If no new hydrogen fuel is added the fusion reaction stops by itself. The only way to keep the process going is to shoot frozen (–260 °C) hydrogen pellets into the reactor at huge speed. The replenished fuel must reach the place in the reactor where fusion takes place before a pellet completely evaporates. Dr. van Berkel will develop an entirely new control approach to manage this process.

NUANCES: A novel approach to predict aging and degradation of historical oil paintings

Dr. E. Bosco, Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e)

Oil paintings age with time. This is due to complex physical and chemical processes that lead to changes in the visual appearance and affect the integrity and longevity of the artworks. My goal is to quantitatively predict the future conditions and the risk of degradation of historical oil paintings. This is done by developing a novel integrated, computational-experimental research strategy. The fundamental knowledge generated in this project supports informed conservation decisions and preventive conservation policies for museum collections.

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Needle-free injections: ultrafast microjets for minimal skin damage

Dr. ir. D. Fernandez Rivas, University of Twente

Injecting without needles is challenging because all skins are different. The study of fast travelling tiny droplets impacting on soft substrates will give researchers knowledge to inject without harming the skin. It will also enable the determination of skin properties for vaccinations, cosmetics, and other uses, where needles are feared.

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Hydrogen Bubbles Quantified

Dr. ir. J.W. Haverkort (Delft University of Technology)

Green hydrogen can be produced through electrolysis of water. The efficiency of this process can be improved by better understanding and influencing the behaviour of bubbles generated at the electrodes. A unique new physical model describing the complex interaction between electrodes, bubbles, and flows will provide the necessary insight. After experimental validation, it will be used to design improved electrodes and the next generation of innovative, efficient, safe, and highly compact electrolysers.

Space duster on sunlight

Dr. M.J. Heiligers, Delft University of Technology

SWEEP investigates the idea of a “shuttlebus” to clean up space debris. It picks up debris objects and transports them to a place where they no longer pose a threat to satellites. It does so in a sustainable manner using a wafer-thin mirror to “sail” on the stream of solar photons.

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Democratizing Cloud Application Programming

Dr. A. Katsifodimos, Delft University of Technology

Every single tap on our phone or click on our laptop triggers computations taking place in the cloud, a computational infrastructure offered on demand. Only very few skilled, and hard to hire programmers can program cloud applications that operate at internet scale. This research project sets out to change this.

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Computational models to improve regenerative heart valve prostheses

Dr. ir. S. Loerakker, Eindhoven University of Technology

In the future, it may be possible to replace diseased heart valves with biodegradable valves that transform inside the human body into living, healthy heart valves. So far, however, this regenerative process has often resulted in unpredictable and variable outcomes. The goal of this project is to develop computational models to understand and predict heart valve regeneration, to ultimately calculate what the design criteria for a biodegradable heart valve prosthesis are to develop into a living, healthy, and functional heart valve.

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mRNA nanotechnology for therapeutically rebalancing the immune system in disease

Dr. R. van der Meel, Eindhoven University of Technology

Carefully designed immunotherapy is an innovative strategy to effectively treat disease. This project proposes a new concept whereby nanoparticles composed of natural building blocks are generated to deliver mRNA drugs to specific immune cell populations. Using this approach, the immune response can be stimulated to precisely and actively attack tumors. The current program will yield new nanotechnology for precision immunotherapy.

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Intercept 1000-fold more minuscule messengers in blood to improve diagnosis

Dr. Ir. E. van der Pol, Biomedical Engineering & Physics, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, location AMC

Blood contains small messengers. These messengers contain relevant information, which are useful for early diagnosis of diseases such as cancer. These messengers, however, are hidden within the blood, which hampers their detection. To detect a sufficient number of messengers, a much faster search is essential. Therefore, in project 1E3 researchers will develop new technologies to detect these messengers 1,000-fold faster than currently possible. These ultrafast technologies will provide clinicians with a new source of information, thereby enabling earlier diagnosis of disease.

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Beyond the boundary: smart air circulation strategies for improved light and energy use efficiency in controlled environment agriculture

Dr SRM Vialet-Chabrand, Wageningen University and Research

A well-growing crop consumes so much CO2 that the low rate of CO2 diffusion in the surrounding layer of still air compared to the consumption rate of leaves can limit photosynthesis. Until now, air CO2 enrichment in the greenhouse has been the main solution to increase the CO2 available for photosynthesis. However, efforts to have CO2-neutral greenhouses in 2040 require an alternative approach. Increasing our knowledge on how forced air circulation within a plant canopy can maintain high and homogeneous CO2 levels near the plant will help improve photosynthesis and allow high yield with less supply of CO2.

Physics-informed data-driven modelling and control of floating wind turbines

Dr. Ir. A. Viré, Delft University of Technology

Floating offshore wind energy has been identified as a key enabler in order to make Europe climate neutral by 2050. A barrier to the deployment of large floating wind farms is the level of flow unsteadiness and associated uncertainty around the rotor, whose dynamics is vastly different from that of existing bottom-mounted wind turbines. The blades can interact with their wake, hence decreasing annual energy production and turbine lifetime. This research will develop a new probabilistic surrogate model for the unsteady aerodynamics of floating turbines, trained on physics-based models and suitable for control of floating wind turbines.

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Robots with a gentle touch

Dr. M. Wiertlewski, Delft University of Technology

Robots have improved working conditions by handling dirty, dangerous, or dull tasks present in many industry sectors; however tiring manual labour is still necessary in sectors such as agriculture, recycling or care, where a soft touch is required to grasp and handle delicate objects. To be skillfull, robots need to perceive the texture, shape and softness of the object in hand and to detect when it can potentially slip, via their sense of touch. Using machine learning and new tactile sensors, I will endow new dexterous robots with the sense of touch inspired by the remarkable human tactile perception.

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Investigating Metabolic And Genetic Electrolyte disturbances in THE KIDNEY (IMAGE-the-KIDNEY)

Dr. J.H.F. de Baaij, Radboudumc, Department of Physiology

Patients with type 2 diabetes and patients with rare DNA mutations develop magnesium deficiencies because they lose too much magnesium in the urine. This research will develop of new kidney cells models and imaging methods to measure magnesium reabsorption in cells and animals. These innovative approaches will allow to increase our understanding of the disease and will allow to test new therapeutics.

Outside of genes in epilepsy

Dr. T.S.Barakat, Erasmus MC

Severe epilepsy is often caused by gene mutations. In most patients, the genetic cause cannot be identified. Here, we will focus on the non-coding genome, to find alterations that might lead to epilepsy, located outside protein-coding genes. Mutations in such regulatory elements are known to cause disease, but have not been studied in epilepsy. We will change this, using novel technology and stem cell disease modelling. This will increase our knowledge on how epilepsy originates, will lead to new diagnostics and might on the long term lead to novel therapies.

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The enigmatic triangle of cluster headache, sleep and the biological clock

Dr. R. Fronczek, Leiden University Medical Centre

People with cluster headache suffer from such excruciating pain attacks that the disease has often been called ‘suicide headache’. As the attacks often strike during sleep, patients desperately beg for normal night-rest. This inquiry clarifies how cluster headache attacks are related to sleep and the biological clock; and whether two therapies that specifically work on this can give people with cluster headache a good night’s sleep again.

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Impact of obesity on the start of life

Dr. R. Gaillard, Erasmus MC, Sophia Children’s  Hospital - Department of Pediatrics

Obesity of the mother, before and during pregnancy, leads to increased risks of cardiovascular diseases in their offspring. It is not known how maternal obesity increases this risk of adverse offspring health outcomes. This research examines the impact of maternal obesity on the development of the placenta and the embryo in the earliest phase of life, the subsequent effects on offspring cardiovascular health throughout the life-course and potential next steps to prevent these detrimental effects in offspring.

Gender differences in susceptibility to cognitive conditions due to the X-chromosome

Dr. M.C. Gontan, Erasmus MC

Men and women have different chances to suffer from cognitive conditions. For example, autism has a higher frequency in men and anxiety conditions occur more in women. Because women have two X-chromosomes and men only one, women have to silence one X-chromosome. How this works is not well known and may explain some male-female differences. The researchers will investigate the silencing of the X-chromosome and hope to find an explanation for the mentioned gender differences.

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Mitigating health inequity by creating inclusive Patient Reported Outcome Measures

Dr. L. Haverman, Amsterdam UMC

Patient centered care is increasingly acknowledged as fundamental to effective health care delivery. To fully understand what is important to patients, questionnaires can be used. The answers provide direct feedback for  discussion in the examination room, which, among other benefits, improves quality of life. Patients with low literacy or multiple disabilities and those who do not speak or understand Dutch, are unable to complete the questionnaires. This leads to increased health care inequity. This research focuses on developing questionnaires that can be completed by all patients, so that everyone can benefit from optimal care.

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Bad fat? Improving lipid metabolism to treat Alzheimer’s disease

Dr. R.H.N. van der Kant, Amsterdam UMC, Alzheimer Center

Genetic risk factors that increase the risk for Alzheimer’s disease have a major role in brain fat metabolism and immune function. This research will investigate how fat accumulation in the brain contributes to the development of Alzheimer’s disease, and will develop new pharmaceutical interventions that can prevent or treat the disease.

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Aging in place: are the healthcare reforms working?

Dr. J.L. MacNeil Vroomen, Amsterdam UMC, Internal Medicine-Geriatrics

European countries spend billions on long-term care for their aging population. Many have implemented reforms to keep future care affordable, often with a focus on staying at home longer. Yet nobody has evaluated if these reforms are actually reducing costs nor – even more importantly – if they work for the people receiving care and the family/friends who increasingly support them. This research develops a method to evaluate aging in place, compare countries and recommend to countries which reforms work best for all involved.

When colorectal cancer gets nervous

Dr. V. Melotte, MUMC – Pathologie

Even though it is currently well established that neurons within the colorectal tumor-microenvironment negatively impact patients prognosis, knowledge regarding their contribution to colorectal carcinogenesis remains a black box. In this project I will perform an in-depth characterization of these tumor-associated-neurons by identifying their origin and molecular profile. Moreover I will investigate how these neurons regulate colorectal cancer hallmarks.

Exploiting gamma-delta (gd) T cells as innovative agents of cancer immunotherapy

Dr. N.F. de Miranda, Leiden University Medical Center

Cancer immunotherapy makes use of cells or molecules from our immune system to fight cancer. It is a very successful strategy to treat cancer but not yet effective in the majority of cancer patients. To extend the benefit of cancer immunotherapy to more patients new immunotherapeutic approaches must be developed. This project aims at exploring the potential of a type of immune cell (gamma delta (gd) T cell) that shows great promise as a novel immunotherapeutic agent.

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Kidney and blood

Dr. R.K. Schneider, Erasmus MC

Our kidneys and blood are in a continuous cross-talk as kidneys filters our blood. One major open question is how this cross-talk is changed when the kidney function decreases or when blood cells become abnormal in a blood cancer. Clinical data indicate that this understanding is urgently needed as patients with reduced kidney function have an abnormal blood production and patients with blood cancer have reduced kidney function. We aim to protect the kidney from losing its function in blood cancer and to maintain a normal production of blood cells in kidney disease.

Balancing Mitochondria and Protein Aggregation in Alzheimer's disease

Dr. V. Sorrentino, Amsterdam UMC, Medical Biochemistry Department

During Alzheimer’s disease, mitochondria, the energy producing-units in the brain cells, produce less energy. This leads to altered protein homeostasis and the brain accumulates detrimental protein aggregates, resulting in time in memory loss and cognitive deficiency. Nowadays neurodegeneration research mainly focuses on deleting aggregates by means of antibodies, which is only possible in late states of the disease. In the current project, the researchers instead want to identify how healthy mitochondria can fight toxic protein aggregates, with the aim to reverse early signs of Alzheimer’s disease.

Inborn errors of immunity in humans suffering from severe staphylococcal infections

Dr. A.N. Spaan, University Medical Center Utrecht

Staphylococcus aureus is a bacterium that causes superficial infections in most humans. Some previously healthy individuals, however, develop a life-threatening disease upon infection. What explains the tremendous interindividual variability between humans in the severity of their infection? This project will investigate if the severe infections in previously healthy but critically ill patients is explained by inborn errors of their immunity to Staphylococcus aureus.

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Exploring uncharted territory: the landscape of immune cell activity in cancer

Dr. D.S. Thommen, Netherlands Cancer Institute

Cancers resemble geographic maps where, like large cities alternating with less populated regions, infiltrating immune cells either cluster in large groups or are scattered throughout the tumor. In this study, researchers will investigate how the location of immune cells in the tumor influences their function and their activation by immunotherapy. The results will allow them to understand how tumors do or do not respond to immunotherapy and how this can be used to improve immunotherapy treatment.

Take it personally: A cognitive neuroscience approach to getting a grip on depression

Dr. M.J. van Tol, University Medical Center Groningen

Complete recovery in daily life functions is difficult to obtain after a depression. Staying focused and getting things done remains challenging for long, which puts an individual at risk for relapse. This project aims to elucidate how the brain can enter a focused mode more easily and investigates how setting important personal goals can help achieve that. This could help to recover fully and to prevent relapse.

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Strengthening Transgender Care for Youth

Dr. A.L.C. de Vries, Amsterdam UMC, location VUmc

Medical transgender care for youth is confronted with overwhelming increases in referrals. This project aims to provide better evidence base of the current care model. In addition, in collaboration with adolescents, their parents and care providers, a decision making framework will be developed.

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A gut feeling about rheumatoid arthritis

Dr. D. van der Woude, Leiden University Medical Center

Rheumatoid arthritis is caused by a fault in the immune system, that takes a wrong turn years before disease onset. However, the factors that reinforce the abnormalities in the immune system and ultimately lead to disease are still unknown. This project will shed light on the role of gut content (such as food and microbes) in driving the immune system further down the path towards rheumatoid arthritis. This will provide clues as to whether in the future, a change in diet or a new treatment to modulate gut content, may be able to prevent this disease.