Health and Life

Using state-of-the-art experiments and simulations, TU/e and University of Groningen researchers have unveiled some of the secrets for organ asymmetry in the human body. The work has just been published in Science Advances.

Hugh Marston is an expert in the field of precision psychiatry. On March 20, he will deliver his inaugural lecture titled: Bringing Precision to Psychiatry: Driving a new era of therapeutic innovation.

Are microplastics really as harmful to our health as reports in recent years would have us believe? And how many microplastics are actually found in the human body? In an article published in The Guardian on 13 January, scientists expressed their concerns about unfounded claims and conclusions about microplastics. We asked Barbro Melgert, professor of Respiratory Immunology at the University of Groningen, to comment on this report.

Master's student Thijs van der Laan has developed an AI language model that helps people with aphasia find words. His research project, entitled ‘AI-phasie’, won him the Impact Award from the Faculty of Science and Engineering at the University of Groningen in the category Students.

University of Groningen professor Giovanni Maglia has developed a tool for investigating the causes of disease and health: analysing individual proteins using nanopores. To this end, he founded the company Portal Biotech. On 5 January, Maglia received the Faculty of Science and Engineering Impact Award.

Alexander Belyy receives the FEBS Excellence Award 2025 for researching pathogenic microorganisms that ‘hijack’ their host cells’ cytoskeleton in order to escape the immune system.

ModAlgae BV has signed a licensing agreement with the University of Groningen. The signing marks an important step in the commercialization of ModAlgae’s natural glycogen, extracted from microalgae; which offers a compelling, sustainable alternative to current ingredients used in the cosmetics industry. ModAlgae is a joint initiative of Prof. Marc van der Maarel of the ENTEG Institute, Mariska van der Hoek, CEO and co-founder, Dr. Cindy Semeijn, and Alle van Wijk, senior research assistant at the UG.

Martien Kas argues that the DSM should devote more attention to the biological origin of disorders. This would allow for precision-psychiatry, with more targeted diagnoses and treatments.

Prof Dr Anna Salvati, Dr Christoffer Åberg and Prof Dr Siewert-Jan Marrink have been granted a National Science Agenda (NWA) funding to further develop life-saving drugs based on nanotechnology with the NanoMedNL consortium.

PFAS accumulates in the environment, and is harmful for humans and animals. Biochemist Clemens Mayer and PhD student Suzanne Jansen are working on enzymes that can break down PFAS.

Nathalie Katsonis has won the Ammodo Science Award for Fundamental Research. She develops adaptive molecular materials and studies the chemical origins of life, which in turn yield insights for vaccines and clearing up oil spills at sea.