Prof. Oscar Kuipers to receive the ‘Simon Stevin Master’ award
Professor of Molecular Genetics Oscar Kuipers has been awarded the title of ‘Simon Stevin Master 2011’ by the Technical Sciences Foundation (STW). Kuipers will receive a grant of EUR 500,000 to spend on research as he sees fit.
Kuipers has regularly combined fundamental research and practical applications during his career. He has made no less than twelve patent applications.
Cell Differentiation
Kuipers’ research group studies bacterial genetics and physiology. The research is focused on cell differentiation in bacteria. Bacteria growing in a culture can develop different characteristics, while their genome remains unchanged. Kuipers: ‘Our research has many applications, for example the improvement of protein production in industrial fermentation.’
Modified Peptides
One of the group’s other focuses is the modification of peptides. Peptides are produced by bacteria and can be used to create antibiotics. Modified peptides are chemically more stable and retain their function longer, making them more suitable for medical applications.
Most Important Prize
The Simon Stevin Master award is the most important prize for technical-scientific research in the Netherlands and honours researchers who have successfully combined excellent fundamental scientific work with socially relevant issues and applications.
Alongside Kuipers, the nano-scientist Prof. Dave Blank of the University of Twente was also awarded the Simon Stevin Master. The awards will be presented on 6 October during STW’s festive 30th anniversary celebrations.
For more information: Prof. Oscar Kuipers
| Last modified: | 05 January 2018 11.53 a.m. |
More news
-
13 August 2019
Eat, sleep, recycle
The 51st edition of KEI week is devoted to the theme of sustainability. On Monday 12 August, around 6,000 KEI participants and KEI leaders were handed cloth bags instead of plastic ones and a KEI wristband with a chip enabling digital payments. A vegetarian...
-
12 August 2019
Cold winters not caused by Arctic climate change
Recent studies into the relationship between decreases in sea ice in the Arctic and ice-cold winters in the mid-latitudes, like the Polar Vortex cold waves in North America, seem to suggest that such a connection does indeed exist. However, the mechanisms...
-
05 August 2019
New Zealand’s biodiversity will take millions of years to recover
The arrival of humans in New Zealand, some 700 years ago, triggered a wave of extinction among native bird species. Calculations by scientists from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands and Massey University in New Zealand show that it would...