prof. dr. L.M. (Liesbeth) Veenhoff
Research interests
Liesbeth Marian Veenhoff
Born 23-11-1972, NL
Partner of Jan Jacob Schuringa, mother of two born 2003 and 2005
Address: European Research Inst. for the Biology of Ageing, University Medical Center Groningen; Antonius Deusinglaan 1; room 205, 9713 AV Groningen; The Netherlands
email: l.m.veenhoff@rug.nl
Training
Master: University of Groningen; August 1996; Biology (Biochemistry/Molecular Biology)
PhD: University of Groningen; 7 September 2001, supervisor Prof. Dr. Poolman; Cum Laude
Work experience since completing PhD
2002-2003 post doctoral HFSP fellow, Rockefeller University (New York, USA), 1fte
2004-2010 post doctoral veni & vidi fellow, University of Groningen (NL), 0.8fte
2010-2012 Assistant Prof, University Medical Center Groningen (NL), 1fte
2012-present Group leader European Research Institute for the Biology of Ageing (ERIBA), University Medical Center Groningen (NL)
(UHD/Associate Prof since 2015, ius promovendi since 2018, Full Prof since 2024)
Brief summary of research over the last five years
The main research line in the group is to understand the role of the nuclear pore complex (NPC) in ageing. The NPCs are the sole gateways to the interior of the nucleus and their function is essential to all eukaryotic life. The NPC’s function is intimately connected to the primary hallmarks of ageing of protein homeostasis and genome stability. Liesbeth has made significant contributions to the understanding of the structure and function of nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) with landmark papers published in 2007 and 2011. Our more recent work in uncovering the vulnerabilities of NPCs in ageing cells (2015-20) led to the discovery of quality control mechanisms that safeguard the intrinsically disordered proteins of the NPC with significant breakthroughs in 2022/23 showing new phase state surveillance mechanisms. The surveillance of the intrinsically disordered proteins of the NPC is a main interest in the lab, as it appears that mechanisms that guard their structural state, also guard other intrinsically disordered proteins related to aggregation pathologies. This provides a new entry into the problem of protein aggregation pathologies and ageing. Complementing these studies aiming to uncover how the quality control of NPCs and intrinsically disordered proteins can be better safeguarded in ageing, we aim to contribute to a better understanding of the cellular ageing process in general. Here, we provided a description of cellular ageing in terms of physical and chemical parameters, which is a perspective that promises to be highly complementary to the traditional cell biological one.
Grants, scholarships and prizes
PI
2020 'Quality control of nuclear pores', NWO-Vici Science Domain
2020 'Guardians of protein disorder', NWO-XL Science Domain (previously ENW-GROOT) consortium grant, I act as project leader.
2017 'Unravelling the molecular mechanism of impaired nuclear transport in ALS' Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (BBoL-NWO)
2016 Aspasia, Netherlands Organization for Scientific Reserach (NWO)
2015 'A mother’s sacrifice: asymmetric inheritance of ageing factors' Netherlands Organization for Scientific Reserach (NWO-ALW)
2013 ‘Aging of the Nuclear Pore Complex: relating structure and function’ Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (ECHO-NWO).
2008 ‘Composition, function, and dynamics of the yeast nuclear envelope’ financed by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (Vidi-NWO)
2004 Veni-NWO
2002 Human Frontiers Fellowship long term fellowship
2001 My thesis 'Mechanistic aspects and structural organization of a secondary sugar transporter' was awarded with the honour 'Cum laude' representing the top 5 % of PhD theses.
1996 The Unilever Research Award 1996 for the best master student research project ‘Purification and reconstitution of transport proteins’.
Co-PI
2025 ‘Holy Trap, intrinsically disordered proteins guard the gab’ NWO-XL Science Domain, consortium grant
2010 Co-author on the proposal for the Systems Biology Centre for Energy Metabolism and Ageing. Funding for 1 PhD student, project leader. (NWO)
2008 Co-author on collaborative project “transport through a polymer network”. Funding for 1 PhD student. (Zernike institute for Advanced Material)
2008 The Netherlands Proteomics Centre funds proteome research on the yeast nucleus. Funding for 1 PhD student.