Recently, several prestigious prizes and grants have been awarded to our AI&I members. Learn more about these accomplished individuals and their projects in the article below!
NWO Open Competition ‘Exact Sciences XS’ – dr. Judy van Beijnum and Parvin Akbari
As part of the Open Competition 'Exact Sciences-XS NWO has awarded 48 grants of up to 50,000 euros. The full amount was awarded to dr. van Beijnum, a cell biologist and project leader in the Laboratory of Medical Oncology at Amsterdam UMC and member of the Amsterdam institute for Immunology and Infectious diseases.
The project was formulated based on work of PhD student Parvin Akbari and investigates how CAR T-cell therapy works. This promising treatment has the potential to cure cancer but also carries risks, such as T-cell exhaustion. In this condition, CAR T-cells lose their energy supply, rendering them unable to effectively eliminate cancer cells. The aim of the study is to gain a better understanding of the role of mitochondria of this mechanism.
Maarten Kappelle Twin Award for Best Article – Pamela Capendale and dr. Ines Garcia Rodriguez
During the annual conference of the Dutch Society for Pediatrics (NVK), Pamela Capendale and Ines Garcia Rodriguez (PhD candidate and former PhD candidate under pediatric infectious diseases specialist Dasja Pajkrt) received the Maarten Kappelle Twin Award for best scientific article.
Their publication, “Parechovirus infection in human brain organoids: host innate inflammatory response and not neuro-infectivity correlates to neurologic disease,” appeared in Nature Communications. The study explores why certain parechovirus types lead to brain disease, while others do not.
The award includes a €750 cash prize, which the recipients may spend at their discretion.
Learn more about the work of Pamela Capendale, Dr. Garcia Rodriguez and colleagues here.
PhD with distinction (cum laude) - dr. Bob Kullberg
Bob Kullberg, physician-researcher and member of the Amsterdam institute for Immunology and Infectious diseases, recently obtained his PhD with distinction (cum laude) at the intersection of microbiology and infectious diseases. In his doctoral research, titled "Gut microbiota and pneumonia: from health to severe infection", he explored the relationship between gut microbiota and pneumonia, a topic that offers surprising insights into how our intestines can play a role in severe infections elsewhere in the body.