Specialization
Reproductive Biology
Focus of research
Bio-sketch
Callista Mulder is an assistant professor at the Amsterdam UMC where she focusses on the preclinical development of spermatogonial stem cell-based male fertility restoration therapies for those who currently cannot have a biologically own child otherwise, including childhood cancer survivors, patients with benign hematological disorders and transwomen. In her work, she aims to develop effective novel treatments in the laboratory and performs preclinical safety studies for both recipient and offspring derived from these experimental fertility techniques. In her PhD, she was the first to investigate the long-term health of SSC transplantation recipients and offspring. After PhD graduation, she took part in a project that showed that testicular organ cultures of different mouse strains have a diverse differentiation potential. Callista contributed to a large cohort study that proved the presence of spermatogonia in a majority of transwomen, thereby opening up new fertility preservation strategies for them. Over the years she has developed expertise in the fertility preservation, spermatogenesis, and the molecular biology and histology of testicular cells, including epigenetic and transcriptomic regulation. While focusing on the male in Amsterdam UMC, she did a postdoctoral training on ovarian cortex cryopreservation at the RadboudUMC and was a visiting postdoc in Adelaide, Australia. Next to her research, she was a policy advisor for the Amsterdam Reproduction and Development research institute (until 2019).
Education
2012-2018 PhD in Reproductive Biology (UvA)
Thesis: "Safeguarding medically assisted reproduction"
2011-2012 University Teaching Qualification (BKO) (VU)
2009-2011 MSc Biomedical Sciences (VU)
2006-2009 BSc Health & Life Sciences (VU)
Main research interests:
Spermatogonial Stem Cells
Molecular control of spermatogenesis
Male infertility
Safety of (novel) reproductive techniques
Fertility preservation
Academic Research experience
2023 - present
Assistant professor at the Reproductive Biology Laboratory, Centre for Reproductive Medicine, Amsterdam UMC – location Academic Medical Centre (AMC) in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
2018 - 2023
Postdoctoral researcher at the Reproductive Biology Laboratory, Centre for Reproductive Medicine, Amsterdam UMC – location Academic Medical Centre (AMC) in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
2018 - 2019
Visiting postdoctoral researcher at the Adelaide Medical School and Robinson Research Institute, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia.
2017 - 2018
Postdoctoral researcher at the department of Obstretrics and Gynecology, Radboud Institute for Health Sciences, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
2012 - 2017
PhD candidate at the Reproductive Biology Laboratory, Centre for Reproductive Medicine, Academic Medical Centre (AMC) in Amsterdam, the Netherlands
2011
Second master internship at the laboratory of Cell Growth and Proliferation, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Australia.
2010
First master internship at the division of Molecular Carcinogenesis, Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI-AvL) in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
2008 - 2009
Bachelor internship at the Laboratory of Experimental Virology, Academic Medical Centre (AMC) in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
Academic education experience
2019 – present
Lecturer and coordinator of the MSc Course “Shaping a human” of the MSc track Developmental and Therapeutic Biology, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands
2018 - present
Supervisor of PhD students (as co-promotor) of Robin Struijk (defense date 20-09-2022), Joana Bispo Serrano (defense date 7-12-2022), Jillis van Maaren (2020-present), Iris Sanou (2020-present), Mathangi Lakshmipathi (2022-present) and Madalena Vas Santos (2022-present), Britt Balvers (2024-present)
2012 – present
Supervisor of numerous BSc and MSc students during their research internship or literature thesis.
2012 – present
Guest lecturer at the department of Health and Life Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Lectures on Gametogenesis and Career Development.
2011 - 2012
Junior university lecturer at the department of Health and Life Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Involved in teaching bachelor courses: Human Life Cycle, Human Development and Scientific Processes.
Leadership & societal impact
2018 - 2019
Junior policy advisor for the Amsterdam Reproduction and Development research institute. Tasks: organisation of annual symposium and retreat, internal and external communication, annual report, coordination of travel grants for PhD students (Part-time position).
2017 – 2018
Mentor at the Foundation “Stichting Giving Back”, an organisation that enables ambitious high school students with a limited network to develop themselves in an intensive mentor course in the Netherlands (Volunteer position).
Peer recognition
International collaboration
2022- present
Pioneering member of the world-wide ORCHID-NET network for male fertility preservation.
Selected fellowships and Awards
2024
Nominated for the Klokhuis Wetenschapsprijs with the project “Can you make sperm or eggs in the laboratory?“ as representative of the HipGametes concortium.
2023
Amsterdam UMC Starter Grant “The support in sperm formation: a cure for male infertility”
2022
ZonMW “Verspreidings- en implementatie-impuls” (VIMP) Research Grant. “Becoming a father after childhood cancer using own frozen spermatogonial stem cells: a qualitative focus group study”
2021
ZonMW Off Road Research Grant: “Timing is key: the biological clock in spermatogenesis”
2021
Nominated for the New Scientist Science Talent Prize by the University of Amsterdam faculty of Medicine (social outreach award).
2019
Travel Grant Molecular Andrology Giessen
2019
Catherine van Tussenbroek Travel Grant (B-30-2019)
2019
Amsterdam Reproduction & Development research institute “In Between” Research Grant: “Securing a fertile future for young boys with leukemia: the role of somatic cells in vitro”
2018
Royal Dutch Academy of Arts and Sciences Ter Meulen Grant (number TMB18-345): “Learning from the SCOPE/STOP study: how to follow-up on children’s health born from novel assisted reproductive techniques?”
2011
KWF Kankerbestrijding (Dutch Cancer Society) Scholarship for Students (number 75-2010)
Selected lectures and presentations
2024
Invited as plenary speaker at the ECA2024 (European Congress of Andrology), Stockholm.
2024
Invited as plenary speaker at the NYRA (Network for Young Researchers in Andrology), Brussels.
2023
Selected presentation to introduce ORCHID-NET during the European Testis Workshop.
2023
Invited speaker at the Royal Dutch Academy of Arts and Sciences “40 years Ter Meulen Grant” Symposium. On stage interview and group discussion about fertility preservation for young transgirls.
2022
Invited presentation for the annual Science Day of society for Dutch Clinical Embryologists (KLEM) ‘Fertility preservation for transwomen, what are the options?”
2022
Invited presentation for the first symposium on Animal (Free) Research, as a delegate for Amsterdam Reproduction and Development research institute: ‘A fertile future for boys with cancer: an (animal-free) path to the clinic?”
2021
Invited presentation for the Amsterdam Reproduction & Development research institute 5- year anniversary event: “The road to human in vitro spermatogenesis.”
2019
Poster presentation during the North American Testis Workshop: “The mouse strain matters: success of in vitro spermatogenesis is dependent on genetic background of donor mice”.
2018
Invited presentation for the Dutch Society of Obstetrics and Gyneacology (NVOG) “Fertility preservation for young boys with cancer: safety first?”
2015
Invited presentation for the Dutch Society of Obstetrics and Gyneacology (NVOG) “Spermatogonial Stem cell transplantation: state of the art”