We explored the Universe using weak gravitational lensing, a phenomenon that occurs when light from distant galaxies is bent by the gravitational fields of closer cosmic objects, much like how a lens distorts light.

The external tissues of plants and animals are colonized by microbial communities termed microbiota. When organisms are exposed to environmental pollutants, these substances will therefore encounter microbiota at the exposure interface.

In this thesis we investigate cosmology and the large scale structure of the Universe using cosmological simulations.

Promotores: H. Schiessel, G.T. Barkema

Promotor: E.F. Smets, Co-promotor: J. Geml

Curved single crystals provide variable, but well-defined surface structures.

Promotor: Prof.dr. W.J.G.M. Peijnenburg

Promotor: M. Danhof Co-promotor: O.E. Della Pasqua

Novel entities may pose risks to humans and the environment. The small particle size and relatively large surface area of micro- and nanoparticles (MNPs) make them capable of adsorbing other novel entities, leading to the formation of aggregated contamination.

Promotor: Prof.dr. H.J.A. Rottgering

Actinobacteria are well known for the production of bioactive natural products, many of which have applications in the fields of human, animal and plant health. Subject of this thesis are the anthracyclines, glycosylated aromatic polyketides with potent anticancer activity.

Plants and soils from natural ecosystems harbor great diversity of soil microorganisms, which could potentially contribute to the sustainability of horticulture. The knowledge about using wild plant species and soil from natural ecosystem to improve the crop health will advance the application of ecological…

Sound is everywhere in the marine environment and hearing is therefore a very important for stimuli for fish. They use sound for orientation and communication, during migration, aggregation and spawning, but also for detection of prey and predators.

This thesis is devoted to an in-depth examination of the various effects of disorder in the cuprate high-temperature superconductors.

To limit the effects of climate change, global average temperature since pre-industrial measurements are to be kept well below 2 °C preferably even at 1.5 °C.

In this course, you will learn about sustainability and staying with the environmental boundaries of our planet. You will gain an understanding of the effects of growing affluence and population growth, the key challenges we are facing, and ways to influence your direct environment.

Optical cavities are useful tools to enhance the interaction between light and matter, which is important to make good quantum emitters. However, it turns out that the cavities themselves (without any quantum emitters) are already interesting objects to study.

Tot wel 50% van de mensen met de ziekte van Parkinson ontwikkelt na verloop van tijd cognitieve achteruitgang; deze studie onderzoekt het gebruik van ‘oefeneffecten’ op neuropsychologische tests als een vroege voorspeller van cognitieve achteruitgang.

The aim of this thesis was to develop aluminium salt-based nanoparticles that may ultimately be used as adjuvant in human vaccines.

The aim of this thesis is to present novel techniques for proving cryptographic schemes secure against quantum adversaries. Most results are within the context of an idealized model called the ‘quantum random-oracle model’.

Promotor: Prof.dr. A.P. IJzerman, Co-Promotor: L.H. Heitman

Welke rol spelen stress en angst bij de vorming van nocebo hyperalgesie?

Onderzoek dat binnen het instituut wordt uitgevoerd valt onder het onderzoeksprogramma Criminal Justice: Legitimacy, Accountability and Effectivity. In dit onderzoeksprogramma werken (strafrecht)juristen en sociaal wetenschappers, in het bijzonder criminologen, nauw samen.

De Landelijke Werkgroep Kind en Ouder in de Strafrechtsketen (KOS) heeft als doel de zichtbaarheid en behandeling van ouders en kinderen in de Nederlandse strafrechtsketen te verbeteren door een combinatie van centralisatie, advies en onderzoek.

Om een valide strafsysteem te behouden, moet je de grotere vragen rondom straffen blijven stellen: waarom straffen we? Wat mag de overheid wel en niet op dit gebied? Rechtsfilosoof Jeroen ten Voorde bekijkt dit soort vraagstukken en houdt zijn wetenschappelijke collega's en het publiek scherp.

'Als je naar Cuba wilt, moet je wel snel zijn', wordt er vaak gezegd. Alsof op Cuba de tijd pas is gaan lopen sinds het bezoek van Obama en het concert van The Rolling Stones in 2016, alsof de tijd zou hebben stilgestaan sinds de Cubaanse Revolutie in 1959.

Op 16 januari 2020 verdedigde Maaike Wensveen haar proefschrift 'Eigen haard is goud waard?'. Het promotieonderzoek is begeleid door promotoren prof.dr. P. Nieuwbeerta en dr. J.M.H. Palmen.

Promotores: Prof.dr. J. Schaye, Prof.dr. S.D.M. White (MPA Garching)

The formation of stars and planets happens over multiple scales, which can interact. In particular, planet formation happens in the dense, complex environment of star forming regions.

In this thesis, I study 1) metabolic alterations in tuberculosis related to wasting syndrome in human patients as well as in rodent and fish animal models. 2) effects of the mutation of the leptin gene on cachexia and diabetes in rodent and zebrafish animal models.

Promotie

Is het mogelijk om oxytocine reacties bij gezonde personen farmacologisch te conditioneren en de neurale circuits te identificeren die aan deze conditionering ten grondslag liggen?

The aim of this thesis was to study phage infection in Streptomyces, focused on cell wall-deficient cells. Bacteriophages (or phages in short) attach to the cell wall of bacteria after which they replicate and lyse the host cell.

Patients share valuable advice and experiences with their peers in online patient discussion groups.

Freshwater biodiversity has been threatened by eutrophication due to excessive nutrients in the environment. Releasing the freshwater species from such pressures requires efforts from industry and manufacturers to avoid emissions to vulnerable and high-risk regions.

The goal of this thesis is to understand how interfacial parameters, such as the addition of organic additives, bulk pH or metal cations of the electrolyte, affect the relevant electrocatalytic reactions, i.e. electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction or hydrogen evolution reaction.

This dissertation focused on computational methods based on first principles calculations using the Density Functional Theory (DFT) framework. Emphasis was laid on affordable methods that can provide a tradeoff between computational expense and accuracy.

Promotor: G.R. de Snoo, Co-promotores: M.G. Vijver, J.P.M. Vink

The primary goal of this research is to deepen our understanding of substrate-enzyme interactions in Glycoside hydrolases. For this purpose, Bacillus circulans xylanase (BcX) has been selected as a well-established model to examine the Michaelis complex and glycosyl-enzyme adduct.

The research presented in this thesis explores the chemotherapeutic potential of metal-based compounds as chemotherapy agents, with an initial focus on the synthesis and DNA interaction studies of platinum and palladium compounds utilizing the [Pt(bapbpy)]2+ scaffold. The study identifies intercalation…

Promotores: Prof.dr. W.J.G.M. Peijnenburg & Dr. M.G. Vijver

The work in this thesis describes the fundamental role of Lkb1 as a conductor of metabolism-related processes in zebrafish larvae.

BlaC is the β-lactamase of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. We show that it can recover from inhibition by clavulanic acid and that phosphate helps it do so.

This thesis contributes to studying primordial cosmology theories and their detectability in future observations.

Carbohydrates, alongside proteins and nucleic acids, constitute a crucial and versatile family of biomolecules present in all life forms. They manifest as monosaccharides, oligosaccharides, and polysaccharides, covalently bonded to proteins and fats. Carbohydrates are integral to plant and arthropod…

This thesis develops a method for direction dependent calibration of the ionosphere in radio interferometric data.

A plasma is an ionized gas with very low electrical resistivity. As such, magnetic field lines are 'frozen in' and move with the fluid. Magnetic field lines that are linked, knotted and tangled, cannot be undone by the fluid motions.

Food security is challenged by a growing global population and by climate change. Drought and soil salinity are considered the most important ones that inhibit crop yield and distribution. Worryingly, climate change is predicted to increase not only their frequency and severity, but also their co-occurrence,…

The challenge of achieving fast quantification in metabolomics is the presence of severe matrix effects during the MS analysis of complex samples.

In this PhD study, I aim to deepen our understanding of the influence of major mycorrhizal types, namely arbuscular mycorrhizae (AM) and ectomycorrhizae (EM), on the global soil carbon cycle and their potential distribution changes under future environmental shifts.