NWO Vidi, recent awardees

Fluorine-free gas diffusion layers via covalent hydrocarbon grafting

Antoni Forner‐Cuenca · Eindhoven University of Technology · NL

Hypothesis Covalent grafting of linear hydrocarbon chains onto carbon surfaces can provide a controllable route to hydrophobic interfaces, in which chain length governs surface energetics and liquid repellency while improving coating robustness relative to non-covalent hydrophobization approaches. This fluorine-free strategy is therefore hypothesized to provide a fundamentally relevant route for re-engineering porous transport materials, where fluoropolymer-based wetting control remains the prev

<scp> <i>RRAGD</i> </scp> p.( <scp>Ser76Leu</scp> ) Variant Causes Dysregulated Expression of Muscle Development and Cytoskeleton Genes in Cardiomyocytes

Jeroen H. F. de Baaij · Radboud University Nijmegen · NL

ABSTRACT Autosomal dominant kidney hypomagnesemia with RRAGD variants (ADKH‐ RRAGD ) is a hereditary disorder characterized by kidney tubulopathy and dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). RagD, encoded by the RRAGD gene, is a small GTPase involved in activating the mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) by amino acids. Although several gain‐of‐function variants in the RRAGD gene have been identified, their contributions to DCM remain unclear. Here, we hypothesize that these RRAGD variants in

Intuitive therapist robot patient physical interaction is worth a thousand words

Beatrice Luciani · Delft University of Technology · NL

Robotic systems can enhance the amount and repeatability of physical guided motor training. Yet their real-world adoption is limited, partly due to non-intuitive trainer/therapist-trainee/patient interactions. To address this gap, we present a haptic teleoperation system for trainers to remotely guide and monitor the movements of a trainee wearing an arm exoskeleton. The trainer can physically interact with the exoskeleton through a commercial handheld haptic device via virtual contact points at

Congruent Kinesthetic and Tactile Haptic Rendering Accelerates the Learning of Highly Dynamic Virtual Sensorimotor Tasks

Laura Marchal-Crespo · Delft University of Technology · NL

Advances in haptic technologies enable rich, multi-channel haptic rendering of interactions with virtual objects during virtual reality training. However, it remains an open question whether multi-channel haptic rendering (kinesthetic and tactile) provides superior motor learning and transfer when training dynamic tasks compared to simpler, single-channel sensory information. We investigated how 40 participants learned to invert and balance a virtual pendulum after training under four haptic ren

Saddlepoint Approximations for Hawkes Jump-Diffusion Processes with an Application to Risk Management*

Roger J. A. Laeven · NL

We propose a statistical model based on Hawkes processes in which large financial losses can arise in close succession serially as well as cross-sectionally. We derive in closed form saddlepoint approximations to the tails of profit and loss distributions, both marginal and joint, and use them to construct explicit risk measure formulae that account for the fact that a given financial institution’s losses make it more likely that that institution will experience further losses, and that other fi

Breaking down ALD:Investigating pathomechanisms using hiPSC-derived CNS models

R. Montoro Ferrer · NL

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:6.0pt;text-align:justify;line-height: 115%">Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) is an X-linked peroxisomal neurometabolic disorder caused by pathogenic variants in the <i>ABCD1</i> gene, resulting in impaired peroxisomal ß-oxidation and accumulation of very long-chain fatty acids (VLCFA). ALD clinical presentation is heterogeneous and unpredictable, including progressive spinal cord axonal degeneration, adrenal insufficiency, and leukodystrophy. Although VLCFA ac

Does heat tolerance vary with rates of oxygen production in photosymbiotic cnidarians?

Elise M. J. Laetz · University of Groningen · NL

Oxygen acquisition and delivery to tissues is believed to be a key factor in heat tolerance, but testing this link has been challenging owing to methodological limitations to separate processes related to oxygen acquisition and oxygen delivery. In this study, we altered tissue oxygenation by manipulating light intensity using cnidarians that host endosymbiotic algae as model species. We first verified that light intensity determines net photosynthetic rates, showing that all species produced oxy

Anaerobic sulfide removal involves an intricate interplay between biomass, biosulfur, and solutes

Annemiek ter Heijne · Wageningen University & Research · NL

In the biodesulfurisation process harmful sulfide is converted to sulfur by sulfide oxidising bacteria (SOB), using oxygen as terminal electron acceptor. Surprisingly, in this process sulfide is already removed before oxygen is consumed. Therefore, sulfide and/or charge is being shuttled between sulfide removal and terminal electron transfer. Previously, it was thought that the bacteria themselves were the exclusive "electron shuttlers". Patterns in sulfide concentration and oxygen reduction pot

Refractive index of milk fat globules and extracellular vesicles in human milk

Nienke Bosschaart · University of Twente · NL

This work provides insight into the refractive index of particles in human milk, which is essential for understanding milk-light interactions. Importantly, applying bovine MFG refractive index values in laser diffraction analysis for human MFGs can lead to significant errors in the estimation of particle size distributions.

The SPHINX public data release

Valentin Mauerhofer · University of Groningen · NL

Context. Low-ionisation state (LIS) metal absorption lines, such as Si II λ 1526, are widely used to trace the properties and dynamics of the interstellar medium (ISM) in galaxies. These lines provide crucial insights into galaxy evolution, including feedback mechanisms, metal enrichment, and the escape fraction of ionising photons ( f esc ) during the epoch of reionisation. Aims. We expand our understanding of LIS absorption lines as diagnostic tools for ISM properties and f esc . Using the hig

How populist citizens see the people and their place in representative democracy

Rosa Kindt · Radboud University Nijmegen · NL

As democracy is often described as government of the people, by the people, and for the people, determining who constitutes ‘the people’ is essential for the working of democracy. Somewhat surprisingly, only populists have embraced this term as a regular part of their rhetoric. This begs the question: Who are/should be the people who hold power and are represented? No research has yet empirically established how citizens conceptualise the people or how this relates to their representation prefer

Startling acoustic stimuli hasten reflexive choice reaching tasks by enhancing, but not changing the timing of, express visuomotor responses

Brian D. Corneil · NL

Responding to an external stimulus takes ∼200 ms, but this can be shortened to as little as ∼120 ms with the additional presentation of a startling acoustic stimulus. This phenomenon is hypothesized to arise from the involuntary release of a prepared movement (a StartReact effect). However, a startling acoustic stimulus also expedites rapid mid-flight, reactive adjustments to unpredictably displaced targets which could not have been prepared in advance. We surmise that for such rapid visuomotor

Metamaterial that learns shape changes by using contrastive learning – METAMATERIALS 2025

Yao Du · University of Amsterdam · NL

Learning to change shape is a fundamental strategy of adaptation and evolution in crossing scales from cells to animals. Synthetic materials can also exhibit complex shape changing capabilities, but lack the ability to learn. Here, we build metamaterials that can learn complex changes by using a constrastive learning scheme. By progressively updating their local stiffnesses, our metamaterials are able to forget and learn new shape changes in sequence, learn multiple shape changes that break reci

Evaluation of tractography parameters for dentato-rubro-thalamic tract reconstruction during pediatric posterior fossa tumor surgery

Pien E. J. Jellema · University Medical Center Utrecht · NL

OBJECTIVE: Intraoperative fiber tractography can help neurosurgeons in localizing eloquent tracts potentially displaced by tumors. In pediatric posterior fossa tumor (pPFT) patients, disturbances to the eloquent dentato-rubro-thalamic tract (DRTT) might contribute to cerebellar mutism syndrome. This study investigates the effect of fiber tractography parameters on DRTT reconstruction in pre- and intraoperative settings. METHODS: T1-weighted and diffusion MRI data were acquired from ten pPFT pati

Triple-negative breast cancer modifies the systemic immune landscape and alters neutrophil functionality

Marleen Kok · The Netherlands Cancer Institute · NL

Cancer disrupts intratumoral innate-adaptive immune crosstalk, but how the systemic immune landscape evolves during breast cancer progression remains unclear. We profiled circulating immune cells in stage I-III and stage IV triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) patients and healthy donors (HDs). Metastatic TNBC (mTNBC) patients had reduced T cells, dendritic cells, and differentiated B cells compared to non-metastatic TNBC patients and HDs, partly linked to prior chemotherapy. Vδ1 γδ T cells from

Endothelial to mesenchymal transition in cardiovascular diseases: molecular insights and clinical perspectives

Ignacio Fernando Hall · NL

Endothelial to mesenchymal transition (EndMT) is a process whereby endothelial cells transition to adopt a mesenchymal-like fate, e.g. to become smooth muscle cells, osteoblasts, fibroblasts, or chondrocytes. In embryonic heart development, the importance of EndMT was established several decades ago, with ECs undergoing EndMT to give rise to the endocardial cushions that ultimately develop into the cardiac valves. More recently, EndMT has been observed in various adult cardiovascular diseases. T

Multimodal brain imaging of insomnia, depression and anxiety symptoms indicates transdiagnostic commonalities and differences

Siemon C. de Lange · Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience · NL

Pain Coping in Patients With Chronic Migraine and Medication Overuse Headache

Gisela M. Terwindt · Leiden University Medical Center · NL

BACKGROUND: Chronic migraine (CM) is a leading cause of disability and often linked to medication overuse headache (MOH). Psychological factors, such as pain coping, may contribute to chronification and medication overuse. While behavioral therapy can help, identifying patients who will benefit remains challenging. This study compared pain coping in individuals with CM and MOH to those with episodic migraine (EM) and controls without headache. It also assessed whether baseline pain coping in CM

<i>MicroRNA-26b−/−</i> augments atherosclerosis, while mimic-loaded nanoparticles reduce atherogenesis

Linsey J. F. Peters · NL

AIMS: Increasing evidence has shown that microRNAs (miRs) play a fundamental role in atherosclerosis, but the exact role of various miRs remains elusive. Preliminary data showed that, with a five-fold increase, miR-26b was highly expressed in human atherosclerotic plaques compared to healthy vessels. Therefore, we aimed to determine its cell-specific effects on atherosclerosis development and its therapeutic potential. METHODS AND RESULTS: We examined the role of miR-26b in atherosclerosis by us

Stem cell culture conditions affect in vitro differentiation potential and mouse gastruloid formation

Marloes Blotenburg · Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences · NL

Aggregating low numbers of mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs) and inducing Wnt signalling generates 'gastruloids', self-organising complex structures that display an anteroposterior organisation of cell types derived from all three germ layers. Current gastruloid protocols display considerable heterogeneity between experiments in terms of morphology, elongation efficiency, and cell type composition. We therefore investigated whether altering the mESC pluripotency state would provide more consist

Association Between Parental Social Position and Childhood Overweight: Mediation by Lifestyle and <scp>BMI</scp> Patterns During Pregnancy

Camille Le Gal · NL

In high-income countries, children born to parents with low socio-economic position (SEP) or with non-Western ethnicity are disproportionally affected by obesity as early as preschool age. We assessed how much of these associations were mediated by parental lifestyle and BMI patterns during pregnancy. We characterised 5-6 years old children with or without overweight from the French Etude Longitudinale Française depuis l'Enfance (ELFE) (n = 8584) and the Dutch Generation R birth cohorts (n = 651

The DRAGON benchmark for clinical NLP

Joeran S. Bosma · NL

Artificial Intelligence can mitigate the global shortage of medical diagnostic personnel but requires large-scale annotated datasets to train clinical algorithms. Natural Language Processing (NLP), including Large Language Models (LLMs), shows great potential for annotating clinical data to facilitate algorithm development but remains underexplored due to a lack of public benchmarks. This study introduces the DRAGON challenge, a benchmark for clinical NLP with 28 tasks and 28,824 annotated medic

Model Reduction for Switched Differential-Algebraic Equations with Known Switching Signal

Md. Sumon Hossain · NL

Building on our recently proposed model reduction methods for switched ordinary linear systems, we propose a comprehensive model reduction method for linear switched differential-algebraic equations (DAEs). In contrast to most other available model reduction methods for switched systems, we consider the switching signal as a given time-variance of the system. This allows us to exploit certain linear subspaces in the reduction process and also provide in general significantly smaller reduced mode

HCN4 in the atrioventricular node

Jaël S. Copier · Amsterdam Neuroscience · NL

Hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated channel 4 (HCN4) drives the funny current in cardiac pacemaker regions. Its involvement in sinoatrial node pacemaker generation is well known, but its function in the atrioventricular (AV) node (AVN) has not intensively been studied. HCN4 is expressed in the AVN, and its expression within the AVN seems similar across mammalian species with HCN4 presence in the inferior nodal extensions, compact node, and AV bundle. The main direct regulators of

A harsher reality for adolescents with depression on social media

Loes Janssen · Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences · NL

= 15.98; 16.9% clinically depressed), we assessed their level of depression and then monitored their social media activities and experiences daily for 100 subsequent days. Depressed adolescents did not differ from their non-depressed peers in the frequency of posting and the time spent scrolling. However, they reported feeling twice as insecure after scrolling, nearly twice as rejected during online communication with friends, and significantly more preoccupied with feedback. Our findings unders

On the asymptotic nature of cosmological effective theories

Carlos Duaso Pueyo · NL

Acknowledgements: We would like to thank Calvin Chen, Jordan Cotler, Laura Engelbrecht, Sadra Jazayeri, Mang Hei Gordon Lee, Scott Melville, Ryo Namba, Guilherme Pimentel, Andrea Sanfilippo, and Yoav Zigdon for useful discussions. E.P. has been supported in part by the research program VIDI with Project No. 680-47-535, which is (partly) financed by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO). C.M. is supported by Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) training grant ST/W

Metamaterial that learns shape changes by using contrastive learning – METAMATERIALS 2025

Yao Du · University of Amsterdam · NL

Learning to change shape is a fundamental strategy of adaptation and evolution in crossing scales from cells to animals. Synthetic materials can also exhibit complex shape changing capabilities, but lack the ability to learn. Here, we build metamaterials that can learn complex changes by using a constrastive learning scheme. By progressively updating their local stiffnesses, our metamaterials are able to forget and learn new shape changes in sequence, learn multiple shape changes that break reci

Inflammation and Obesity Correlate in Pulmonary Hypertension but Associate with Diverging Outcomes.

De Bie, Eckart · NL

RATIONALE &amp; OBJECTIVES: Inflammation is associated with all types of Pulmonary Hypertension (PH) both as a known cause and/or a putative confounder. The most common marker of inflammation, C-reactive protein (CRP), has not been widely studied in PH. This study set out to clarify if CRP informed clinical endotyping and outcomes. Methods &amp; Measurements: Time-series clustering of longitudinal CRP levels was employed. Clinical differences between clusters were validated in three independent

Sulfophenylated centimeter-sized graphene membrane in a direct methanol fuel cell

Weizhe Zhang · Leiden University · NL

. These findings propose functionalized graphene as an alternative to polymer membranes for electrochemical energy devices.

North Sea Storm Surges Amplified by Oscillations Triggered by Preceding Storms

Joris Beemster · Wageningen University & Research · NL

Abstract Storm surges are often treated as independent extremes, yet extratropical cyclones and associated coastal water‐level extremes frequently occur in clustered sequences. Although clustering can increase flood hazard by shortening recovery time, it remains unclear whether preceding storms amplify subsequent surges. We investigate this for the North Sea along the NW European Shelf using long‐term tide gauge records and idealized hydrodynamic modeling. Observations show a pronounced excess o

Epigenomic partitioning of a polygenic risk score for asthma reveals distinct genetically driven disease pathways

Ralph Stadhouders · Netherlands Institute for Art History · NL

BACKGROUND: Individual differences in susceptibility to developing asthma, a heterogeneous chronic inflammatory lung disease, are poorly understood. Whether genetics can predict asthma risk and how genetic variants modulate the complex pathophysiology of asthma are still debated. AIM: To build polygenic risk scores for asthma risk prediction and epigenomically link predictive genetic variants to pathophysiological mechanisms. METHODS: Restricted polygenic risk scores were constructed using singl

Increased bone morphogenetic protein 10 in precapillary pulmonary hypertension patients

Frances S. de Man · NL

Abstract Funding Acknowledgements Type of funding sources: Public grant(s) – National budget only. Main funding source(s): Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research: NWO-VICI num. 918.16.610 and NWO-VIDI num. 917.18.338. Dutch Heart Foundation Dekker senior post-doc grant num. 2018T059 and the Netherlands CardioVascular Research Initiative: CVON-2017-10 DOLPHIN-GENESIS and CVON-2018-29 PHAEDRA-IMPACT. Fundació La Marató de TV3 num.202038. The Spanish Ministry of Science through the Ramón

Increased bone morphogenetic protein 10 in precapillary pulmonary hypertension patients

Frances S. de Man · NL

Abstract Funding Acknowledgements Type of funding sources: Public grant(s) – National budget only. Main funding source(s): Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research: NWO-VICI num. 918.16.610 and NWO-VIDI num. 917.18.338. Dutch Heart Foundation Dekker senior post-doc grant num. 2018T059 and the Netherlands CardioVascular Research Initiative: CVON-2017-10 DOLPHIN-GENESIS and CVON-2018-29 PHAEDRA-IMPACT. Fundació La Marató de TV3 num.202038. The Spanish Ministry of Science through the Ramón

Cholesterol trafficking to the ER leads to the activation of CaMKII/JNK/NLRP3 and promotes atherosclerosis

Mustafa Yalçınkaya · NL

The deposition of cholesterol-rich lipoproteins in the arterial wall triggers macrophage inflammatory responses, which promote atherosclerosis. The NLRP3 inflammasome aggravates atherosclerosis; however, cellular mechanisms connecting macrophage cholesterol accumulation to inflammasome activation are poorly understood. We investigated the mechanisms of NLRP3 inflammasome activation in cholesterol loaded macrophages and in atherosclerosis-prone Ldlr -/- mice with defects in macrophage cholesterol

Increased bone morphogenetic protein 10 in precapillary pulmonary hypertension patients

Frances S. de Man · NL

Abstract Funding Acknowledgements Type of funding sources: Public grant(s) – National budget only. Main funding source(s): Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research: NWO-VICI num. 918.16.610 and NWO-VIDI num. 917.18.338. Dutch Heart Foundation Dekker senior post-doc grant num. 2018T059 and the Netherlands CardioVascular Research Initiative: CVON-2017-10 DOLPHIN-GENESIS and CVON-2018-29 PHAEDRA-IMPACT. Fundació La Marató de TV3 num.202038. The Spanish Ministry of Science through the Ramón

Multi-level transcriptional control of specific macrophage responses

Marten A. Hoeksema · Amsterdam University Medical Centers · NL

Macrophages can adopt diverse functional states in response to environmental cues, a process that is fundamentally controlled at the level of transcriptional regulation. In this review, we outline a hierarchical framework of transcription factor activity that underpins macrophage identity and activation. Firstly, lineage-determining transcription factors establish the cell-type-specific chromatin landscape during development. Upon tissue seeding, local signals shape the activity of additional tr

Pharmacological characterization of allosteric modulators: A case for chemokine receptors

Laura H. Heitman · Oncode Institute · NL

Chemokine receptors are relevant targets for a multitude of immunological diseases, but drug attrition for these receptors is remarkably high. While many drug discovery programs have been pursued, most prospective drugs failed in the follow-up studies due to clinical inefficacy, and hence there is a clear need for alternative approaches. Allosteric modulators of receptor function represent an excellent opportunity for novel drugs, as they modulate receptor activation in a controlled manner and d

Multiparametric Assays Capture Sex- and Environment-Dependent Modifiers of Behavioral Phenotypes in Autism Mouse Models

Aleksandra Badura · Erasmus MC · NL

Background: Current phenotyping approaches for murine autism models often focus on one selected behavioral feature, making the translation onto a spectrum of autistic characteristics in humans challenging. Furthermore, sex and environmental factors are rarely considered. Here, we aimed to capture the full spectrum of behavioral manifestations in 3 autism mouse models to develop a "behavioral fingerprint" that takes environmental and sex influences under consideration. Methods: mutant mice raised

Epigenome-wide association study on the plasma metabolome suggests self-regulation of the glycine and serine pathway through DNA methylation

Joanne A. Hoogerland · University Medical Center Groningen · NL

BACKGROUND: The plasma metabolome reflects the physiological state of various biological processes and can serve as a proxy for disease risk. Plasma metabolite variation, influenced by genetic and epigenetic mechanisms, can also affect the cellular microenvironment and blood cell epigenetics. The interplay between the plasma metabolome and the blood cell epigenome remains elusive. In this study, we performed an epigenome-wide association study (EWAS) of 1183 plasma metabolites in 693 participant

Encoding of cerebellar dentate neuron activity during visual attention in rhesus macaques

Chris I. De Zeeuw · Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience · NL

The role of cerebellum in controlling eye movements is well established, but its contribution to more complex forms of visual behavior has remained elusive. To study cerebellar activity during visual attention we recorded extracellular activity of dentate nucleus (DN) neurons in two non-human primates (NHPs). NHPs were trained to read the direction indicated by a peripheral visual stimulus while maintaining fixation at the center, and report the direction of the cue by performing a saccadic eye

DLC1 promotes mechanotransductive feedback for YAP via RhoGAP-mediated focal adhesion turnover

Stephan Huveneers · Amsterdam University Medical Centers · NL

Angiogenesis is a tightly controlled dynamic process demanding a delicate equilibrium between pro-angiogenic signals and factors that promote vascular stability. The spatiotemporal activation of the transcriptional co-factors YAP (herein referring to YAP1) and TAZ (also known WWTR1), collectively denoted YAP/TAZ, is crucial to allow for efficient collective endothelial migration in angiogenesis. The focal adhesion protein deleted-in-liver-cancer-1 (DLC1) was recently described as a transcription

Capillary electrophoresis–mass spectrometry for creatinine analysis in residual clinical plasma samples and comparison with gold standard assay

Rawi Ramautar · Leiden University · NL

When hospitalized, infants, particularly preterm, are often subjected to multiple painful needle procedures to collect sufficient blood for metabolic screening or diagnostic purposes using standard clinical tests. For example, at least 100 µL of whole blood is required to perform one creatinine plasma measurement with enzymatic colorimetric assays. As capillary electrophoresis-mass spectrometry (CE-MS) utilizing a sheathless porous tip interface only requires limited amounts of sample for in-dep

Habitat modification by marram grass negatively affects recruitment of conspecifics

Carlijn Lammers · University of Groningen · NL

Ecosystem engineers alter their environment often benefiting their own survival and growth yielding self-reinforcing feedbacks. Moreover, these habitat modifications have been found to facilitate recruitment of conspecifics for some species, while for others engineering inhibits recruitment. Whether dune grasses facilitate or inhibit recruitment of conspecifics is yet unknown. Here, we investigated how habitat modification by European marram grass (Ammophila arenaria) through embryonic dune deve

Cradle of Life: From the Formation of Stars to Habitable Worlds with the SKAO

the Cradle of Life working group · NL

This chapter provides an overview of the different science cases covered by the "Cradle of Life" working group, which aims to leverage the capabilities of the Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO) to trace the physical and chemical pathways toward stars and planets formation, how such stars impact their planets, and whether life could exist in such conditions. At its highest frequencies, the SKAO will probe the earliest stages of the raw material fuelling planet formation, while enabling dee

How does Graph Structure Modulate Membership-Inference Risk for Graph Neural Networks?

Megha Khosla · NL

Graph neural networks (GNNs) are widely used for tasks such as node classification and link prediction, but their use in sensitive settings raises concerns about training-data leakage. Prior work on privacy leakage in GNNs largely borrows assumptions from non-graph domains, overlooking the role of graph structure. We argue for a graph-specific analysis of privacy risk and study how graph structure affects node-level membership inference. We formalize membership inference (MI) over node-neighborh

Lipoprotein apheresis affects the concentration of extracellular vesicles in patients with elevated lipoprotein (a)

Joanna Marlęga-Linert · NL

Lipoprotein apheresis (LA) is a therapeutic option for hyperlipoproteinemia(a) (hyper-Lp(a)) and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD). LA improves blood rheology, reduces oxidative stress parameters and improves endothelial function. The underlying molecular mechanisms of LA beneficial effects are unknown, but it has been suggested that LA exhibits multiple activities beyond simply removing lipoproteins. We hypothesized that LA removes not only lipoproteins, but also extracellular vesi

Typed Non-determinism in Concurrent Calculi: The Eager Way

Bas van den Heuvel · NL

We consider the problem of designing typed concurrent calculi with non-deterministic choice in which types leverage linearity for controlling resources, thereby ensuring strong correctness properties for processes. This problem is constrained by the delicate tension between non-determinism and linearity. Prior work developed a session-typed {\pi}-calculus with standard non-deterministic choice; well-typed processes enjoy type preservation and deadlock-freedom. Central to this typed calculus is a

Evolution of Key Oxygen-Sensing Genes Is Associated with Hypoxia Tolerance in Fishes

Courtney H. Babin · NL

Low dissolved oxygen (hypoxia) is recognized as a major threat to aquatic ecosystems worldwide. Because oxygen is paramount for the energy metabolism of animals, understanding the functional and genetic drivers of whole-animal hypoxia tolerance is critical to predicting the impacts of aquatic hypoxia. In this study, we investigate the molecular evolution of key genes involved in the detection of and response to hypoxia in ray-finned fishes: the prolyl hydroxylase domain (PHD)-hypoxia-inducible f

Encompassing view of spatial and single-cell RNA sequencing renews the role of the microvasculature in human atherosclerosis

Rafael Kramann · Erasmus MC · NL

Identification of Wiener state–space models utilizing Gaussian sum smoothing

Angel L. Cedeño · NL

autoMEA: machine learning-based burst detection for multi-electrode array datasets

Vinicius Hernandes · Delft University of Technology · NL

Neuronal activity in the highly organized networks of the central nervous system is the vital basis for various functional processes, such as perception, motor control, and cognition. Understanding interneuronal connectivity and how activity is regulated in the neuronal circuits is crucial for interpreting how the brain works. Multi-electrode arrays (MEAs) are particularly useful for studying the dynamics of neuronal network activity and their development as they allow for real-time, high-throug

Tumor‐Expressed SPPL3 Supports Innate Antitumor Immune Responses

S. Marieke van Ham · Sanquin · NL

The development of an effective antitumor response relies on the synergistic actions of various immune cells that recognize tumor cells via distinct receptors. Tumors, however, often manipulate receptor-ligand interactions to evade recognition by the immune system. Recently, we highlighted the role of neolacto-series glycosphingolipids (nsGSLs), produced by the enzyme β1,3-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase 5 (B3GNT5), in tumor immune escape. We previously demonstrated that loss of signal peptide p

Identification and characterization of <i>Faecalibacterium</i> prophages rich in diversity-generating retroelements

Anastasia Gulyaeva · University Medical Center Groningen · NL

. We further note that four of the prophages possess diversity-generating retroelements implicated in rapid mutation of phage genome loci associated with phage-host and phage-environment interactions and analyze the intricate patterns of retroelement activity. Our study highlights the potential of prophage characterization for elucidating complex molecular mechanisms employed by the phages.

Unveiling the Nanomorphology of HfN thin Films by Ultrafast Reciprocal Space Mapping

Matias Bargheer · NL

Abstract Hafnium Nitride (HfN) is a promising and very robust alternative to gold for applications of nanoscale metals. Details of the nanomorphology related to variations in strain states and optical properties can be crucial for applications in nanophotonics and plasmon‐assisted chemistry. Ultrafast reciprocal space mapping (URSM) with hard X‐rays is used to unveil the nanomorphology of thin HfN films. Static high‐resolution X‐ray diffraction reveals a twofold composition of the thin films bei

V1 neurons are tuned to perceptual borders in natural scenes

Paolo Papale · NL

The visual system needs to identify perceptually relevant borders to segment complex natural scenes. The primary visual cortex (V1) is thought to extract local borders, and higher visual areas are thought to identify the perceptually relevant borders between objects and the background. To test this conjecture, we used natural images that had been annotated by human observers who marked the perceptually relevant borders. We assessed the effect of perceptual relevance on V1 responses using human n

Monitoring Anthracycline Cancer Drug‐Nucleosome Interaction by NMR Using a Specific Isotope Labeling Approach for Nucleosomal DNA

Hugo van Ingen · University of Applied Sciences Utrecht · NL

C-thymidine labeled 601-DNA, the assignment of the methyl signals, and demonstrate its use to observe site-specific binding to the nucleosome by aclarubicin, an anthracycline cancer drug that intercalates into the DNA minor grooves. Our results highlight intrinsic conformational heterogeneity in the 601 DNA sequence and show that aclarubicin binds an exposed AT-rich region near the DNA end. Overall, our data point to a model where the drug invades the nucleosome from the terminal ends inward, ev

RF photonic interference mitigation system using silicon nitride ring resonator network

Maarten Eijkel · NL

We experimentally demonstrate what we believe to be a novel RF interference mitigation technique using a network of low-loss silicon nitride ring resonators. The rings are used for complex (phase and amplitude) line-by-line shaping of higher-order sidebands from an electro-optic modulator to discriminate large and small RF signal input, thereby achieving strong (30 dB) mitigation of a large signal and virtually no mitigation for small signals.

Immersive virtual reality for learning exoskeleton-like virtual walking: a feasibility study

Alex van den Berg · Delft University of Technology · NL

PURPOSE: Virtual Reality (VR) has proven to be an effective tool for motor (re)learning. Furthermore, with the current commercialization of low-cost head-mounted displays (HMDs), immersive virtual reality (IVR) has become a viable rehabilitation tool. Nonetheless, it is still an open question how immersive virtual environments should be designed to enhance motor learning, especially to support the learning of complex motor tasks. An example of such a complex task is triggering steps while wearin

A socially interdependent choice framework for social influences in healthcare decision-making: a study protocol

Sven P H Nouwens · Erasmus University Rotterdam · NL

OBJECTIVES: Current choice models in healthcare (and beyond) can provide suboptimal predictions of healthcare users' decisions. One reason for such inaccuracy is that standard microeconomic theory assumes that decisions of healthcare users are made in a social vacuum. Healthcare choices, however, can in fact be (entirely) socially determined. To achieve more accurate choice predictions within healthcare and therefore better policy decisions, the social influences that affect healthcare user deci

Cerebral amyloid angiopathy decades after red blood cell transfusions: a report of two cases from a prospective cohort

Kanishk Kaushik · Leiden University Medical Center · NL

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Patients who underwent red blood cell (RBC) transfusion from donors who later developed multiple spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhages (ICHs) have recently been identified to have increased risk of ICH themselves. This increased risk of ICH was hypothesized to be related to iatrogenic cerebral amyloid angiopathy (iCAA) transmission. Two cases are presented who had RBC transfusion as an infant and presented with CAA at a relatively young age decades later. METHOD: Cases we

Encoding of cerebellar dentate neuron activity during visual attention in rhesus macaques

Nico A. Flierman · Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience · NL

The role of cerebellum in controlling eye movements is well established, but its contribution to more complex forms of visual behavior has remained elusive. To study cerebellar activity during visual attention we recorded extracellular activity of dentate nucleus (DN) neurons in two non-human primates (NHPs). NHPs were trained to read the direction indicated by a peripheral visual stimulus while maintaining fixation at the center, and report the direction of the cue by performing a saccadic eye

Polaritonic Chemistry Enabled by Non‐Local Metasurfaces

Jaime Gómez Rivas · Eindhoven University of Technology · NL

Vibrational strong coupling can modify chemical reaction pathways in unconventional ways. Thus far, Fabry-Perot cavities formed by pairs of facing mirrors have been mostly utilized to achieve vibrational strong coupling. In this study, we demonstrate the application of non-local metasurfaces that can sustain surface lattice resonances, enabling chemical reactions under vibrational strong coupling. We show that the solvolysis kinetics of para-nitrophenyl acetate can be accelerated by a factor of

The Case for a Quantitative Approach to the Study of Nonnative Accent Features

Mónica Anna Wagner · Radboud University Nijmegen · NL

Research with nonnative speech spans many different linguistic branches and topics. Most studies include one or a few well-known features of a particular accent. However, due to a lack of empirical studies, little is known about how common these features are among nonnative speakers or how uncommon they are among native speakers. Moreover, it remains to be seen whether findings from such studies generalize to lesser-known features. Here, we demonstrate a quantitative approach to study nonnative

Bayesian inference in arm posture perception

Valeria Peviani · Radboud University Nijmegen · NL

We modeled the perception of arm posture as a Bayesian computation. A VR posture-matching task was used to empirically test this Bayesian model. The Bayesian model including a nonuniform postural prior well explained individual participants’ biases in arm posture matching.

Detecting the heterodyning of gravitational waves

Jakob Stegmann · NL

Abstract Gravitational waves modulate the apparent frequencies of other periodic signals. Low-frequency gravitational waves could therefore be detected by observing frequency modulations in signals from higher-frequency sources, e.g. those from binary white dwarfs detected with the LISA gravitational-wave detector. We propose a concrete method to extract these modulations by coherently adding the cross-spectra of a large number of well-resolved quasi-monochromatic signals. We apply this method t

Spatial Predictive Context Speeds Up Visual Search by Biasing Local Attentional Competition

Floortje G. Bouwkamp · Radboud University Nijmegen · NL

The human visual system is equipped to rapidly and implicitly learn and exploit the statistical regularities in our environment. Within visual search, contextual cueing demonstrates how implicit knowledge of scenes can improve search performance. This is commonly interpreted as spatial context in the scenes becoming predictive of the target location, which leads to a more efficient guidance of attention during search. However, what drives this enhanced guidance is unknown. First, it is under deb

Characterization of intestine-specific TRPM6 knockout C57BL/6 J mice: effects of short-term omeprazole treatment

Anastasia Adella · Radboud University Nijmegen · NL

absorption in the intestines is not affected by short-term PPI administration.

Globalized Adversarial Regret Optimization: Robust Decisions with Uncalibrated Predictions

Jannis Kurtz · NL

Optimization problems routinely depend on uncertain parameters that must be predicted before a decision is made. Classical robust and regret formulations are designed to handle erroneous predictions and can provide statistical error bounds in simple settings. However, when predictions lack rigorous error bounds (as is typical of modern machine learning methods) classical robust models often yield vacuous guarantees, while regret formulations can paradoxically produce decisions that are more opti

Generalizing Protein Fitness Prediction Across Distribution Shifts via Structural and Co-evolutionary Priors

Francesca Grisoni · Eindhoven University of Technology · NL

Protein fitness prediction is essential for protein engineering. Recent fitness-landscape benchmarks such as FLIP2 have shown that methods performing well under conventional train-test splits can fail when the test set is shifted out of distribution (OOD), including mutations at unseen positions and variants from unseen protein backbones. In particular, current protein language models (pLMs) often suffer substantial performance degradation under such distribution shifts, limiting their practical

In vivo and ex vivo inflammatory responses of the esophageal mucosa to food challenge in adults with eosinophilic esophagitis

Albert Jan Bredenoord · Amsterdam University Medical Centers · NL

Funding Information: This research is funded within the Partnership between NWO domain Applied and Engineered Sciences and Danone Nutricia Research and with additional financial support from Topsector Agri and Food, project number 16495 with the acronym LOIRE. AJB is supported by Vidi grant 91718300 from the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research NWO. Funding Information: AJB received research funding from Norgine, Thelial, SST and received speaker and/or consulting fees from Laborie,

A Pontryagin class obstruction for purely electric and purely magnetic Weyl curvature tensors

Thijs de Kok · Radboud University Nijmegen · NL

Abstract Do all manifolds that admit Lorentzian metrics also admit such metrics that have a purely electric (PE) or purely magnetic (PM) Weyl curvature tensor? To (partially) answer this question, we show that for all algebraic curvature tensors on a 4 k -dimensional scalar product space that are even or odd under the action of a orientation-reversing isometry, the products of Pontryagin forms that land in the top-degree exterior power of the dual vector space vanish. We use this to derive the v

Overparenting in adolescents’ everyday life: Development and validation of the momentary overparenting scale

Maartje Luijk · Erasmus University Rotterdam · NL

Background. While there is ample theoretical and empirical interest in overparenting, little is known about how overparenting of adolescents operates in everyday family life. This study describes the development and validation of a novel instrument to assess overparenting with Experience Sampling Methods – The Momentary Overparenting (MOP) scale. Methods. Following 143 (Belgian and Dutch) adolescents for 7 subsequent days, we measured overparenting (i.e., worry, interference, and unnecessary hel

High-energy parametric oscillator and amplifier pulsed light source at 2-µm

O. O. Versolato · Advanced Research Center for Nanolithography (Netherlands) · NL

A laser system generating high-energy pulses at 2-µm wavelength with pulse widths tunable from 10-24 ns is described. It comprises an optical parametric oscillator that generates mJ-level signal seed radiation and an optical parametric amplifier that boosts the output to 800 mJ of combined signal and idler when pumped with 2 J pulses of 1064-nm laser light. The system operated with KTP crystals and running at 10 Hz repetition rate is characterized in the spatial, temporal, and spectral domains.

The persistent Laplacian of non-branching complexes

Rui Dong · Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam · NL

Non-branching matrices are real matrices with entries in $ \{-1, 0, 1\} $, where each row contains at most two non-zero entries. Such matrices naturally arise in the study of Laplacians of pseudomanifolds and cubical complexes. We show that a basis for the kernel of a non-branching matrix can be computed in near-linear time. Specifically, the basis has the special property that the supports of all the column vectors in it are disjoint with each other. Building on this result, we show that the up

Flowing with Confidence

Erik Bekkers · University of Amsterdam · NL

Generative models can produce nonsensical text, unrealistic images, and unstable materials faster than simulation or human review can absorb; without per-sample confidence, trust erodes. Existing fixes run $k$ ensembles or stochastic trajectories at $k\times$ compute, measuring variability between models, not model confidence. We propose Flow Matching with Confidence (FMwC). FMwC injects input-dependent multiplicative noise at selected layers, propagates its variance through the network in close

Unpacking the dynamics of generative AI use in our daily lives: towards an integrative trust calibration framework

Theo Araujo · University of Amsterdam · NL

Abstract The growing use of conversational generative AI agents by an increasingly diverse set of individuals gives rise to the following question: How do individuals calibrate their trust in a dynamic, seemingly general-purpose technology that learns from and adapts to their behavior and may take an increasingly central role in their online interactions? In this article, we propose the first steps towards an integrative framework for trust calibration in genAI agents focusing on individuals usi

The state of metabolic engineering in the versatile bacterial cell factory Cupriavidus necator H16

Nico J. Claassens · Wageningen University & Research · NL

Cupriavidus necator strain H16 has emerged as a versatile microbial chassis for sustainable bioproduction due to its metabolic flexibility, enabling growth on a wide range of substrates, including H 2 /CO 2 , formate, and organic carbon (waste) sources such as volatile fatty acids. This review first provides a comprehensive overview of recent advances in systems-level understanding and metabolic engineering of C. necator. We next discuss recent advances in omics analyses and genome-scale metabol

Mild Stroke, Serious Problems: Limitations in Balance and Gait Capacity and the Impact on Fall Rate, and Physical Activity

Vivian Weerdesteyn · Radboud University Nijmegen · NL

BACKGROUND: To investigate whether individuals in the chronic phase after mild stroke show balance and gait limitations, elevated fall risk, reduced balance confidence, and physical activity levels compared to healthy controls. METHODS: An observational case-control study was performed. Main outcomes included the Mini-Balance Evaluation Systems Test (mini-BEST), Timed Up and Go (TUG), 10-m Walking Test (10-MWT), and 6-item version Activity-specific Balance Confidence (6-ABC) scale which were mea

Detecting ataxia using an automated analysis of motor coordination and balance of mice on the balance beam

Aleksandra Badura · Erasmus MC · NL

Abstract Background The balance beam assay is a well-known paradigm to assess motor coordination in mouse models of neurodegenerative diseases. Classically, these experiments are quantified using manual annotation, which is time-consuming and prone to inter-experimenter variability. Methods We present an open-source analysis pipeline that allows for the automated quantification of motor function in mice crossing the balance beam. Results Using an established Pcp2-Ppp3r1 ataxia mouse model, we va

Model-error estimation and model adaptivity for hyperbolic moment equations in one dimension

Rik Verbiest · University of Groningen · NL

Abstract Microflows like Knudsen pumps often include rarefied gases featuring different degrees of rarefaction. This different modeling complexity requires space- and time-adaptive rarefied gas models that resolve the physical effects efficiently in each subdomain of the microflow. Different-order moment models are effective at describing rarefied gases in microflows with respective levels of complexity in each subdomain. In this work, analytical model-error estimators for the Hyperbolic Moment

Defect-Induced Single-Photon Emission in ZnPS ₃

Magdalena Grzeszczyk · NL

High Resolution Image Download MS PowerPoint Slide Research on single photon sources in layered materials has been limited so far to transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) and hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) as hosting platforms. These quantum emitters exhibit advantages due to the distinct semiconducting and insulating characteristics of the two classes of materials, which enable their integration with van der Waals heterostructures and devices. Here, we report single photon emission in ZnPS 3,

Lexical Processing Strongly Affects Reading Times But Not Skipping During Natural Reading

Micha Heilbron · Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics · NL

= 104, 1.5 million words), using deep neural networks and Bayesian ideal observers to model linguistic prediction and parafoveal preview from moment to moment in natural reading. Strikingly, neither prediction nor preview was important for explaining word skipping-the vast majority of explained variation was explained by a simple oculomotor model, using just fixation position and word length. For reading times, by contrast, we found strong but independent contributions of prediction and preview,

Structural snapshots along K48-linked ubiquitin chain formation by the HECT E3 UBR5

Laura Hehl · NL

Ubiquitin (Ub) chain formation by homologous to E6AP C-terminus (HECT)-family E3 ligases regulates vast biology, yet the structural mechanisms remain unknown. We used chemistry and cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) to visualize stable mimics of the intermediates along K48-linked Ub chain formation by the human E3, UBR5. The structural data reveal a ≈ 620 kDa UBR5 dimer as the functional unit, comprising a scaffold with flexibly tethered Ub-associated (UBA) domains, and elaborately arranged HECT

Emotions and Reputation Learning by Audience Networks: A Research Agenda in Bureaucratic Politics

Dovilė Rimkutė · Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam · NL

ABSTRACT Audiences that observe and interact with government agencies play a crucial role in shaping these agencies' reputations. However, existing research often treats these audience networks as monolithic, overlooking the inherent diversity in their cognitive and emotional processing of reputational information. This approach fails to account for the variations in how audiences experience and evaluate agencies. To address this gap, we propose a new research agenda focused on the role of emoti

Mechanistic studies of the palladium-catalyzed S,O-ligand promoted C–H olefination of aromatic compounds

M. Ángeles Fernández‐Ibáñez · University of Amsterdam · NL

Pd-catalyzed C-H functionalization reactions of non-directed substrates have recently emerged as an attractive alternative to the use of directing groups. Key to the success of these transformations has been the discovery of new ligands capable of increasing both the reactivity of the inert C-H bond and the selectivity of the process. Among them, a new type of S,O-ligand has been shown to be highly efficient in promoting a variety of Pd-catalyzed C-H olefination reactions of non-directed arenes.

Individual Differences in Corticostriatal White-matter Tracts Predict Successful Daily-life Routine Formation

Irene van de Vijver · University of Amsterdam · NL

Despite good intentions, people often fail to cross the "intention-behavior gap," especially when goal achievement requires repeated action. To bridge this gap, the formation of automatized routines may be crucial. However, people may differ in the tendency to switch from goal-directed toward habitual control. To shed light on why some people succeed in forming routines while others struggle, the present study related the automatization of a novel, daily routine to individual differences in whit

Electric-Field Control of Zero-Dimensional Topological States in Ultranarrow Germanene Nanoribbons

Lumen Eek · Utrecht University · NL

Reversible, all-electric control of symmetry-protected zero-dimensional modes has been a long-standing goal. In buckled honeycomb lattices, a perpendicular field couples to the staggered sublattice potential providing the required handle. We combine scanning tunneling microscopy and tight-binding theory to switch zero-dimensional topological end states reversibly on and off in ultranarrow germanene nanoribbons by tuning the electric field in the tunnel junction. Increasing the field switches off

Establishing cordgrass plants cluster their shoots to avoid ecosystem engineering

Clea N. van de Ven · University of Groningen · NL

Abstract Vegetated coastal ecosystems such as salt marshes, dunes and seagrass meadows occur at the land–sea interface—a dynamic environment typified by harsh growing conditions. These ecosystems are known as biogeomorphic landscapes because their functioning depends on biophysical interactions by which organisms engineer landforms to their own benefit. The strength of such biogeomorphic feedbacks depends on plant traits, such as stem flexibility and shoot density. Recent work demonstrated that

The role of cell size in shaping responses to oxygen and temperature in fruit flies

Félix P. Leiva · Radboud University Nijmegen · NL

Abstract The body size of an animal is strongly coupled to key ecological traits such as fecundity, mortality and growth . Ectothermic animals mature at smaller body sizes in warmer conditions and under low oxygen availability (hypoxia). Whether these responses result from changes in cell size and cell number (which together determine body size) and how such cellular responses may help ectotherms cope with heat and hypoxia is poorly understood. The theory of optimal cell size postulates that cel

Advanced intraoperative MRI in pediatric brain tumor surgery

Pien E. J. Jellema · University Medical Center Utrecht · NL

The potential added value of advanced MRI in the intraoperative setting for pediatric brain tumors is to prevent damage to important structures, to provide additional physiological or metabolic information, or to indicate the onset of postoperative changes. Current developments within various advanced ioMRI sequences are promising with regard to providing in-depth tissue information.

Lipase-mediated selective hydrolysis of lipid droplets in phase separated-liposomes

Panagiota Papadopoulou · Leiden University · NL

The membrane-protein interface in lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) is important for their in vivo behavior. Better understanding may assist to evolve current drug delivery methods to more precise, cell- or tissue-specific nanomedicine. Previously, we demonstrated how phase separation can drive liposomes to cell specific accumulation in vivo, through the selective recognition of phase-separated liposomes by triacylglycerol lipases (TGLs). This exemplified how liposome morphology can determine the prefe

The relation between speaking-style categorization and speech recognition in adult cochlear implant users

Deniz Başkent · University of Groningen · NL

The current study examined the relation between speaking-style categorization and speech recognition in post-lingually deafened adult cochlear implant users and normal-hearing listeners tested under 4- and 8-channel acoustic noise-vocoder cochlear implant simulations. Across all listeners, better speaking-style categorization of careful read and casual conversation speech was associated with more accurate recognition of speech across those same two speaking styles. Findings suggest that some coc

A stable and replicable neural signature of lifespan adversity in the adult brain

Nathalie Holz · Radboud University Nijmegen · NL

Environmental adversities constitute potent risk factors for psychiatric disorders. Evidence suggests the brain adapts to adversity, possibly in an adversity-type and region-specific manner. However, the long-term effects of adversity on brain structure and the association of individual neurobiological heterogeneity with behavior have yet to be elucidated. Here we estimated normative models of structural brain development based on a lifespan adversity profile in a longitudinal at-risk cohort age

Are Ecosystem Engineering Traits Fixed or Flexible: A Study on Clonal Expansion Strategies in Co-occurring Dune Grasses

Carlijn Lammers · Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research · NL

Abstract Many vegetated coastal ecosystems are formed through ecosystem engineering by clonal vegetation. Recent work highlights that the spatial shoot organization of the vegetation determines local sediment accretion and subsequently emerging landscape morphology. While this key engineering trait has been found to differ between species and prevailing environmental conditions, it remains unknown how the interplay of both factors drive shoot organization and therefore landscape morphology. Here

Effect of Polyplex Size on Penetration into Tumor Spheroids

Tina Vermonden · Utrecht University · NL

Ovarian cancer is one of the most lethal gynecological cancers in the world. In recent years, nucleic acid (NA)-based formulations have been shown to be promising treatments for ovarian cancer, including tumor nodules. However, gene therapy is not that far advanced in clinical reality due to unfavorable physicochemical properties of the NAs, such as high molecular weight, poor cellular uptake, rapid degradation by nucleases, etc. One of the strategies used to overcome these drawbacks is the comp

Facts and Hopes in Immunotherapy for Early-Stage Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

Iris Nederlof · Oncode Institute · NL

A substantial fraction of early-stage triple-negative breast cancer (eTNBC) is characterized by high levels of stromal tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (sTIL) and has a good prognosis even without systemic treatment, highlighting the importance of an endogenous anticancer immune response. Still, a considerable proportion of patients with eTNBC need some "therapeutical push" to kick-start this immune response. Exploiting this immune response with immune-checkpoint inhibition (ICI), in combination w

Molecular Accessibility and Diffusion of Resorufin in Zeolite Crystals

Bert M. Weckhuysen · Utrecht University · NL

. Furthermore, we saw that diffusion through the straight pores of zeolite-β is impeded when crossing the boundaries between zeolite subunits.

Impact of cerebellar-specific genetic and circuit manipulations on the behavioral phenotype and cerebellar physiology in murine autism models

Aleksandra Badura · Erasmus MC · NL

Clinical evidence suggests that developmental cerebellar injury and cerebello-cortical connectivity abnormalities are often present in autism. In mouse models, cerebellar-specific deletions of autism risk genes, or temporally constrained, developmental manipulations of cerebellar circuits, elicit autistic-like behaviors. Nonetheless, behavioral and electrophysiological findings are inconsistent within and across models. Additionally, while cerebellar manipulations during development can induce a

Dissecting cell type–specific impact in lysosomal acid lipase deficiency–associated disorders

Marit Westerterp · University Medical Center Groningen · NL

Lysosomal acid lipase (LAL), encoded by the LIPA gene, is the only known acidic lipase that hydrolyzes cholesteryl ester (CE) and triglycerides (TG) in lysosomes. These lipids originate from endocytosis of lipoproteins or lipophagy of cytoplasmic lipid droplets (1). LAL is critical for lysosomal lipid breakdown (1). Loss-of-function (LOF) mutations in the LIPA gene result in Mendelian disorders, leading to CE and TG accumulation in various tissues. Mutations causing the complete absence or near-

Restoration of right ventricular function in the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension

Anton Vonk Noordegraaf · NL

OBJECTIVE: A 45% threshold of right ventricular ejection fraction (RVEF) is proposed clinically relevant in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). We aim to determine treatment response, long-term right ventricular (RV) functional stability and prognosis of patients with PAH reaching or maintaining the RVEF 45% threshold. METHODS: Incident, treatment-naive, adult PAH patients with cardiac magnetic resonance imaging at baseline and first follow-up were included (total N=127) and fol

Platform adaptation to regulation: The case of domestic cleaning in Europe

Koen Frenken · Utrecht University · NL

While online platforms were initially applauded for improving services in a range of sectors, they are currently being criticized for ignoring laws and regulations. We analyse the evolution of Helpling – the largest domestic cleaning platform company in Europe – by focusing on the ways that Helpling has adapted its platform to regulations in five national contexts (France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom). Using data on changing Terms and Conditions, we show that Helplin

Proteomics on malignant pleural effusions reveals <scp>ERα</scp> loss in metastatic breast cancer associates with <scp>SGK1</scp> – <scp>NDRG1</scp> deregulation

Maarten Altelaar · Utrecht University · NL

Breast cancer (BCa) is a highly heterogeneous disease, with hormone receptor status being a key factor in patient prognostication and treatment decision-making. The majority of primary tumours are positive for oestrogen receptor alpha (ERα), which plays a key role in tumorigenesis and disease progression, and represents the major target for treatment of BCa. However, around one-third of patients with ERα-positive BCa relapse and progress into the metastatic stage, with 20% of metastatic cases ch

Cholesterol efflux pathways hinder KRAS-driven lung tumor progenitor cell expansion

Emma Guilbaud · NL

Validation is the central challenge for generative social simulation: a critical review of LLMs in agent-based modeling

Maik Larooij · University of Amsterdam · NL

Recent advances in Large Language Models (LLMs) have revitalized interest in Agent-Based Models (ABMs) by enabling "generative" simulations, with agents that can plan, reason, and interact through natural language. These developments promise greater realism and expressive power, but also revive long-standing concerns over empirical grounding, calibration, and validation-issues that have historically limited the uptake of ABMs in the social sciences. This paper systematically reviews the emerging

Enhancing plasmonic superconductivity in layered materials via dynamical Coulomb engineering

Y. in ’t Veld · NL

screening as a method for precisely tailoring bosonic modes to optimize many-body properties. We show that "bosonic engineering" of plasmon modes can be used to enhance plasmon-induced superconducting critical temperatures of layered superconductors in metallic environments by up to an order of magnitude, due to the formation of interlayer hybridized plasmon modes with enhanced superconducting pairing strength. We determine optimal properties of the screening environment to maximize critical tem

Ferromagnetic interlayer exchange coupling in a few layers of CrSBr on a gold thin film

Rixt Bosma · NL

The two-dimensional character of van der Waals magnets allows for efficient control of their properties via proximity effects and electrical stimuli, making them promising candidates for application in spin-electronics. We use spin-polarized low energy electron microscopy to directly image the magnetic texture of thin CrSBr on top of a Au film, uncovering a ferromagnetic ground state for CrSBr thicknesses smaller than 11 nm. We argue that the stabilization of the ferromagnetic ordering - as comp

Ir Complexes With Mixed‐Valent Bidentate Ligands: From Complex Synthesis to Catalytic Application

Noé Zúñiga-Villarreal · NL

ABSTRACT The bidentate ligands Ph 2 P(E)NHPPh 2 (E = S, Se) feature phosphorous atoms in two different oxidation states and provide the potential to tune chemical reactivity through the choice of donor E. The mononuclear complexes [Ir(COD){ κ 2 ‐P,E‐ Ph 2 P(E)NPPh 2 }] (E = S 1a , Se 1b ) were prepared from the dimer [IrClCOD] 2 (COD = 1,5‐cyclooctadiene) and the ligands Ph 2 P(E)NHPPh 2 (E = S, Se) in the presence of KO t Bu. Reaction of complexes 1a and 1b with CO afforded complexes [Ir(CO) 2

Dual Fluorescence in Glutathione-Derived Carbon Dots Revisited

Florian Meirer · Utrecht University · NL

Dual-fluorescence carbon dots have great potential as nanosensors in life and materials sciences. Such carbon dots can be obtained via a solvothermal synthesis route with glutathione and formamide. In this work, we show that the dual-fluorescence emission of the synthesis products does not originate from a single carbon dot emitter, but rather from a mixture of physically separate compounds. We characterized the synthesis products with UV-vis, Raman, infrared, and fluorescence spectroscopy, and

No evidence for association between late pregnancy maternal cortisol and gray matter volume in a healthy community sample of young adolescents

Anna Tyborowska · Radboud University Nijmegen · NL

A compelling amount of animal and human research has shown that perceived maternal stress during pregnancy can affect the neurodevelopment of the offspring. Prenatal maternal cortisol is frequently proposed as the biological key mechanism underlying this link; however, literature that investigates the effects of prenatal cortisol on subsequent neurodevelopment in humans is scarce. By using longitudinal data from a relatively large community sample of mother–child dyads (N = 73), this pre-registe

Quantum Advantage for Single-Photon State Characterization

J. J. Renema · University of Twente · NL

We propose a multiphoton interference protocol that characterizes the pairwise overlaps of the internal modes of single photons more efficiently than pairwise Hong-Ou-Mandel characterization experiments. We experimentally implement this protocol to characterize three photons. We show that our implementation of the characterization protocol outperforms the pairwise Hong-Ou-Mandel characterization, even if the Hong-Ou-Mandel characterization would have been performed in a noiseless, perfect experi

State Matching and Multiple References in Adaptive Active Automata Learning

Jurriaan Rot · NL

Active automata learning (AAL) is a method to infer state machines by interacting with black-box systems. Adaptive AAL aims to reduce the sample complexity of AAL by incorporating domain specific knowledge in the form of (similar) reference models. Such reference models appear naturally when learning multiple versions or variants of a software system. In this paper, we present state matching, which allows flexible use of the structure of these reference models by the learner. State matching is t

Curated high-quality genomes of 39 diverse halophilic archaea

Thomas Hackl · University of Groningen · NL

Abstract Archaea are widespread and ecologically important microorganisms, yet our understanding of their physiology and evolution is constrained by the limited number of complete genome assemblies available. Haloarchaea have emerged as model organisms for archaeal cell biology, virus-host interactions, and biotechnology. Despite their prominence in hypersaline environments and their potential for industrial applications, high-quality reference genomes remain scarce. Here, we present chromosome-

ECHO: a nanopore sequencing-based workflow for (epi)genetic profiling of the human repeatome

Athina Vidaki · Maastricht University Medical Centre · NL

Abstract Summary The human genome is dominated by repetitive DNA, whose genetic and epigenetic variation plays a key role in gene regulation, genome stability, and disease. Recent advances in long-read sequencing now enable large-scale, haplotype-resolved, and DNA methylation-informative analysis of the human genome, including on previously inaccessible complex and repetitive regions. However, the comprehensive, simultaneous characterisation of the “human repeatome” remains challenging, largely

Bridging scales: from classical colloidal crystals to mesocrystals with modern x-ray synchrotron methods

Ivan Vartaniants · NL

This review explores different colloidal systems and their crystals as well as their special case namely-mesocrystals. First, we highlight recent advances in fabrication methods of colloidal crystals (mesocrystals) and then describe small-angle and ultra-small-angle x-ray scattering from colloidal assemblies organized from particles of different shape. Here, we already introduce different types of defects that are present in colloidal crystals. Next, we go to a modern description of angular x-ra

Parallel transmission 2D RARE imaging at 7T with transmit field inhomogeneity mitigation and local SAR control

Filiz Yetişir · NL

Protocol for in vitro transcribing mRNAs with defined poly(A)-tail lengths and visualizing sequential PABP binding

Maike M. K. Hansen · HAN University of Applied Sciences · NL

Quantifying the number of proteins that interact with mRNAs, in particular with poly(A) tails of mRNAs, is crucial for understanding gene regulation. Biochemical assays offer significant advantages for this purpose. Here, we present a protocol for synthesizing mRNAs with accurate, length-specific poly(A) tails through a PCR-based approach. We also describe steps for an in vitro (i.e., cell-free) approach for visualizing the sequential binding of Cytoplasmic Poly(A)-Binding Proteins (PABPCs) to t

Cryo-EM resolves the structure of the archaeal dsDNA virus HFTV1 from head to tail

Bertram Daum · NL

While archaeal viruses show a stunning diversity of morphologies, many bear a notable resemblance to tailed bacterial phages. This raises fundamental questions: Do all tailed viruses share a common origin and do they infect their hosts in similar ways? Answering these questions requires high-resolution structural insights, yet no complete atomic models of archaeal viruses have been available. Here, we present the near-atomic resolution structure of Haloferax tailed virus 1 (HFTV1), an archaeal v

Switchable Electrostatically Templated Polymerization

Bas G. P. van Ravensteijn · Utrecht University · NL

We report a switchable, templated polymerization system where the strength of the templating effect can be modulated by solution pH and/or ionic strength. The responsiveness to these cues is incorporated through a dendritic polyamidoamine-based template of which the charge density depends on pH. The dendrimers act as a template for the polymerization of an oppositely charged monomer, namely sodium styrene sulfonate. We show that the rate of polymerization and maximum achievable monomer conversio

Systematic analysis of relationships between plasma branched-chain amino acid concentrations and cardiometabolic parameters: an association and Mendelian randomization study

Jingyuan Fu · University Medical Center Groningen · NL

BACKGROUND: Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs; valine, leucine, and isoleucine) are essential amino acids that are associated with an increased risk of cardiometabolic diseases (CMD). However, there are still only limited insights into potential direct associations between BCAAs and a wide range of CMD parameters, especially those remaining after correcting for covariates and underlying causal relationships. METHODS: To shed light on these relationships, we systematically characterized the assoc

Light-Control over Casein Kinase 1δ Activity with Photopharmacology: A Clear Case for Arylazopyrazole-Based Inhibitors

Ben L. Feringa · University of Groningen · NL

Protein kinases are responsible for healthy cellular processes and signalling pathways, and their dysfunction is the basis of many pathologies. There are numerous small molecule inhibitors of protein kinases that systemically regulate dysfunctional signalling processes. However, attaining selectivity in kinase inhibition within the complex human kinome is still a challenge that inspires unconventional approaches. One of those approaches is photopharmacology, which uses light-controlled bioactive