When a baby is born too soon, every minute counts – and so does every decision. To reduce uncertainty in those critical moments, biopharmaceutical scientist Manchu Umarani Thangavelu dedicated her PhD to identifying molecular markers of preterm birth and neonatal infection.

The Plants & Planets exhibition brings two worlds together in a dazzling mix of science, nature and art. It opens at Old Observatory Leiden and Hortus botanicus on 7 February.

What is the significance of the history of slavery for our present-day society? A special exhibition in the inner courtyard of the Academy Building features eleven insightful portraits of students and staff, and their answer to this question. The aim of the exhibition’s initiators is to make the subject…

Ymre Schuurmans, Professor of Constitutional and Administrative Law, has been appointed Chair of the Dutch Legal Aid Board’s Advisory Council following permission from the Dutch Minister for Legal Protection.

To underline the urgency: Our faculty faces a significant financial challenge. With a structural reduction of €5 to €6 million in annual income, dark clouds are gathering on the horizon. Added to this are the uncertain consequences of budget cuts from The Hague, including the Balanced Internationalisation…

How can you tie together scientific research and practical applications? That is exactly what Professor of Translational Data Science Marco Spruit is concerned with, he tells FMT Gezondheid. 'It's about taking socially relevant questions as a starting point for your research.'

Does medicine make patients feel better or worse? We are getting better at predicting this from people’s DNA profiles, says Professor Jesse Swen. ‘It never fails to fascinate me how one DNA base pair can have such a huge effect on treatment with medication and the outcome.’

Patients who feel understood will recover faster. But how can doctors become more empathetic? By reading literary works, suggests emeritus Leiden Professor of Medical Psychology, Ad Kaptein. He discusses this issue in his book ‘Helende woorden – romans over ziek-zijn’ (Healing words - novels about…

On Friday 9 September, Jeanin van Hooft, Professor of Gastrointestinal and Liver Diseases, will deliver her inaugural lecture titled: 'The scope of connection'. She emphasises the value of collaboration and connection for scientific research. In addition, she pleads for more diversity; according to…

Two organisers at heart. In the background, facilities managers Nick van Asperen and Kees Schoonwater ensure that staff and students have everything they need to work and study well. Recently, the familiar faces started doing so in a new role. Schoonwater is now project manager housing and Van Asperen…

The Executive Board of the Institute of Psychology has a new Director of Operational Management. It’s the perfect role for Paula van den Bergh. ‘For me, “connection” is a nice word. If you see the connections between things, you immediately see the logic behind the processes.’ Her career has taken her…

Confetti cannons announced the opening of HUBspot, the new venue for innovation and entrepreneurship at the Langegracht in Leiden, on 31 October. But all attention was on the young student entrepreneurs who presented their businesses.

Ten Leiden museums and heritage institutions have curated the online exhibition ‘Carel’s Universe’. They selected objects from their collections that symbolise retiring Rector Magnificus Carel Stolker and the research in Leiden. With direct references, playful associations and the odd nod and wink.

A new app provides dynamic predictions of survival for patients suffering from soft tissue sarcoma. It was developed by the mathematical Institute research group DASPO, Data Analysis and Survival for Personalised Oncology.

Next generation immunodermatology (NGID) is a nationwide, large-scale project, funded by a large grant of the Dutch NWO to unravel novel biomarkers for six different skin diseases. These biomarkers will drive a high-tech, patient-centric approach in clinical practice. Health psychologist Sylvia van…

Technological developments are rapidly advancing. The Leiden Legal Technologies Program was on the agenda of the Advisory Committee at their second meeting held on 15 October. The decision to start the program in January 2021 was taken unanimously. It was the official moment to announce the completion…

Scrap the radical cuts to research and teaching. This was researchers and students’ message to government at the opening of the new academic year. Various speakers in Leiden’s Pieterskerk highlighted the importance of science for society.

How has evolution shaped our curiosity? And how does that curiosity ensure that we now have the technological ability to discover whether we are alone in the universe? This was all covered during the celebration of Leiden University’s 449th Dies Natalis.

On 1 September, Menno Tuurenhout handed over the position of Director of Operational Management in the Faculty Board to Suzy Sirks-Bong. How does he look back on his time as Director? And how does Suzy see the future? A double interview.

With the six pieces of the puzzle now assembled by the partners of the University Campus and the Mayor of The Hague, Jan van Zanen, the building at the Spui was officially opened last Thursday.

In what ways can mental health care policy and interventions help break the cycle of mutually reinforcing societal stressors and mental health problems in Burundi?

Working in an operating theatre is a highly competitive sport. High work pressure, stress, and unexpected developments during operations. This requires a lot from care professionals who need to be mentally resilient to be able to deliver peak performances time and time again. What makes a care professional…

The Faculty Board awarded 16 starter grants to young assistant professors for their research proposals.

In the first instalment of the three-part podcast series Óf Bones, Brains, and Pink Elephants, three students of Utrecht University interview Dr Amanda Henry on dental care in the past. Why do we need to brush our teeth, and why didn't our ancestors?

Do general practitioners recognize children with or at risk of problematic anxiety and is there a pattern that might help differentiate those with and without anxiety disorders in general practice?

An MRI scanner is much more than a machine alone. It is an extremely versatile technique that provides numerous opportunities for finding out more about the workings of the human brain, says Thijs van Osch, Professor of Radiology, with a particular emphasis on experimental cerebrovascular imaging. Inaugural…

Veel Nederlanders hebben fysieke, psychische en sociale problemen tegelijk. Zij hebben hulp nodig van meerdere professionals uit verschillende organisaties. Fia van Heteren onderzoekt hoe deze professionals met elkaar én met cliënten samenwerken, en welke factoren deze samenwerking versterken of bel…

Leiden University has six top bachelor’s programmes, according to Keuzegids universiteiten 2024 consumer guide to universities published on 30 November 2023. This once again puts the university in third place among broad universities ranked according to top programmes.

No procession of professors, just a handful of people in the church and snowdrifts outside Leiden’s Pieterskerk: 8 February 2021 was no ordinary Dies Natalis. Carel Stolker transferred the rectorate to Hester Bijl, and Annetje Ottow became the new President of the Executive Board. With an honorary doctorate…

Irene Moretti published the article Kin Enough in Social Analysis, The International Journal of Anthropology.

How did you get to where you are now? This is a key question in the Academic Life Course board game, developed by and for academics. ‘In a normal working week we hardly ever talk about the career choices we make, but with this game, we do.’

In the new board game Epoch – Early Inventors you explore the prehistoric landscape. You gather food and raw material to develop tools and skills, and you try to appease the gods. Dr Maikel Kuijpers was involved in its development from the start and he is very happy with the result. “There is a lot…

An article about our Mathematical Institute (MI) appeared on 23 June in the University newspaper Mare.

‘We could share our knowledge more with others and apply it more widely,’ said Annetje Ottow, President of the Executive Board, while presenting the new Strategic Plan on the University’s 447th Dies Natalis. The new Strategic Plan therefore focuses on innovating and connecting, among disciplines and…

The importance of science communication and cross-boundary collaboration, and the ‘mantra’ of diminishing social cohesion in society: these all came up at Leiden University’s 448th Dies Natalis. A panel discussion including Leiden’s mayor Lenferink, music and two honorary doctorates completed the special…

Professor André Baranski is a champion for improving organ procurement. He believes there should be standardised training and certification for procurement surgeons. This is what he said in his inaugural lecture on 16 April.

The GDPR privacy legislation is no impediment to handing out sanctions to Russian oligarchs or reuniting children placed in care with their parents, says privacy experts Anna Berlee, Marlies van Eck, Simone van der Hof, Simone Huting, Friederike van der Jagt and Jeroen Terstegge.

‘Equal opportunities for diverse young people’ receives a Starting Incentive of the Natonal Science Agenda of 2,5 million euros. In this project research is conducted on the processes and mechanisms in the changing environments in which young people grow up that contribute to equal - or unequal - opportunities.…

On Tuesday, September 16, Professor Elisheva Baumgarten (Hebrew University) delivered the keynote speech entitled 'The Kindness of Others: Jews, Christians and Early Childhood Care in Medieval Europe' at the 'Care and the Jewish Experience' Conference at the Faculty Club in Leiden.

Young Academy Leiden (YAL) will change its board this month and welcome seven brand-new members.

Should Leiden University cut its ties with the fossil fuel industry forthwith? This was the main question in a debate between students and staff. The answer was clearer for some than for others.

An extra-long cortège, three honorary doctorates, a quiz about 450 years of university history, a Dies Natalis rap and a call to defend academic freedom: these all featured in Leiden University’s 450th Dies Natalis celebration and the official start of its jubilee year.

A special beginning of this unique faculty year 2020 - 2021: on Wednesday 2 September, the opening of the faculty year took place online from the renovated Arsenaal building. The opening started with a round table with nine special guests and was followed by a quiz and the presenting of the Faculty…

In his PhD research in the field of public administration, Mark Reijnders looked at why people do not receive the help they need. They lose their way in the labyrinthine support system or become bogged down in bureaucracy. In public administration this is known as non-take-up of social care. PhD defence…

Leiden University is becoming increasingly aware of the importance of diversity and inclusiveness, but there is still plenty of room for improvement. This is the key message from the first annual report of the Sounding Board on Diversity Policy, presented to Vice-Rector Hester Bijl on 15 February.