Overview

Efficient in vitro differentiation of airway cells is crucial to study airway diseases. Channeling cell composition to specific cell types gives the opportunity to a wider spectrum of assays and helps to answer more specific research questions. In the past three years I have optimized in vitro airway epithelial models for several genetic and infectious airway diseases including primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD), esophageal atresia (EA) and the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). Additionally, I developed a new 2D differentiation method that is cheaper and easier than the conventional method of ALI differentiation. The goal of my PhD is to make these cell culture models robust and accessible so that they can be used for research in different scientific fields.

Experience

• Bachelor of Science in (Medical) Biology, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands (2013-2016)
• Master of Science in Medical Biology, Specialization Medical Epigenomics, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands (2016-2018)
• PhD Student, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands (2019-current)