I’M WORKING ON SYNTHETIC MATERIALS TO STIMULATE DEVELOPMENT OF KIDNEY CELLS FROM STEM CELLS
For my graduation project, I’m developing a smart material that mimics the natural environment of the kidney. I’m testing different peptides based on collagen and fibronectin, with the goal to seed the material with stem cells aiming for them to form clusters and mini-organs. Eventually, we hope this research will lead to mini-organs with kidney function working towards the ultimate goal to relieve kidney patients of the burden of dialysis.
The master’s degree program offers you a lot of choice. You choose a research group in your area of interest and pick courses that match. It’s a joint mastertrack with Utrecht University, so you follow courses there to pick up their medical knowledge as well.
For the future, I consider staying in research to work towards my PhD. Afterwards, I want to work in industry, in a company where I can combine engineering, chemistry and biology."