Consortium and program

Anneke den Hollander

About me

Distinguished global pharma leader with expertise in Genomics, Functional Genomics and Ophthalmology. Proven commitment to making a difference for patients, leveraging scientific excellence and translating research findings into innovations, treatments, and cures. Adept at mentoring, developing, and motivating cross-functional teams and providing strategic direction.
 

Areas of expertise include:
• Portfolio leadership
• Target identification and validation using genomics, functional genomics and multi-omics approaches
• Disease modeling using in vitro (hiPSC-derived cell types, organ-on-a-chip) and in vivo models
• Biomarkers for disease development, disease progression and treatment outcome

Christine Mummery

About me

Christine Mummery is Professor of Developmental Biology and heads the iPSC&OoC Hotel facility in the LUMC which she founded in 2011. She was head of the department Anatomy and Embryology from 2009-2019 and guest professor at the University of Twente from 2015-2023. She is a member of the KNAW, KHMW and is a laureate or the European Research Council (Advanced and Proof-of-Concept grants). In the LUMC she co-chairs the Theme RegMedTO and PI in the Novo Nordisk Foundation Stem Cell Center (reNEW), a collaboration between the University of Copenhagen and Murdoch Children’s Hospital in Melbourne. She has been awarded a number of prizes include the Fondation Lefoulon-Delalande-Institut de France prize for cardiovascular physiology (2021) and the Public Service Award (2023) of the International Society of Stem Cell Research (ISSCR). She was ISSCR president 2020-2021. She wrote a lay guide to stem cells (“Stem Cells: Scientific Facts and Fiction”; Elsevier 3rd edition 2018) which is widely used by students, patients, ethicists and lawyers. She has serves on panels of ZonMW, the ERC, British Heart Foundation, Medical Research Council (UK), and the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine. She was co-founder and first chair of the European Organ on Chip Society. She is currently chair of the board of hDMT. 

Kapil Bharti

About me

Dr. Bharti holds a bachelor's degree in biophysics from the Panjab University in Chandigarh, India, where he graduated with highest honors. This was followed by a master degree in biotechnology at the Maharaja Sayaji Rao University in Baroda, India and a diploma in molecular cell biology at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University at Frankfurt in Germany. Supported by an international Ph.D. student fellowship, he obtained his Ph.D. from the same institution, graduating summa cum laude. His Ph.D. work involved basic biology in the areas of heat stress, cellular chaperones, and epigenetics. From Germany, Dr. Bharti came to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke to work with Dr. Heinz Arnheiter as a postdoctoral fellow. While there, he published numerous papers in the areas of transcription factor regulation, pigment cell biology, and the developmental biology of the eye. It is perhaps this combination of diverse backgrounds that led him to develop an interest in the emerging field of stem cell biology, particularly of the retinal pigment epithelium, as he moved into the role of staff scientist. 

Research interests: Ocular stem cell and translational research

The goal of the Unit on Ocular Stem Cells and Translational Research (OSCTR) is to perform translational research on degenerative eye diseases using induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell technology. We are using this technology to develop in vitro disease models to study patient-specific disease processes, to set up high throughput drug screens, and to develop cell-based therapy for retinal degenerative diseases.

Marius Ueffing

About me

Marius Ueffing is the Director of the Institute for Ophthalmic Research and Co-Chair of the Centre for Ophthalmology at the University Medical Center in Tuebingen, one of the largest centers for ophthalmology in Europe. He directs the Medical Bioanalytics Core Facility a core facility of the medical faculty in Tübingen and acts as a Member of the Board of QBiC, the Quantitative Biology Center of the University of Tuebingen. His research combines cellular and molecular physiology with genome and proteome analysis to analyse the impact of genetic and environmental factors on human health on a systemic level. Focus of the lab is neurodegeneration in the retina with specific emphasis on the molecular mechanisms of disease towards development of targeted therapy.

Core expertise: Experimental ophthalmology; medical genetics; bioanalytics; systems biology, signal transduction, proteomics, neurobiology