In 2022 the first four PhD projects were awarded under the HTRIC flag. The PhD candidates are introducing themselves here.
Our HTRIC PhD candidates

PhD-projecten ondersteund door HTRIC-financiering
In 2022, four PhD projects were supported with funding that was assigned by HTRIC. The subjects fit to the HTRIC scope. One of the criteria was that the subject needs to be supported by at the Faculty of Science and Engineering (FSE) as well as the UMCG. Four very exciting projects were chosen and staffing is taking place.

Onderbeenprothesen: optimale co-adaptatie van de mens in de lus
PhD Candidate: Chengxiang Liu
After finishing my Master’s degree in Mechatronic engineering, I worked in institues developing medical robotics for more than two years. I started my HTRIC PhD project in March 2023. This project aims at developing a human-in-the-loop approach in which the user and the (control settings and mechanical parameters of the) prosthesis co-adapt to each other in an optimization process. The research I do for this project can contribute to the life quality improvement of amputee patients.
This project is applied for by Prof. Dr. Raffaella Carloni (FSE) and Prof. Dr. Han Houdijk (UMCG).
Project start: March 2023

Vroege detectie van sepsis met behulp van reactieve zuurstof types
PhD kandidaat Britt Coenen:
Na het afronden van mijn bachelor in Life Science ben ik begonnen met mijn master in Medische Biologie om meer te leren over sleutelmechanismen in biologie en ziekte. Tijdens mijn doctoraat over de vroege detectie van sepsis zal ik de opgedane kennis toepassen om effecten van vermijdbare oorzaken te beperken, met als doel de diagnose en gezondheidszorg voor patiënten te verbeteren.
This project is applied for by Prof. Dr. Romana Schirhagl (UMCG), Prof. Dr. Geert van den Boogaart (FSE) and Dr. Hjalmar Bouma (UMCG).
Project start: September 2022

Haal diep adem: ontwikkeling van een nieuwe longkleefstof voor ernstige COPD-patiënten
PhD candidate Ayla Kwant:
After finishing my master’s degree in Biomedical Sciences, I started my HTRIC PhD project in September 2022. The main focus of my research is developing and testing a ‘glue’, which is intended to seal the damaged parts of the lungs of COPD patients and thus improve the capacity of the functional parts. With this research, I hope to contribute to an improved quality of life for COPD patients.
Interested in knowing what a typical day in the life of Ayla, a PhD student, looks like? Check out her blog here.
This project is applied for by Prof. Dr. Marleen Kamperman (FSE) and Dr. Simon D. Pouwels (UMCG), together with Prof. Dr. Dirk-Jan Slebos and Prof. Dr. Janette Burgess.
Project start: September 2022

4D Bepaling van lokale medicijndistributie met behulp van geavanceerde optische (lichtblad) microscopie
PhD candidate Nawal Aledlbi:
After doing my bachelor’s in applied chemistry, I went for a master’s degree in analytical chemistry. But to focus more on what lies beneath, I joined the Nanoscience TopMaster program at the University of Groningen to broaden my horizons. In my master’s I worked using characterization techniques for studying chemical systems. During my Ph.D., I look forward to developing a 4D optical analysis to get an insight into targeted drug distribution, that can lead to efficient personalized medicine in IBD patients using light-sheet microscopy.
This project is applied for by Dr. Pieter van der Zaag (FSE) and Prof. Dr. Wouter Nagengast (UMCG).
Project start: September 2022