Mechelen, Flemish Region, Belgium
As a Senior Scientist specializing in Computational Biology, I have dedicated over a decade to unraveling the complexities of cancer heterogeneity and cell therapy. Armed with a PhD in Biomedical Sciences from KU Leuven and a mini-MBA in Entrepreneurship from Innotek, I thrive at the intersection of data and biology. My expertise lies in leading and executing computational biology projects in drug and target discovery, particularly utilizing single-cell 'omics. I have successfully integrated several promising targets into research pipelines, managed multiple collaborations, led computational investigations, and implemented NGS technologies. My passion is to leverage my skills to advance cancer therapy and improve patient outcomes. A glimpse into my background: 🖥️ Bioinformatician with a decade of research experience in single-cell biology, combining wet lab and computational skills 💉 Spearheaded projects in Cell Therapy, focusing on data-driven, innovative approaches to complex biological questions 🎯 Specialized in Oncology, driven by an enthusiasm for unraveling insights through single-cell and multi-omics technologies 🧠 Problem-solver with a get-it-done mentality and a thirst for learning
Responsibilities include: - Co-lead the development and optimization of snRNA-seq on clinical FFPE samples - Provide bioinformatics support to guide wet-lab protocol improvements - Optimize an FFPE-focused computational pipeline for snRNA-seq processing, QC and downstream analysis - Perform comparative analyses of single‑cell technologies - Lead the retrospective analyses of single‑cell predictors of response to antibody–drug conjugates (ADCs) within academic collaborations - Lead data analysis for preclinical research projects in collaboration with pharma partners
Responsibilities include: - Coordinate and manage bioinformatics support for the Cell Therapy research area - Data-driven target identification - BD asset evaluation - Assist in drug target discovery projects by analysing (single-cell) transcriptomics experiments Achievements/milestones: - Analysis workflow for data-driven (single and combo) target identification - Identified several potential targets, with two successfully integrated into the company's pipeline
Responsibilities include: - Manage multiple research collaborations, with academic and industry partners - Lead computational investigations into melanoma cell states (see paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41556-020-0547-3) - Implement NGS technologies (e.g. single-cell CRISPR pooled screens, 10X Chromium single-cell RNA-seq, 10X Chromium phased whole-genome DNA-seq) - Supervise (co-promoter of) 2 PhD students - Teach "Bioinformatics and Systems Biology: Expression, Regulation and Networks" (2nd Master of Biomedical Sciences) Achievements/milestones: - 4-year scholarship of Stichting tegen Kanker (1 of 10 scholarships) (~€400K) - 3-year scholarship of Kom op tegen Kanker (1 of 3 scholarships) (€225K) - 3-year research grant of The Harry J. Lloyd Charitable Trust (US; $130K) - 2 first-author and 10 co-author papers (4 as second-last author) - Invited speaker at the 10X Chromium scRNA-seq workshop (2017; Ghent), at the Bioinformatics Interest Group meeting (2018; Leuven), at the Melanoma Workshop 2019 (Otranto) and at the CCB-VIB Cancer Seminars (2019).
Responsibilities include: - Head 2 research collaborations - Supervise (co-promoter of) 1 master student Achievements/milestones: - 2 first-author and 6 co-author papers - Invited speaker at the International Melanoma Workshop 2013 (Dublin) and at the Leuven Cancer Institute (LKI)
Representative in the Cancer Programme Committee in the Doctoral School Of Biomedical Sciences, Cancer Programme (KU Leuven)
Elected PhD student representative of the Faculty of Medicine in the Permanent Education Committee in the Doctoral School Of Biomedical Sciences (K.U.Leuven) • Policy setting for Doctoral School Biomedical Sciences and doctoral programmes biomedical sciences • Management of doctoral programmes: regulations; quality control; doctoral training • Administrative organisation and support for the Doctoral Committees • Organisation of doctoral school programmes (delegated to the Doctoral School Committee)
Responsibilities include: - Lead Work Package 1 of an EU Marie Curie IAPP cancer project in an SME spin off company - Fine-tuning and validation of a prognostic assay, consisting of a panel of epigenetically-regulated protein biomarkers (see paper: https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12916-017-0851-3) - Supervise 1 bachelor student Achievements/milestones: - Abstract Travel Award by the Society of Melanoma Research (SMR) ($1.5K) - 1 first-author papers and 1 co-author paper - Invited speaker at Society of Melanoma Research Conference (Boston)