List of all PhD students (42) supervised by Prof. Cisca Wijmenga

8 of her 42 students have graduated cum laude
* indicates medical doctors (MDs)

Coming soon:
Isis Ricano-Ponce
Chao Pang

Completed:

Marc Jan Bonder, 22 March 2017: The interplay between genetics, the microbiome, DNA-methylation & gene‐expression. University of Groningen. Graduated cum laude
Now a postdoc at the European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), Cambridge, UK

Ettje Tigchelaar-Feenstra, 14 Dec 2016: From bugs to buttermilk: Epidemiological and molecular aspects of gut health, Univeristy of Groningen

Daria V Zhernakova, 12 September 2016: Multi-omics approaches for better understanding of the downstream effects of genetic risk factors, University of Groningen
She has a postdoc position in St Petersburg, Russia.

Serena Sanna, 9 May 2016: Enhancing genetic discoveries with population-specific reference panels, University of Groningen
She was an external PhD candidate from the Institute of Biomedical and Genetic Research, Cagliari, Italy. She took up a postdoc position in the department in Sept 2016.

Javier Gutierrez Achury, 2 December 2015: HLA and other tales: The different perspectives of Celiac Disease, University of Groningen.
Now a postdoc with Carl Andersen, at Sanger Centre, Cambridge, UK (more)

Barbara Hrdličková , 11 May 2015: Finding the missing 'LiNCs' in celiac disease. University of Groningen
Awarded a 3-year grant by the William Harvey International Translational Research Academy (WHRI-ACADEMY) from the COFUND Marie Curie Actions to perform postdoc research in the group of Prof. Charles Parkos and Prof. Asma Nusrat, Department of Pathology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA. full text of thesis

Rodrigo Almeida, 25 March 2015: Beyond genome wide association studies in celiac disease by exploring the non-coding genome. University of Groningen
Now a postdoc at the University of Parana, Curitiba, Brazil. He was awarded a Young Talent Fellowship by the Brazilian Federal Government. full text of thesis

Michael R Erdos , 18 March 2015: Genetic etiology of type 2 diabetes: from gene identification to functional genomics. University of Groningen. Supervisors: Francis Collins (NIH), Cisca Wijmenga, Marten Hofker
Mike Erdos is a senior staff scientist in the Collins laboratory at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) , Bethesda, Maryland, USA. full text of thesis

* GHCG (Guido) Dolmans MD, 24 November 2014: Genetic origin of Dupuytren’s disease and associated fibromatosis, University of Groningen
Now a plastic surgeon at Catharina Ziekenhuis Eindhoven. full text of thesis

Harm Jan Westra , 17 September 2014: Interpreting disease genetics using functional genomics , University of Groningen. Graduated cum laude
Now a postdoc under Dr Soumya Raychaudhuri, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, USA. He was awarded an NWO Rubicon fellowship. full text

* Karin Fransen MD, 16 June 2014: Inflammatory bowel disease: the genetic background and beyond.
Now training as a gastroenterologist at UMCG. full text

* Rian M Nijmeijer MD, 10 April 2014: Genetic and immunologic aspects of acute pancreatitis, Utrecht University
Now training as a gastroenterologist at UMC St Radboud, Nijmegen. full text

* Naishi Li MD, 11 Dec 2013: Novel mechanisms for prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes , University of Groningen . He is now an associate professor and specialist in diabetes at Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Beijing, China. full text

Joanna (Asia) Smolonska, 9 October 2013: The many faces of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, University of Groningen. Is owner/manager of Lovebird design & printing solutions, Wroclaw, Poland. full text

* Ezra Burstein MD, 22 May 2013: COMMD1: a modulator of immunity and NF-kB activity, University of Groningen.
Head of the Burstein lab in the Division of Digestive and Liver Diseases and associate professor at UT Southwestern Medical Center , Dallas, Texas.

Marcel Wolfs, 31 October 2012: Transcriptome analysis to investigate the link between obesity and its metabolic complications: type 2 diabetes and NASH, University of Groningen.
Was working in the Dept of Endocrinology, UMCG, Groningen.

Agata Szperl, 12 September 2012: Mapping complex and monogenic disorders: methods and applications, University of Groningen.
Now working on the new curriculum for medical studies, G2020, at University of Groningen.

* Maciej Geremek MD, 13 June 2012: Genetic and genomic approach to the pathogenesis of primary ciliary dyskinesia, University of Groningen.
This work was part of a collaboration with the International Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, Warsaw, Poland, and Prof. Michal Witt. Completing his training as a neurologist in Warsaw.

Gosia (Malgorzata Barbara) Trynka, 14 December 2011: Unlocking the genetics of coeliac disease, University of Groningen. Graduated cum laude.
Appointed a group leader at Sanger Institute, Wellcome Trust, Hinxton, Cambridge, UK in 2014. (more info) Was a postdoc at the Dept. of Rheumatology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, w orking with Robert Plenge and Soumya Raychaudhuri. In 2011 she was awarded an NWO Rubicon fellowship and a Marie Curie Fellowship.

Jihane Romanos, 12 December 2011: Genetics of celiac disease and its diagnostic value, University of Groningen. Was a postdoc working on coronary artery disease and the migration of Mediterranean populations at the Institute of Human Genetics, Lebanese American University, Byblos, Lebanon.

* Albertien van Eerde MD, 8 June 2011: Genetics of congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract: Towards elucidation of genetic factors in the etiology of vesico-ureteral reflux, Utrecht University.
Now a clinical geneticist at UMC Utrecht, the Netherlands. She was awarded a research grant by the Dutch Kidney Foundation in 2013. full text

* Eleanora (Noortje) Festen MD, April 6, 2011: Shared genetic background of inflammatory diseases of the bowel, University of Groningen. Graduated cum laude.
Now a gastroenterologist-in-training at UMCG, Groningen, the Netherlands. She was awarded a Mandema stipendium and has recently completed the Harvard Medical School Global Clinical Scholars Research Training Program (GCSRT). In 2014 she was invited to the 64th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting.

Willianne Vonk, 17 March 2011: Understanding COMMD1 function: Novel perspectives from in vitro and in vivo studies, Utrecht University. Has a postdoc position with Judith Frydman at University of California San Francisco (UCSF). She was awarded a Marie Curie Fellowship in January 2013. full text

Florianne Bauer, 16 December 2010: Genes and diet in obesity related type 2 diabetes, Utrecht University.
Has a position at RIVM, Bilthoven, the Netherlands. full text

* Ramnik Xavier MD (Harvard Medical School, Boston), October 11, 2010: Genes and pathways in Crohn’s disease, University of Groningen.
Is Chief of the Gastrointestinal Unit and Director of the Center for the Study of Inflammatory Bowel Disease at Massachusetts General Hospital , and Kurt Isselbacher Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston. request copy from dept

Clara Elbers, 6 October 2010: On the origin of type 2 diabetes and obesity, Utrecht University.
Since 2013 she has been working as a subsidy consultant at Catalyze, Bussum, the Netherlands. She was awarded an NWO Rubicon fellowship and worked as a postdoc in the Dept. of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine under Sarah Tishkoff, and later as a postdoc in the Dept. of Genetics, UMC Utrecht with Paul de Bakker. full text

Jana van Vliet-Ostaptchouk , 7 July 2010: Revealing the genetic roots of obesity and type 2 diabetes, University of Groningen.
Was a postdoctoral fellow in the Dept. of Medical Biology, UMCG, Groningen. She was awarded an NWO Rubicon fellowship to work with Ruth Loos at the Medical Research Council in Cambridge, UK. She is now a postdoc in the Dept. of Endocrinology, UMCG, Groningen. In June 2014, she was awarded a grant by the Dutch Diabetes Research Foundation to study the relationship between environmental pollution and diabetes type 2. full text

* Alexandra (Sasha) Zhernakova MD, 3 December 2009. The autoimmune puzzle – shared and specific genetics of immune-related diseases, Utrecht University. Graduated cum laude.
She was a postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Rheumatology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, under Prof. Tom Huizenga and was also awarded an NWO Rubicon fellowship to work at Harvard Medical School, Boston with Robert Plenge. In 2011 she was awarded a Rosalind Franklin fellowship at the UMCG, Groningen. She has received several grants, from BBMRI, the Dutch Arthritis Association, and CVON (work package leader). She was awarded the Girard de Mielet van Coehoorn prize for her PhD thesis (2010) and the Lodewijk Sandkuijl Award for best presentation at the ESHG meeting (2009). full text

* Victorien Wolters MD, 3 November 2009. Diagnostics and genetics of coeliac disease, Utrecht University.
Was a postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada, iunder Aleixo Muise and Prof. Anne Griffiths, and is now a paediatric gastroenterologist at UMC Utrecht, the Netherlands. full text

* Erik Knauff MD, 22 April 2009. Premature ovarian failure from phenotype to genotype, Utrecht University.
He is now a gynaecologist at Waterland Hospital, Purmerend, the Netherlands. full text

Lude Franke, 27 May 2008. Genome-wide approaches towards identification of susceptibility genes in complex disorders, Utrecht University. Graduated cum laude.
He was a postdoctoral fellow at the Institute of Cell and Molecular Science, Barts and London, UK, under Prof. David van Heel, and at the Department of Genetics, UMCG. In 2011 he was invited to the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting. In 2014 he gained an ERC starting grant and an NWO-VIDI grant and was appointed an associate professor. He has also received an NGI Horizon Breakthrough grant (2008) and NWO VENI grant (2009). In 2015 he received the UMCG's Research Prize. Per 1 Jan 2016, he holds a chair and is head of the resesearch section at Dept of Genetics, UMCG. See also http://ludesign.nl/frankelab/, www.systemsgenetics.nl, full text of thesis

Patricia Muller, 25 March 2008. Transcriptomics as a tool to dissect copper homeostasis and COMMD protein function, Utrecht University.
She was awarded an NWO Rubicon fellowship and became a postdoctoral fellow at the Beatson Institute for Cancer Research, Glasgow, Scotland, under Prof. Karen Vousden. In 2013 she was awarded the Sir Henry Dale Fellowship by the Wellcome Trust and Royal Society (UK), which she has taken up at the toxicology unit, University of Leicester, to continue her research. She was awarded the UK Biochemical Society's Early Career Award in 2014 . full text of thesis

* Rinse Weersma MD, 17 October 2007. Genetic susceptibility for inflammatory bowel disease, University of Groningen.
Now a full professor, clinical researcher and gastroenterologist at the UMCG. He was awarded a ZonMW Clinical Fellowship (2009), NWO VIDI grant (2013), and the Rising Star Award (2011) from the United European Gastroenterology Foundation.

Prim de Bie, 4 October 2007. Novel insights in the molecular pathogenesis of human copper homeostasis disorders through studies of protein-protein interactions, Utrecht University.
He is now a resident in Clinical Chemistry at Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, after doing a postdoc at the Rappaport Family Institute for Research in Medical Sciences, Israel Institute of Technology (Technion) in Haifa, Israel, under Prof. Aaron Ciechanover (2004 Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry). full text

Alienke Monsuur, 3 July 2007. Unraveling the molecular genetic aspects of intestinal inflammatory disorders, Utrecht University.
Now a scientific staff member in clinical research and head of the PIEN study at the Center for Infectious Disease Control, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, the Netherlands.

Martin Wapenaar, 28 November 2006. Genomics of coeliac disease – Molecular signatures of the pathogenesis, Utrecht University.
Now working on the new curriculum for medical studies, G2020, at University of Groningen. Was a staff member at Dept. of Genetics, UMCG, Groningen, the Netherlands. full text

* Ynte Ruigrok MD, 16 June 2006. From intracranial aneurysm to subarachnoid hemorrhage: unraveling the genetics, Utrecht University. Graduated cum laude.
Now a neurologist and clinical researcher, University Medical Center Utrecht. She has been awarded a clinical fellowship from NWO (2014), a Rudolf Magnus Young Talent Fellowship in 2010 (University Medical Center Utrecht), NWO VENI grant (2009) and Netherlands Brain Foundation grant (2005) . She was awarded the ‘Amsterdamse Neurologenvereeniging’ prize (2008) and Girard de Mielet van Coehoorn prize (2007) for her PhD thesis.

* Begona Diosdado MD, 21 March 2006. The puzzle of coeliac disease: pieces of the molecular pathogenesis, Utrecht University.
Now a pathologist and postdoctoral fellow at Free University (VU) Medical Center, Amsterdam, the Netherlands. She has been awarded research grants by the Pathological Society of Great Britain & Ireland and by the Dutch Cancer Society (KWF). Is now an associate editor of Cellular Oncology.

Harm van Bakel, 8 November 2005. Genome-wide analyses of copper metabolism and its regulation across species. Utrecht Univeristy.
Was a postdoctoral fellow at the Banting and Best Department of Medical Research, University of Toronto, Canada, under Prof. Tim Hughes. He was awarded an NWO Rubicon fellowship. Is now an assistant professor in Genetics and Genomic Sciences at Icahn School of Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital, New York.

Martine van Belzen, 16 December 2003. Coeliac disease: investigation of the genetic factors underlying coeliac disease, Utrecht University.
Now a clinical molecular geneticist, Dept. of Medical Genetics, Leiden University Medical Centre, the Netherlands.

Co-supervisor of:

Jonathan van Tilburg, 10 December 2002. The Breda study: Search for genetic factors in type 2 diabetes mellitus in a defined Dutch population, Utrecht University.
Now Track coordinator of the Molecular Life Sciences program and project coordinator of the premium program FHML at Maastricht University , the Netherlands.

Bart van de Sluis , 19 November 2002. Identification of a copper toxicosis gene in Bedlington terriers, Utrecht University. Graduated cum laude.
Now associate professor at Dept. of Medical Biology, UMCG, Groningen, the Netherlands, and a work package leader in an EU project.

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