About
Jan Aerts is a Professor in the Department of Biosystems (BIOSYST) at KU Leuven, affiliated with the Faculty of Bioscience Engineering. He leads the Subdivision MeBioS Technologies-JA and is a member of the MeBioS Technologies Division, Leuven One Health Institute, Leuven.AI Institute for Artificial Intelligence, and the LPI Plant Institute. His roles also include serving as a member of the Faculty of Bioscience Engineering Council and the Biosystems Department Council.
His research focuses on interdisciplinary applications of data visualization, bioinformatics, and biostatistics. Key areas include developing algorithms for clustering and manifold exploration (e.g., FLASC, Snowflake), analyzing proteomics and microbiome datasets, and applying visualization techniques to archaeology, epidemiology, and environmental science. He actively promotes cross-disciplinary collaboration through initiatives like the Leuven One Health and Leuven.AI institutes.
Recent projects highlight his leadership as a promotor in studies involving Daphnia magna stressor analysis, multilayer network visualization, and sustainable diet modeling. He has co-authored influential work on spatial models for pandemic analysis and visual analytics in art history research. His contributions bridge computational methods with real-world challenges in health, environment, and cultural heritage.
Jan Aerts has advised/co-advised research projects such as BioDive and Coping with geographic mosaics of stressors, and contributed to grants spanning proteomics, single-cell genomics, and wicked problem visualization. He collaborates with teams like MeBioS Technologies and the Leuven Statistics Research Centre (LStat).
