معرفی
Prof. Irene Heijink is a Full Professor at the University of Groningen's Faculty of Medical Sciences, heading the Experimental Lung Diseases Lab (EXPIRE) and serving as Program Leader of the Groningen Research Institute for COPD (GRIAC). She specializes in epithelial barrier dysfunction in respiratory diseases like asthma and COPD, using advanced patient-derived cell models. Her work focuses on regenerative mechanisms and epithelial repair processes.
Education: MSc Medical Biology from University of Groningen (2000), PhD in Immunology (2004). Postdoc at Toronto's St. Michael's Hospital (2006-2007).
Research Interests: Epithelial cell biology, mucosal immunology, in vitro lung models, lung regeneration, and translational research into COPD/Asthma mechanisms. Her lab develops microfluidic organ-on-chip systems (e.g., Airway-on-Chip) to study disease processes.
Achievements: Over 217 publications including high-impact studies on age-related COPD mechanisms and asthma phenotyping. Received Honorary Lecture Prize (2023) for epithelial barrier research. Leads European Respiratory Society's Basic & Translational Sciences Assembly.
Grants/Projects: Secured NWO Perspectief grants for innovative COPD therapies and lung regeneration studies. Collaborates internationally in asthma/COPD research consortia.
Labs/Teams: EXPIRE Lab and GRIAC Institute, focusing on epithelial biology, stem cell research, and disease modeling. Supervises multidisciplinary teams including engineers and computational biologists.
