Natal A.W. van Riel

Natal A.W. van Riel is a Full Professor of Biomedical Systems Biology at the Department of Biomedical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology and a part-time Professor of Computational Modelling at Amsterdam University Medical Centers. His research focuses on metabolic networks, scientific machine learning, human digital twins, and complex dynamical systems in cardiometabolic diseases like obesity and type 2 diabetes.

Research Interests include bile acid metabolism in gut-metabolic health interactions (e.g., RESOLVE project), nutrient digestion and metabolism modeling under NWO Complexity in Health and Nutrition, and metabolic digital twins for predictive, preventive, and personalized medicine. Key applications include diabetes self-management (DiaGame project) and post-bariatric surgery assessment (Metabolic Health Index).

Recent Publications highlight universal differential equations for biological systems, spatiotemporal metabolic modeling, ensemble approaches for RNA-Seq-based metabolic models, and digital health interventions. Collaborations span engineers, clinicians, and social scientists.

Scientific Awards include the

• AMC Principal Investigator (2016)
• COST Action BM1402 (2014)
• Koninklijke Onderscheiding (Order of Orange-Nassau, 2014)

He contributes to academic governance through roles in examination committees, curriculum development, and research committees. His educational background includes an MSc in Electrical Engineering (1995) and a PhD in Biotechnology (2000).