April 2021

Of particular personal interest is how the immune develops during the early stages of life and adapts to a plethora of immune stimuli, as well as the evident differences between aged and young immune cells and their role in immunity.

Our April Ambassador of the month is Theodorus van den Broek, Clinical resident medical microbiology and Senior Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Center for Translational Immunology (CTI) and the medical microbiology department, University Medical Center Utrecht (UMCU), The Netherlands. Theo has contributed to Immunopeadie by writing multiple research summaries. He also recently took part in the Nature Webcast Series on How to master peer review.

Research interests: T cell development, regulation and plasticity, and their role in generating protective immunity (in early life)

Recent publications:

T. van den Broek. (2020) How I started a journal for postdoctoral researchers. Nature
T. van den Broek & J.Gould. (2020) Coronavirus: postdoc winners need paid extensions. Nature Jul
T. van den Broek, J.A.M. Borghans & F. van Wijk (2018). The full spectrum of human naïve T cells. Nat Rev Immunol.

Why I love immunology: The immune system is an intriguing and complex system that can recognize self from non-self and has the potential to eliminate harmful molecules and cells. This system needs to be appropriately balanced as a disbalance can result in persistent and chronic infections, autoimmune diseases, and cancers, among other things. Of particular personal interest is how the immune develops during the early stages of life and adapts to a plethora of immune stimuli, as well as the evident differences between aged and young immune cells and their role in immunity. The system’s overall complexity and its continuous involvement in all areas of biology make it a fascinating field of study.

If I weren’t an immunologist, I would be: Medical doctor

Tips for young people who want to enter the field of immunology: You have to be intrigued and fascinated by the concept of immunology, as in any field of study, as the system’s complexity might initially be overwhelming. The area of immunology is in continuous movement. The discovery of new cell types, functions, disease associations, and new techniques makes it a very dynamic environment in which novel research fields continuously develop.
Also, I would advise you to find a great mentor. A mentor can fuel or halt your enthusiasm in immunology and general research interest. It is essential that your mentor has a clear interest in teaching and training the next generation of immunologists.

What being an Immunopaedia Ambassador means to me: I believe that the next generation of scientists’ training and education plays a massive part in the overall understanding and expansion of scientific knowledge in the long run. Being part of the Immunopaedia community provides me with the opportunity to contribute to immunology education and training on an international level. Being an ambassador makes me very proud and I am glad to able to contribute to its growth.

How I have contributed to Immunopaedia so far:
I have contributed three articles to the breakings news page and I try to promote Immunopaedia at every opportunity.

You can get in touch with me by: Website; LinkedIn & Twitter