news
Publication: New collaborative paper applying MAS NMR to tissue clearing.
Congratulations to Ali Fakhrolmobasheri and SSNMR group alum Dr. Pushpa Rampratap for the publication of our collaborative paper On the Molecular Basis of Shrinkage in Hydrophobic Tissue Clearing. This is a project we started a few years back, as part of the PhD research of Pushpa Rampratap in our lab. She used MAS NMR to study the effects of chemical treatments on tissue biopsies, during the process of ‘clearing’ – a procedure for making tissues transparent to enable fluorescent/optical imaging. This involves removal of lipids and changes to the normal solvent composition, to achieve refractive index matching. Our findings were […]
Publication: collaborative paper on amylose analysis
Congratulations to Alessia Lasorsa and especially also our collaborators from the Zernike Institute, for the publication of a new paper in the journal Carbohydrate Polymers. This paper, entitled “Influence of the helical cavity diameter on the loading capacity and sustained release potential of V-amylose–α-linolenic acid complexes”, reflect a collaboration between several Zernike Institute groups. It describes an analysis of how amylose-based materials can be used to encapsulate and deliver guest molecules, such as α-linolenic acid (ALA). From our group we contributed solid-state NMR analyses of the complexes, which provide insights into both the amylose and the amyloid-ALA complexes. For more […]
Dutch Huntington Research meeting back in Groningen – Sept. 2nd 2026
The Dutch Huntington Disease Research Network (DHDRN) symposium is again coming to Groningen. This time it will take place on September 2nd 2026 at UMCG. This recurring symposium brings together the community of Huntington’s disease researchers from across the Netherlands. The focus will be on research into molecular mechanisms relevant to the disease, with three invited speakers alongside a selection of submitted abstracts. All researchers, companies and health professionals with an interest in Huntington’s disease are invited to join the meeting. For registration and more information, please contact g.noppert@umcg.nl at UMCG. The 2026 version is being organized by: Michael Chang, […]
Funding: project grant from CampagneTeam Huntington
We thank the Dutch CampagneTeam Huntington foundation (CTH), which has just announced that they will fund our new project grant on Huntington’s disease (HD). This is a project together with our longstanding collaborator Prof Amalia Dolga (at the GRIP institute of the University of Groningen). It is an extension of an earlier project that the CTH funded, and which paid for the PhD research project of Dr. Greeshma Jain. She published several papers from her research on the structures and toxic properties of HD-related protein aggregates and how they are modulated by aggregation inhibitors [e.g. refs 1-4]. The new project […]
Postdoc position available – ssNMR/DNP (update: filled)
Update in 2026: This position has been filled. We are looking for a postdoctoral researcher to join the group, funded by our new NWO WINC grant. See the application site of the university for now. The Solid-state NMR group of Prof Patrick van der Wel at the University of Groningen is looking for a postdoctoral researcher with experience in magic-angle-spinning (MAS) solid-state NMR spectroscopy and/or dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP). The multiyear postdoctoral position is funded by the Dutch national funding organization NWO, via a national consortium grant that establishes a new ssNMR/DNP facility in Groningen. The postdoc will join the […]
Publication: In-situ irradiated MAS NMR to probe dynamic transitions.
We are excited to report the publication of our paper on in-situ illumination during MAS NMR in the Journal of Materials Chemistry A. This publication is the culmination of a long project that found its origins quite a few years ago, even before the lab moved from Pittsburgh to Groningen. Photochemistry and optogenetics are increasingly influential topics in both chemical and biological research, respectively. The application of illumination and light triggers can be used to control chemical and biological processes. In this paper we focus on the intersection of such processes and materials science – demonstrating how magic-angle-spinning (MAS) NMR […]
New Publication: Silk-inspired hybrid materials – ssNMR and more.
Congratulations to PhD student Raffaella Parlato, as well as our collaborators from the group of Marleen Kamperman, with the publication of a new collaborative paper in the journal Communications Chemistry. Raffaella used solid-state NMR to study the structure and dynamics of (labeled) polypeptides within the hybrid polymer-peptide materials prepared by the Kamperman group. The employed peptides are poly-alanine peptides inspired by the structural motifs found in proteins in spider silk. Spider silk proteins use polyalanine segments to form stable higher order structures that enable the remarkable materials properties of silk. Here, these peptides were used to change the materials properties […]
Publication: how antibodies bind to the fuzzy coat of Huntingtin protein fibrils.
Congratulations to Raffaella for the publication of her second first-author paper, this time on the use of NMR spectroscopy to study how antibodies bind to the aggregated state of huntingtin protein fragments, relevant to Huntington’s disease. This work is part of our ongoing research on the biochemistry of Huntington’s disease, and was supported by funds from the European Huntington Disease Network EHDN and the CampagneTeam Huntington. Antibodies are widely used as diagnostic tools in HD research, and also are considered as potential treatment modalities. An example of the latter approach can be found in the case of Alzheimer’s disease, where […]
Publication: Impact of aggregation inhibitors on protein aggregation and aggregate toxicity.
Congratulations to Greeshma Jain, Marina Trombetta-Lima and the whole team of co-authors for the publication of our most recent paper on Huntington’s disease (HD), in the journal Nature Communications. This paper is actually the fourteenth peer-reviewed publication from the lab on HD research, since our first paper in 2011. It was enabled by crucial funding from the CampagneTeam Huntington foundation, who supported our HD research program when the Van der Wel group moved back to the Netherlands. In this new report we describe our use of structural analysis (NMR and EM) to look how aggregation-inhibiting small molecules (polyphenols) change the […]
Webinar: GlycoScience Webinar on polysaccharide ssNMR research
On 27 March Patrick gave an online presentation in the EGC webinar series, on the topic of using solid-state NMR (and isotope labeling) to study polysaccharides in various contexts. The title of the presentation was: “Labeling and solid-state NMR studies of hyaluronic acid and other polysaccharides: hydrogels, nanoparticles and more” EGC Webinar #86 Glycochemistry (March 27, 4 pm CET) Patrick van der Wel (Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials, University of Groningen, the Netherlands) “Labeling and solid-state NMR studies of hyaluronic acid and other polysaccharides: hydrogels, nanoparticles and more” A recording of the lecture is visible via YouTube. In the presentation […]