Prof. Dr. P. (Eline) Slagboom

I am biologist by training and specialized in ageing research. I obtained my PhD at the Leiden University (NL) on genome instability and ageing. Between ‘93 and 2000 I was group leader at the TNO Institute for applied sciences (Gaubius Institute) and was appointed in 2000 as professor of Molecular Epidemiology at the Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC). At LUMC I am the head of the Department of Biomedical Data Sciences and chair of the Theme for Innovation Lifecourse Epidemiology and Geroscience (LEGend. I am the chair of the DUSRA – Dutch Society for Research on Ageing, professor at the Technical University Delft, member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) and Fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing in Cologne and member of the Academy for Health and Lifespan Research in the US.

Three themes are being investigated from a molecular, cellular and epidemiological perspective: ageing, osteoarthritis and the epigenome. Related themes for innovation are the themes Lifestyle, Medical Genomics, Oncology, Lifecourse (LEGend) and Regenerative Medicine. Our research has a strong data-science (multi-omics) component and is both clinically and population health oriented. It is supported by ZonMw, NWO, Health Holland and EU. I am PI of the VOILA (Vitality Oriented Innovations for the Lifecourse of the Ageing Society) the largest public-private collaborative consortium on ageing in The Netherlands. We focus on the 1) etiology of human ageing and familial longevity, by genetic and functional genomic studies; 2) generation of molecular biomarkers for monitoring biological age/physiological vulnerability (in Leiden Longevity Study and biobanking consortia NCC, BBMRI and CHARGE) 3) the immune metabolic health improvement of 55+ individuals by lifestyle interventions (GOTO, VOILA). Implementation strategies are performed in the Medical Delta with the Health Campus The Hague.