PhD-Student
Roxane Biersteker
RESEARCH:
Roxane joined the Toes lab, Experimental Rheumatology, as a PhD student in January 2022 and collaborates with the Sharp lab. Her project focuses on the molecular characterization of autoreactive B cells and their secreted autoantibodies in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The disease-specific autoantibodies of RA are featured by the presence of N-linked variable domain glycosylation (VDG). The collaborative research project with the Sharp lab involves the employment of cryo-electron tomography to understand the effect of IgG VDG on complement activation. In addition, it is investigated what the effect is of VDG on the organization and downmodulation of variable domain glycosylated membrane IgG B cell receptors at the nanoscale.
CURRICULUM VITAE:
Roxane studied Chemistry (Molecular Sciences) at the University of Amsterdam and VU Amsterdam. She performed her master’s thesis in the group of Prof. Dr. Rob Leurs within the Medicinal Chemistry department. There, her research was focused on the characterization of G-protein coupled receptors with the aim of developing potential drugs against a tropical disease. In addition, Roxane did an internship at the Analytical Chemistry group at Van 't Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences.
Groups:
Sharp Lab / BioNanoPatterning
