On December 19, 2007, four young researchers at UMC Utrecht received a “Veni grant” from the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research NWO. This grant is for a maximum of 208,000 euros, and the researcher can use the money to conduct research and develop ideas for a period of three years. The four winners are Joris Benschop (physiological chemistry), Imo Hoefer (experimental cardiology), Arne Lindqvist (oncology), and Willem van Schaik (medical microbiology).
The four Veni researchers work in a variety of disciplines. Benschop wonders why only some of the genes in our DNA are active. He is studying the proteins responsible for activating DNA. Hoefer is working out how to promote the growth of natural bypasses, which develop around narrowed arteries. Lindqvist is trying to understand how cancer cells decide to divide in a different way than normal cells. And Schaikt is trying to find out how it was possible for the bacteria Enterococcus faecium to rapidly go from being a harmless bacteria to a dreaded hospital bacteria.
NWO has conferred Veni grants on 89 young scientists who have recently been awarded PhDs. A total of 530 researchers submitted research proposals. The submissions were evaluated by scientists both in the Netherlands and abroad. The successful candidates were selected because of their exceptional and unique talent for conducting innovative scientific research. There were 38 women among the winners.