Linda van Laake

Linda W. Van Laake, MD, PhD obtained her medical degree at Maastricht University and her PhD (title: Cardiac Recovery by Stem and Progenitor Cells) at Utrecht University, after which she continued her scientific career as a postdoctoral researcher at the Gladstone Institutes, University of California, San Francisco (USA). In 2011 she became Assistant Professor at the Department of Cardiology of the University Medical Center Utrecht and the Hubrecht Institute Utrecht, the Netherlands. In addition, she works as a clinical cardiologist specialized in heart failure.

Dr. Van Laake’s team explores novel approaches to regenerate the heart using stem- and progenitor cells. Many cardiovascular diseases, such as heart failure and myocardial infarction, are associated with loss of functional cardiomyocytes (heart muscle cells). A focus on the understanding of fundamental cardiac developmental – and repair processes will promote the recapitulation of cardiac differentiation in vitro. Currently, the team is investigating the influence of circadian or “day-night” rhythms on cardiac development and regeneration.

Combing a variety of novel approaches together with a greater understanding of how heart development and repair work, Dr. Van Laake and her team strive to create better personalized heart failure therapies.