Leiden University

Leiden University is the oldest university in the Netherlands offering education to about 15,000 students in a wide range of studies. The chemistry and life sciences research at the Leiden Institute of Chemistry is organized around two major themes: “Energy and Sustainability” and “Chemical Biology”. The Leiden Institute of Chemistry attracts students from all over the world either to conduct their full training or to participate in foreign exchange programmes.

The Bio-Organic Synthesis department at the Leiden Institute of Chemistry is one of the world leaders in the automated synthesis of biopolymers, including DNA/RNA, peptides and carbohydrates.

Dr. Codée has been involved in the Horizon 2020 Marie Curie action “Immunoshape”, which has started beginning 2015. This training programme was aimed at the development of C-type lectin ligands (carbohydrate structures) to unravel C-type lectin signalling and use the ligands as new molecular adjuvants. The Codée group is also involved in the Horizon 2020 Marie Curie action “GLYCOVAX”, aiming at the development of the next generation anti-bacterial synthetic vaccines. The Biosyn group is involved in various nationally funded research programmes, of which the Institute of Chemical Immunology, led by Prof. Overkleeft (also a member of the Bio- organic Synthesis group), is a prime example.