G.G.H. van den Akker, PhD

Osteoarthritis is an invalidating joint disease for which no cure exists. The prevalence is expected to reach 3 million patients in the Netherlands in 2050. Conservative treatments consist of pain management and ultimately whole joint replacement surgery. My specialization is cartilage biology in osteoarthritis and my research encompasses: 1) fundamental molecular research, 2) development of treatments and 3) differential diagnostics.

1) Damaged cartilage could be repaired by de novo protein synthesis through ribosomes. Therefore, I am investigating how ribosomes can be targeted to counteract the destructive effects of osteoarthritis.

2, A) I have developed a new therapy for osteoarthritis based on a peptide that prevents calcium-containing crystal formation (patented). Future research will focus on further development of this novel approach using a slow-release system.

2, B) In a separate larger project I am searching for drug candidate molecules using reporter assays in robotized drug screenings (3x 28k compounds). This is expected to lead to a portfolio of drug candidate molecules for osteoarthritis.

3) New therapies are targeted at specific patient populations and these need to be identified prior to treatment. I am screening osteoarthritic patient materials, mainly synovial fluid, for biomarkers to identify at risk patient populations for calcification