Wouter de Laat Group
Biomedical genomics
Our Focus
Cancer and hereditary diseases are often the consequence of genetic alterations in non-coding DNA sequences that cause aberrant expression of disease-associated genes. The aim of our group is to understand how non-coding DNA sequences control gene expression in development and disease. We pioneer the development and application of innovative strategies to uncover the three-dimensional folding of DNA inside cells, which facilitates wiring regulatory DNA elements to disease-causing genes and thus enables assigning function to healthy and mutated genomes. Additionally, we develop improved gene sequencing methodologies that better enable the identification of disease-causing mutations in patients in order to facilitate the implementation of personalized disease therapy strategies.
