Postdocs in the team of Dr. Heidi Jacobs
Joost Riphagen
​I am a MD/PhD/Anaesthesiologist with an interest in aging and dementia and the role of inflammation and vascular pathology. The locus coeruleus plays both a role in immune modulation as well as neurovascular coupling, which provides and interesting inroad towards a better understanding of the interaction of co-pathologies in aging and dementia. My research uses both biochemical as well as multimodal imaging markers to aid our understanding of how, where and when immune responses become a liability for the brain. Mid 2021 I will start as research fellow at MGH/Harvard Aging Brain Study.
Maxime van Egroo
​I am an early-career postdoctoral fellow who aims to contribute to the global effort to find novel ways to predict the transition from healthy aging to exhibiting the initial signs of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathology. The goal of my research is to investigate the earliest manifestations of AD-related processes among clinically normal individuals, with an emphasis on the role of sleep-wake regulation as an ideal modifiable factor to delay or slow down initial disease progression. More precisely, I am taking advantage of cutting-edge methodologies, such as ultra-high field neuroimaging, to identify new early markers of increased risk for AD based on the intersection of the earliest AD-related pathology depositions and the neurobiological systems underlying sleep-wake regulation. 

PhD-students under current supervision of Dr. Heidi Jacobs

MIDAS, in blue spot style!!
Roy van Hooren
​I am a PhD-student in Heidi's team. I investigate the structure of the locus coeruleus-norepinephrine system using MRI, and how these structural properties are intertwined with the hallmark pathologies of Alzheimer's disease. In my spare time I like to relax with video games, engage in many hobbies, among which painting and bouldering, and I have an interest in several scientific areas outside of neuroscience, mostly in astronomy. Finally, I have a cat named Midas, with whom I share a passion for delicious food.​
Nina Engels
​I am a PhD-student and clinical research coordinator in the US-based part of Heidi's blue spot lab. By coordinating a study that focuses on a younger population, our research has the potential to capture how individuals are progressing from normal healthy aging to preclinical Alzheimer's disease. My main goal is to investigate early changes in brainstem properties, especially in the locus coeruleus, and how this relates to cognition in this population. By doing so, I hope to contribute to the quest of Neuroimaging brain biomarkers and early intervention strategies in the Alzheimer's field. In my free time, I enjoy exploring other countries and cultures, in particular South-America stole my heart! If not travelling, you can find me playing the guitar and enjoying avocado's and sushi.
Clinical Research Coordinators
Nina Engels (MGH)
​Sophie Kappert (UM)
​Zoe Rubinstein (MGH)

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Bachelor and master students
Aafke Bus
​Luqman Khan
Wouter Kroot


Collaborators
Prof. Keith Johnson, Massachusetts General Hospital
Prof. Reisa Sperling, Massachusetts General Hospital
Prof. Julie Price, Massachusetts General Hospital
Dr. Kenneth Kwong, Massachusetts General Hospital
Dr. David Salat, Massachusetts General Hospital
Dr. Jonathan Polimeni, Massachusetts General Hospital
Dr. Vitaly Napadow, Massachusetts General Hospital
Prof. Benedikt Poser, Maastricht University
Dr. Dimo Ivanov, Maastricht University
Dr. Daniel Keszthelyi, Maastricht University Medical Center
Dr. Gilles Vandewalle, University of Liege
Prof. Kamil Uludag, Health Network Toronto
Alumni PhD-students
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​Kim NH Dillen (Project: "The retrosplenial cortex in Alzheimer's disease", April 2012 - November 2017)
 - currently postdoctoral researcher at the University Hospital in Cologne (Germany)



​ Whitney Freeze (Project: "Blood-brain barrier leakage in dementia", March 2015 - May 2019)
 - currently postdoctoral researcher in our group and at Leiden University Medical Center (G.J Gorter Center for High Field MRI)
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​Lisa Schmiedek (Müller-Ehrenberg) (Project: "Mapping and modulating network breakdown in early Alzheimer's disease using transcranial electrical stimulation and MRI"; Thesis: "Episodic memory in aging and AD: a possible target for electrical stimulation", April 2015 - December 2020)
- currently in training as psychotherapist in Germany

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​Nikos Priovoulos (Project: "Structural and functional imaging of the locus coeruleus at 7T: from methodology to clinical application", August 2015 - January 2020)
​- currently postdoctoral researchers at the Spinoza Center in Amsterdam (the Netherlands)

​ Joost Riphagen  (Project: "Vascular Matters in Aging and Dementia", September 2015 - January 2020)
 - currently postdoctoral researcher in our group 
Former bachelor and master students
Maartje Bekker
Janina Buch
Maartje De Vries
Franziska Dieckmann
​Nina Engels
Selina Mueller
​Jos Kanning
Gülizar Kaya
Ruth Kremser
Eva Köster
René Lattmann
Helen Lückmann (Mayrrhofer)
Luisa Mang
Mark Meessen
Nina Nolfo
Lea Flitsch
Nora Oehler
​Manuela Pietzuch
​Federico Presi
Chantalle Razat
Lisa Senden
​Charissa Simon
​Kim Stehouwer
Cleo Thijssen
​Stan van Boxel
​Jolien van der Velden
Annerieke van Laarhoven
Lotte Vogels
Niky Vogt
Nadine Vohrmann
Svenja Wiese
Ann-Kathrin Wilden
Astrid Witters
​Rosita Zeguers