50 Million euro investment for LUMC spin-off RougeTx advances therapies for inherited bleeding disorders.
Cell and gene therapies (CGT) are revolutionizing medicine by offering, for the first time, potential cures for conditions that were previously untreatable. Because this field is relatively new, highly complex, and so fast-moving that even experts find it challenging to keep up, it’s nearly impossible for educators to stay current without dedicated support. Yet, integrating these advances into education is essential to prepare the next generation of CGT professionals. To this end, experts from reNEW Leiden, Erasmus MC and Fearless League delivered a ‘Teach-the-Teacher’ workshop on December 9 and 11 as part of the Talent-CGT program.
Over 70 educators from universities of applied sciences (UAS) across Europe participated in this hybrid workshop. They learned the latest in CGT and discussed how to bring these novel insights into their curriculum.
From reNEW, Professor Frank Staal and dr. Sander de Kivit discussed current state-of-the-art in viral gene editing, while dr. Anne de Leeuw (De Koning/Carlotti group) provided valuable insights to islet replacement therapies for type 1 diabetes. Professor Niels Geijsen concluded the first session of the day by an update on the use of CRISPR for gene editing. These presentations were followed by a second session, where Chantal van Litsenburg focused on the regulatory aspects of CGT.
The efforts reflect reNEW’s commitment to training a new generation of professionals well-equipped to work in the field of stem cell-based therapies.
About Talent-CGT
Beyond this workshop, the Talent-CGT program empowers educators with the skills, curriculum and digital tools to prepare the next generation of CGT-scientists. The program develops color brave slide decks, syllabi, templates for workshops and practical lessons that are all available for free.
“CGT is becoming increasingly important for treatment of patients. Therefore, we thoroughly need to train laboratory technicians (BSc level) to be ready for this exciting profession. The Teach-the-Teacher workshop was a fantastic way to meet other teachers from European UAS and paved a path for collaboration; thanks to the experts from the reNEW Leiden,” said Dr. Martie Verschuren, a teacher/scientist at Avans University of Applied Sciences (Breda, The Netherlands) and part of the Talent-CGT initiative.
The Talent-CGT program is an initiative between the Universities of Applied Sciences in Utrecht, Breda, Leiden (all Netherlands), University of Gdansk (Poland), CESPU (Portugal), and software developer Fearless League. The program received funding from the European Institute of Innovation and Technology under the Horizon Europe Framework Programme.
