Koen Sandra

Meet Koen Sandra

Main research aims? With our analytical research, we strive to be a key contributor to the ever-evolving domain of life sciences. We embrace the unknown, think outside-the-box and passionately follow our own path.

An exciting frontier in human health? Without a doubt, mass spectrometry. I cannot imagine what our research and the field in general would look like without this dazzling technology. The evolution we have seen in recent years is massive and the analytical questions tackled never-ending. From identifying thousands of species in less than an hour from individual cells, to quantifying solutes at trace levels in a diversity of matrices. From revealing the finest structural details of complex medicinal products, to visualizing the spatial distribution of molecules in tissue. Today, mass spectrometry is even finding its way to the operating theater for surgical decision making. Curious to see what will be next!

How would you spend a $1 billion research grant? My first reaction to this question was that of a kid in a candy shop or, more applicable to me personally, a guitar player in a Fender store. Let’s use that grant to boost our understanding of the underlying mechanisms of diseases with an unmet need. Let’s implement the greatest, latest and most complex technologies based on next-gen sequencing, cryo-EM, mass spectrometry, etc. and if the tech doesn’t exist, let’s build it ourselves. Let’s apply single cell omics and multi-omics, and use the tons of information gathered to design tests for early disease detection. Let’s develop medicines based on oligonucleotides, bispecific antibodies, mRNA, transgenes or cells. Let’s see how we can fit the CRISPR-Cas technology in the project. Oh, let’s not forget to adopt artificial intelligence along the way. And last but not least, some budget should be allocated to team buildings and parties. Work hard, play hard! That said, true success is not per se linked to big budgets. Without real motivation and creativity, it’s just money down the drain.