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Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences

Research

The Amsterdam Microbiome Expertise Center (AMEC) is a collaborative research initiative that focuses on the study of the human microbiome. Through its research areas, AMEC aims to advance the understanding of the microbiome's role in health and disease, and to translate these findings into clinical practice to improve patient care. The various areas of research and facilities are outlined below.

Research aspects
 

  1. Integrative Systems Analysis: It considers the interconnectedness and interactions between different microbial communities within an ecosystem, acknowledging that these communities do not exist in isolation but are influenced by and influence their surroundings.
     
  2. Microbial Diversity: It includes a vast diversity of microorganisms, such as bacteria, archaea, fungi, viruses, and protozoa, living in various niches within the ecosystem.
     
  3. Host-Microbe Interactions: The holomicrobiome encompasses the relationships between microbes and their host organisms, including mutualistic, commensal, and pathogenic interactions.
     
  4. Ecosystem Functions: The microbial communities play crucial roles in ecosystem functions, such as nutrient cycling, decomposition, soil fertility, and plant health, thereby impacting the overall health and stability of the ecosystem.
     
  5. Environmental Factors: Factors like climate, geography, soil composition, and human activities influence the composition and function of their microbiomes, shaping these dynamic and complex systems.
Facilities and Resources
  • State-of-the-Art Laboratories

    Equipped with advanced technologies for microbiome analysis, including anaerobic culturing facilities and gut-on-a-chip devices.

    Anaerobic culturing facilities
    Anaerobic culturing facilities
    GUMI gut-on-a-chip device
    GUMI gut-on-a-chip device
  • Biobank

    A repository of microbiome samples from diverse populations and health conditions, supporting research and discovery.

  • Omics and data analysis

    Access to high-throughput sequencing and mass spectrometry platforms for multi-omics. High-end computational resources and bioinformatics expertise for complex microbiome data. 

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