Ruud Toonen is the new Director of Impact at VU Amsterdam, from 1 September 2026From 1 September 2026, Prof. Dr Ruud Toonen will be appointed Director of Impact at the Faculty of Science at VU University Amsterdam. In this role, he will continue to build on the faculty’s valorisation ambitions and contribute to strengthening societal impact, external collaboration, and innovation.
Jonathan Coutinho wants to make strokes more visible in science and societyAs a neurologist specializing in both the clinical and fundamental aspects of stroke, Jonathan Coutinho is dedicated to improving the understanding, diagnosis, and treatment of stroke. In his inaugural lecture on June 26, 2026, he discussed new approaches to making strokes more visible and detectable at an earlier stage, both by advancing scientific insight into the mechanisms underlying stroke and by increasing public awareness of a disease that remains one of the leading causes of death and disability worldwide. The lecture marks his appointment as Professor of Vascular Neurology at the University of Amsterdam.
7-Tesla MRI scan improves DBS treatment in Parkinson’s diseaseBy using a powerful 7-tesla MRI scan to examine the brain in great detail before surgery, neurosurgeons can place electrodes more accurately during Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS). As a result, more patients with Parkinson’s disease benefit from the treatment, and the average improvement in motor symptoms is greater. This is the conclusion of a study conducted by Yarit Wiggerts, Maarten Bot, and colleagues of the Department of Neurosurgery at Amsterdam UMC.
