Wouter Vervust

The research aims at the development of computational tools for precision medicine, where drug molecules are engineered to the patients’ genetic code, by modeling the protein-drug complexes at the atomic scale. In many cancer therapies, a drug molecule has to be delivered to a toxic target protein, where binding of this drug to a specific binding site enables the desired therapeutic effect. Patients with genetic mutations can express modified protein sequences, where the substition of one amino acid can already result in diminished drug binding, or even no binding at all.
The goal of our research is to chart drug compatibility with differently mutated target proteins, using specialized molecular dynamics simulations. Particular focus is set on kinetic profiling of protein-drug complexes, where knowledge of time-dependent parameters (i.e. drug residence time, rate constants, etc.) enables better prediction of the drug’s in vivo efficacy. 
 

I received the degree of Master of Science in Engineering Physics in July 2020 at Ghent University.
Shortly after, I started my PhD in August 2020, where I’m excited to bring my passion for physics to the field of biology and medicine.
 

• Lab address: campus UZ Gent, Corneel Heymanslaan 10, 
  The Core, ingang 37, 9000 Gent, Belgium
• BioMMedA 
• Ir. Wouter Vervust is interested to receive invitations for presentations or talks