Professor Bruins Prize

The Professor G. W. J. Bruins Prize is intended for research master students who excel in terms of academic performance and research qualities. We proudly present the winner, Maeve van den Aakster.

Maeve van den Aakster is an excellent student in the Infection & Immunity research master programme. The focus of her research is infectious diseases and the transfer of these viruses between animals and humans. In this context, Van den Aakster focuses more specifically on avian influenza virus, also known as ‘bird flu’. The aim of her work is to understand which wild birds can become infected with the bird flu virus, and if those birds can transmit the disease to chickens or humans. This ‘One health approach’ enables a better prediction of possible outbreaks and thereby helps to prevent an epidemic or organise timely interventions. The jury is impressed by Van den Aakster’s outstanding academic results and the various research internships she has done in the Netherlands and abroad. She already has a publication in the pipeline, which in turn contributes to EUR’s international visibility. Van den Aakster will be using the Professor Bruins prize money to travel to Hong Kong, where she will be working in clinical rotation for some time.