RegMedNet Rising Star Award 2022: and the winner is…

16 Nov 2022

Written by Sarah Rehman

We are thrilled to announce that the winner of the inaugural RegMedNet Rising Star Award is Bert Van den Bogerd of the Antwerp Research Group for Ocular Science (Belgium)!

The Rising Star Award celebrates the brilliant work of early-career scientists in the space of regenerative medicine and is sponsored by FUJIFILM Irvine Scientific (CA, USA). It offers the opportunity for the public to put forward their nominations for early talent in the industry, allowing researchers to establish their place in the rapidly evolving world of regenerative medicine.

Competition for the award was incredibly strong this year, with nominated researchers focusing on a range of fascinating topics, including extracellular vesicles in neurodegenerative diseases, utilizing induced pluripotent stem cells to understand Rett syndrome and more. The judges were spoilt for choice on talent and awarding Bert with this prize is testament to how he has excelled within the field of corneal endothelium tissue engineering.

“I was over the moon when I found out I had won the Rising Star Award. Getting recognized for all the hard work of the past years, is a pretty sweet feeling.” – Bert Van den Bogerd

Bert began this research during his PhD, where he aimed to address the issue of endothelial tissue donor shortages by engineering bioartificial grafts; these grafts may be able to treat a higher volume of patients suffering from corneal endothelial damage and consequently shorten waiting lists for treatment.

Bert is now especially focusing on corneal regenerative medicine with his research group, which he founded a few years after completing his PhD, at the Antwerp Research Group for Ocular Science. The team is now working on utilizing high-resolution 3D printing to develop a cornea-on-chip platform, which could allow current animal models to be replaced for pharmacokinetic studies of new ophthalmic drugs.

Bert has also established relations with researchers at Ghent University (Belgium), who are offering their expertise in material synthesis to co-develop his team’s innovative scaffold design. This collaboration has also proved fruitful in motivating investigation into previously unexplored routes of research, including ultrathin endothelial grafts and miniaturized cornea-on-chip. These research projects have recently been awarded €3 million in funding.

Whilst nominating Bert, a colleague of his commented: “I have worked with Bert for years and he has shown to be an excellent, pragmatic and very skilled researcher. He is very goal-oriented and a true pleasure to work with.”

Further, Bert is no stranger to prestigious awards in recognition of his work, having won the PhD Cup in 2022, which is centered around bringing science to the general public. Bert went home with both the jury and audience awards for his sophisticated scientific communication skills. Following the event, he has given several guest lectures for patient organizations, TV and radio interviews, and has provided expert guidance to the European Council (Brussels, Belgium) regarding the latest directorate for cell therapy.

Bert advises fellow researchers and scientists, “Do not hesitate for a split-second to enter this competition. We scientists sometimes suffer from imposter syndrome, but do not underestimate how amazing your track record is!”

We are delighted to award Bert a US$1000 prize fund as our Rising Star for 2022, as well as flights, hotel accommodation and entry to a regenerative medicine or related conference of his choice in 2023. Further, Bert will be offered a free subscription to Regenerative Medicine, with the opportunity to publish an Open Access paper. Lastly, register today for Bert’s exclusive RegMedNet webinar, where he’ll be presenting his innovative research.

If you’re interested in learning more about Bert and his research, you can read more here. Also, make sure to stay tuned until next year’s Rising Star Award so you can put forward another inspirational young talent of your choice for nomination! Sign up for our newsletter today to be sure you don’t miss out.

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