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Principal Investigator

P.J.M. (Peter) Valk, PhD

  • Department
  • Hematology
  • Focus area
  • Acute Myeloid Leukemia, Hematology, Hemato-oncology, Genomics, Molecular Diagnostics
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About

Introduction

Peter Valk received his Ph.D. degree in 1999 at the Department of Hematology at the Erasmus University Rotterdam, on the identification of novel proto-oncogenes in murine myeloid leukemias using retroviral insertional mutagenesis in mice. He worked as a research fellow sponsored by the Dutch Cancer Society in the Department of Hemato-oncology (Dr. S.H. Orkin) at the Children’s Hospital in Boston, MA, USA. In 2000, Peter returned to the Department of Hematology at the Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam as a scientific staff member and head of Molecular Diagnostics. His current research interests are understanding of the biology and improvement of molecular diagnostics of AML and related hematologic malignancies.

Education and career

1984-88: Technician Molecular Genetics/Biotechnology, Hoge School Rotterdam, Delft, The Netherlands
1988-1990: Military Service. 1990-93: Degree Biology, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands
1993-99: PhD, Institute of Hematology, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands (Title thesis: ‘Identification of novel proto-oncogenes in retrovirally induced myeloid mouse leukemias by insertional mutagenesis’ (Promotor: Prof. Dr. B. Löwenberg/ Co-promotor: Dr. R. Delwel)
1999-2000: Research fellow Dutch Cancer Society ‘Koningin Wilhelmina Fonds’ Department of Hemato-/Oncology, Children’s Hospital, Boston (Supervisor: Dr. S.H. Orkin) 
2000-now: Department of Hematology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands (Staff Scientist/Head of Molecular Diagnostics)

Publications

Valk PJM, Verhaak RGW, Beijen MA, Erpelinck CAJ, Barjesteh van Waalwijk van Doorn - Khosrovani S, Boer JM, Beverloo HB, Moorhouse MJ, van der Spek PJ, Löwenberg B, Delwel R - Prognostically Useful Gene-Expression Profiles in Acute Myeloid Leukemia. New Engl.J.Med. 2004, 350: 1617-1628.

Bullinger L and Valk PJM - Gene expression profiling in Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Journal Clin Oncol 2005; 23(26):6296-6305.

Verhaak RG, Goudswaard CS, van Putten W, Bijl MA, Sanders MA, Hugens W, Uitterlinden AG, Erpelinck CA, Delwel R, Lowenberg B, Valk PJ - Mutations in nucleophosmin NPM1 in acute myeloid leukemia (AML): association with other gene abnormalities and previously established gene expression signatures and their favorable prognostic significance. Blood 106(12), 2005: 3747-54.

Taskesen E, Bullinger L, Corbacioglu A, Sanders M, Erpelinck CA, Wouters BJ, van der Poel-van de Luytgaarde S, Damm F, Krauter J, Ganser A, Schlenk RF, Löwenberg B, Delwel R, Dohner H, Valk PJ, Dohner K. Prognostic impact, concurrent genetic mutations and gene expression features of AML with CEBPA mutations in a cohort of 1182 cytogenetically normal AML: further evidence for CEBPA double mutant AML as a distinctive disease entity. Blood. 2010; 117(8):2469-75.

Rockova V, Abbas S, Wouters BJ, Erpelinck CAJ, Beverloo HB, Delwel R, van Putten WLJ, Löwenberg B, Valk PJM. Risk-stratification of intermediate-risk acute myeloid leukemia: integrative analysis of a multitude of gene mutation and gene expression markers. Blood. 2011; 118(4):1069-76.

Sanders MA, Valk PJ. The evolving molecular genetic landscape in acute myeloid leukaemia. Curr Opin Hematol. 2013;20(2):79-85.

Gröschel S, Sanders MA, Hoogenboezem R, Zeilemaker A, Havermans M, Erpelinck C, Bindels EM, Beverloo HB, Döhner H, Löwenberg B, Döhner K, Delwel R, Valk PJ. Mutational spectrum of myeloid malignancies with inv(3)/t(3;3) reveals a predominant involvement of RAS/RTK signaling pathways. Blood. 2014; 125(1):133-9.

Jongen-Lavrencic M, Grob T, Hanekamp D, Kavelaars FG, Al Hinai A, Zeilemaker A, Erpelinck-Verschueren CAJ, Gradowska PL, Meijer R, Cloos J, Biemond BJ, Graux C, van Marwijk Kooy M, Manz MG, Pabst T, Passweg JR, Havelange V, Ossenkoppele GJ, Sanders MA, Schuurhuis GJ, Löwenberg B, Valk PJM. Molecular Minimal Residual Disease in Acute Myeloid Leukemia. N Engl J Med. 2018; 378(13):1189-1199.

Sanders MA, Chew E, Flensburg C, Zeilemaker A, Miller SE, Al Hinai AS, Bajel A, Luiken B, Rijken M, Mclennan T, Hoogenboezem RM, Kavelaars FG, Fröhling S, Blewitt ME, Bindels EM, Alexander WS, Löwenberg B, Roberts AW, Valk PJM, Majewski IJ. MBD4 guards against methylation damage and germline deficiency predisposes to clonal hematopoiesis and early-onset AML. Blood. 2018;132(14):1526-1534.

 

Teaching activities

MolMed Course Molecular Diagnostics (ErasmusMC)
Keuzeonderwijs Leukemie en Lymfoom (ErasmusMC)
Summer Course - Researchmaster Infection & Immunity (ErasmusMC)
NIHES - Erasmus Summer Program – genomics in molecular medicine
(ErasmusMC)
Nascholing Hematologie (ErasmusMC)
Klinisch chemici in opleiding (ErasmusMC/externe klinisch chemici)
Gastcolleges Avans (Breda)
Gastcolleges Hogeschool Rotterdam (Rotterdam)
Stagiaires Avans Hogeschool (Breda)
Stagiaires Hogeschool Rotterdam (Rotterdam)
Stagiaire Universiteit Leiden (Leiden)

Other positions

Board member Dutch Network for Molecular Diagnostics of Hematologic Malignancies (MODHEM; www.modhem.nl)
Member and (co-)Chair American Society of Hematology (ASH) Scientific Committee
Member American Society of Hematology (ASH) International Consortium on Acute Leukemia (ICAL)

Scholarships, grants, and awards

NKB-KWF EMCR 2007-3929: Genome-wide approaches to identify novel clinically relevant markers in acute myeloid leukemia with normal karyotypes - PJM Valk, B Löwenberg and R. Delwel.

CTMM Project 030-102: Development of array-based diagnostics for leukemia

NKB-KWF EMCR 2013-6080: Molecular and cellular defects driving the leukemic progression of severe congenital neutropenia - IP Touw and PJM Valk

ZonMW 846002002: Implementation of NGS in Molecular Diagnostics and Prognostics of Hematologic Malignancies: AML and MM - PJM Valk

My Groups