Curriculum Vitae:

Dr. Voskuyl initially studied pharmacy in Leiden, but later switched to chemistry and graduated in 1973. After graduation he was employed by the Epilepsy Centre in Heemstede (present name: Epilepsy Institutes of the Netherlands Foundation - SEIN) and received his PhD in 1978 at Leiden University under supervison of Professor E.L. Noach. This work was carried out at the Department of Physiology in Leiden and concerned the electro-physiological analysis of epileptic phenomena and anti-epileptic drug effects in brain slices in vitro.. In 1981 he worked at the department of Histology in Göteborg with Professor H. Hydén and Professor A. Hamberger. After return research was expanded to include in vivo models of epilepsy as well. This evolved into successful collaboration with the Division of Pharmacology on PK-PD modeling of anticonvulsant drug effects started in 1986, finally culminating in the formal appointment as staff member of the division of Pharmacology in 2000. Dr. Voskuyl is member of the scientific board of the Epilepsy Center in Heemstede, member of the Section for Scientific Research of the Dutch League against Epilepsy and member of the editorial board of Epilepsia.

Description of research line

Dr. Voskuyl’s primary research interest is in understanding the mechanisms leading to pharmacoresistance in certain forms of epilepsy, in particular in mesial Temporal Lobe Epilepsy (mTLE). The major hypotheses hold that pharmacoresistance can be due to restricted entry of antiepileptic drugs caused by upregulation of multidrug transporters (e.g. P-gp) on the Blood-Brain Barrier, to adaptation of targets in the brain such as synaptic receptors and voltage-regulated ion channels, or to a combination. The post-Status Epilepticus model is pivotal in this research. Status Epilepticus in rodents leads to development of spontaneous seizures after a latent period of 1-3 weeks. The cascade events taking place during the latent period and subsequent development of epilepsy are considered to be essential for the development of pharmacoresistance. Research is focused on adaptation of GABA_A-receptors, PK-PD analysis of anticonvulsant drug effects and disease progression, altered expression of P-gp and associated changes in brain pharmacokinetics of antiepileptic drugs and other substrates, and development of PET ligands for in vivo imaging of altered P-gp expressions. Recent initiatives concern the role of stress, aberrant neurogenesis and altered gene expression in pharmacoresistance development. Research is performed in collaboration with colleagues within the division of Pharmacalogy, in the division of Medical Pharmacology, the Free University of Brussels and the Department of Nuclear Medicine & PET Research of the VUmc.