physics

Nynke Dekker

Nynke Dekker is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Nynke Dekker rather than just read about it. In short: Nynke Hester Dekker (pronounced [ˈniŋkə ˈɦɛstər ˈdɛkər]; born 2 April 1971) is a Dutch biophysicist who since 2024 has been Professor of Biophysics at the Department of Physics, University of Oxford. Before this she was Professor of Molecular Biophysics at the Kavli Institute of Nanoscience at Delft University of Technology.

Key takeaways

Nynke Dekker belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Nynke Dekker to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Nynke Dekker from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Nynke Hester Dekker (pronounced [ˈniŋkə ˈɦɛstər ˈdɛkər]; born 2 April 1971) is a Dutch biophysicist who since 2024 has been Professor of Biophysics at the Department of Physics, University of Oxford. Before this she was Professor of Molecular Biophysics at the Kavli Institute of Nanoscience at Delft University of Technology. Dekker studies individual DNA and RNA molecules and how they interact with proteins in bacteria, viruses and eukaryotes. She described how virus proteins build errors into the virus RNA of viruses. In 2020, she was awarded the Spinoza Prize.

Early life and education Dekker, daughter of a United Nations staff member, was born in Amsterdam. She studied physics and applied mathematics in the United States. In 1993, she received her bachelor's degree from Yale University where she worked alongside Mark A. Reed in applied physics. She was a graduate student at Leiden University, where she graduated in physics. In 1996, she received her master's degree in atomic physics from Harvard University. At Harvard, she completed her doctorate in nanotechnology, designing microchips that contained caesium atoms. She moved to Paris as a postdoctoral researcher at the École normale supérieure.

Research and career In 2002, Dekker moved to Delft University of Technology, where she was made full professor in 2008. Her research considers fundamental biological processes. Cellular function involves DNA replication, a robust biological mechanism with a low error rate. Dekker looks to understand the action of molecules and proteins essential for cellular processes (e.g. copying and translating DNA, repairing errors). Her early work investigated the enzyme Type I topoisomerase, which is involved in the replication of DNA and RNA. Dekker has developed a broad range of single-molecule techniques and nanoanalytical probes, including magnetic and optical tweezers and nanopores. In particular, she developed new capabilities for optical tweezers, including the ability to measure torque. Dekker spent 2015 on sabbatical at the Francis Crick Institute, where she decided to switch focus to the complex biomolecular processes involved with chromatin replication, which was supported by a ERC Advanced Grant in 2018. Nuclei containing cells called Eukaryotes contain chromatin, a complex of DNA and proteins, which must also be replicated. Dekker has uncovered how virus proteins insert errors into the viral RMA, which enable viral mutation that protects them from an evolving environment. She was awarded the Spinoza Prize in 2020 for her molecular-level studies of how chemotherapy kills cancer cells.

Awards and honours 2006 Elected to the Young Academy of Europe 2007 European Young Investigators Award 2013 European Physical Society Emmy Noether Award 2013 European Research Council Consolidator Grant 2018 NWO TOP grant 2018 ERC Advanced Grant 2019 Elected to European Molecular Biology Organization 2020 NWO Spinoza Prize 2023 Physica Prize

Selected publications Liu, Z; van Veen, E; Sánchez, H; Solano, B; Palmero Moya, FJ; McCluskey, KA; Ramírez Montero, D; van Laar, T; Dekker, NH (17 April 2024). "A Biophysics Toolbox for Reliable Data Acquisition and Processing in Integrated Force-Confocal Fluorescence Microscopy". ACS Photonics. 11 (4): 1592–1603. doi:10.1021/acsphotonics.3c01739. PMC 11027178. PMID 38645993. Sánchez, H; Liu, Z; van Veen, E; van Laar, T; Diffley, JFX; Dekker, NH (23 October 2023). "A chromatinized origin reduces the mobility of ORC and MCM through interactions and spatial constraint". Nature Communications. 14 (1): 6735. doi:10.1038/s41467-023-42524-8. PMC 10593741. PMID 37872142. Ramírez Montero, D; Sánchez, H; van Veen, E; van Laar, T; Solano, B; Diffley, JFX; Dekker, NH (14 April 2023). "Nucleotide binding halts diffusion of the eukaryotic replicative helicase during activation". Nature Communications. 14 (1): 2082. doi:10.1038/s41467-023-37093-9. PMC 10104875. PMID 37059705. Janissen, R; Woodman, A; Shengjuler, D; Vallet, T; Lee, KM; Kuijpers, L; Moustafa, IM; Fitzgerald, F; Huang, PN; Perkins, AL; Harki, DA; Arnold, JJ; Solano, B; Shih, SR; Vignuzzi, M; Cameron, CE; Dekker, NH (4 November 2021). "Induced intra- and intermolecular template switching as a therapeutic mechanism against RNA viruses". Molecular Cell. 81 (21): 4467–4480.e7. doi:10.1016/j.molcel.2021.10.003. PMC 8628313. PMID 34687604. Sánchez, H; McCluskey, K; van Laar, T; van Veen, E; Asscher, FM; Solano, B; Diffley, JFX; Dekker, NH (26 March 2021). "DNA replication origins retain mobile licensing proteins". Nature Communications. 12 (1): 1908. doi:10.1038/s41467-021-22216-x. PMC 7998030. PMID 33772005. Kaczmarczyk, A; Meng, H; Ordu, O; Noort, JV; Dekker, NH (8 January 2020). "Chromatin fibers stabilize nucleosomes under torsional stress". Nature Communications. 11 (1): 126. doi:10.1038/s41467-019-13891-y. PMC 6949304. PMID 31913285. Janissen, R; Arens, MMA; Vtyurina, NN; Rivai, Z; Sunday, ND; Eslami-Mossallam, B; Gritsenko, AA; Laan, L; de Ridder, D; Artsimovitch, I; Dekker, NH; Abbondanzieri, EA; Meyer, AS (23 August 2018). "Global DNA Compaction in Stationary-Phase Bacteria Does Not Affect Transcription". Cell. 174 (5): 1188–1199.e14. doi:10.1016/j.cell.2018.06.049. PMC 6108918. PMID 30057118. Koster, DA; Palle, K; Bot, ES; Bjornsti, MA; Dekker, NH (12 July 2007). "Antitumour drugs impede DNA uncoiling by topoisomerase I.". Nature. 448 (7150): 213–7. doi:10.1038/nature05938. PMID 17589503. Koster, DA; Croquette, V; Dekker, C; Shuman, S; Dekker, NH (31 March 2005). "Friction and torque govern the relaxation of DNA supercoils by eukaryotic topoisomerase IB". Nature. 434 (7033): 671–4. doi:10.1038/nature03395. PMID 15800630.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Nynke Dekker

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Nynke Dekker claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Nynke Dekker before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Nynke Dekker ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Nynke Dekker

In research: Nynke Dekker appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Nynke Dekker in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Nynke Dekker is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1971 births, 21st-century Dutch physicists, 21st-century Dutch women scientists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Nynke Dekker outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Nynke Dekker in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Nynke Dekker means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Nynke Dekker out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Nynke Dekker in simple terms?

Why does Nynke Dekker matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Nynke Dekker?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Nynke Dekker.