Co-Founder & CEO
Prof. Berent Prakken, MD, PhD
A global leader in pediatric immunology and medical education, Professor Prakken bridges translational research, institutional leadership, and international collaboration to advance inflammatory disease research and transform how medicine is taught.
About Professor Prakken
Professor Berent Prakken is an internationally recognised physician-scientist and academic leader dedicated to advancing translational research and reimagining medical education.
He served as Vice-Dean and Director of the Biomedical Education Center at Utrecht Medical Center Utrecht (UMCU), the Netherlands, and is Professor of Pediatric Immunology at UMCU, with an honorary professorship at the University of Ghent, Belgium.
Over the course of his career, he has built a pioneering translational research laboratory focused on the regulation of inflammation and biomarker development in pediatric inflammatory diseases. His work integrates clinical insight with biological discovery, ensuring that research findings move meaningfully from bench to bedside.
Beyond research, Professor Prakken is deeply committed to education and institutional leadership. As Director of the Biomedical Education Center and a long-standing leader within the Graduate School of Life Sciences, he has championed innovative educational models designed to prepare physicians and scientists for the complexity of modern healthcare.
Professor Prakken has served in multiple national and international advisory roles, including membership of the Dutch National Health Council, vice-chair of the Medical Ethical Review Board at UMCU, and president of the Pediatric Rheumatology European Society (PRES).
As Co-Founder and Board Member of the Eureka Institute for Translational Medicine, he brings institutional wisdom, educational innovation, and a deep belief in collaborative science to the global translational community.
Key Highlights:
Global Leader in Pediatric Immunology. Translational research in inflammation regulation and biomarker development.
Architect of Modern Medical Education. Vice-Dean and Director shaping innovative training models for future clinicians and scientists.
50+ PhD Students Mentored. Building the next generation of translational leaders.
Publications in Top-Tier Journals. Nature Medicine, The Lancet, Immunity, PNAS, JCI and more.
International Scientific Leadership. Former President of PRES and active contributor to European and global rheumatology networks.
Professor Prakken believes the next leap in medicine will come from translation with speed and education with courage. He pushes beyond traditional boundaries to build collaborations and platforms that make biology actionable, and to develop a new generation trained not only to understand complexity, but to deliver progress that patients can feel.
