Dr. Arjan Kortholt studied received his PhD in chemistry from the University of Groningen in 2009. During his graduate work, he studied the molecular mechanisms of cell movements and the role of small G proteins in the navigation of molecules. In 2007, he worked on the biochemical and structural characterization of small G proteins in the lab of Dr. Wittinghofer at MPI Dortmund. In 2009, he received a research fellowship from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and, since 2010, he has been an associate professor at the University of Groningen. The primary aim of his current research is to evaluate LRRK2-mediated Parkinson's disease by studying the structure, activation mechanism and function of LRRK2 and related family proteins.