Bioinformatics, a field first introduced by Paulien Hogeweg and Ben Hesper in 1970, has grown and evolved significantly. In its early years, it was seen as an experimental and niche area of study. However, the 1990s marked a major shift with projects like the Human Genome Project, which produced vast amounts of biological data. This led to the creation of advanced tools for storing, retrieving, and analyzing this data. Today, bioinformatics is essential to many fields, including evolutionary biology and personalised medicine. Professor of Bioinformatics Jaap Heringa says in his valedictory speech.
Throughout his career, Heringa focused on developing computational tools to analyse biological sequences (like DNA, RNA, or proteins), as well as predicting protein structure and function. Later, his team expanded into studying biological processes using formal models. They also worked on integrating cancer-related data, advancing molecular data science, and improving the interaction between data and tools.
"One of the areas where we've seen significant growth is in education. The Bioinformatics Master's program, which began in 2003, merged with Systems Biology in 2012 to offer a joint degree with the University of Amsterdam. Initially, the program had just a few students, and we faced challenges, including resistance from an accreditation committee that didn't fully recognize the value of an interdisciplinary field. Today, the program enrolls around 100 students each year," Heringa states.
Over the last 15 years, Heringa's role has shifted more toward management and advising, both nationally and internationally. For the past six years, he was head of the Department of Computer Science. A large part of his work has focused on building infrastructure to support biological data, making it easier for life scientists to analyse data, and promoting the principles of FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) data stewardship.