Jolien Blokken

After I graduated in 2013 as a pharmacist at KULeuven, I was looking for a bigger challenge than working in a pharmacy. That is why a started a PhD at the laboratory for molecular virology and drug discovery. For five years I investigated novel targets for drug discovery against HIV and mixed lineage leukaemia. After spending many years in the lab between viruses, cell cultures, proteins and small molecules, I felt it was time for something new. In July 2019 I started working as a medical communications manager and like that, Ariez has an extra Belgian representative! ?

Special skills

My speciality? I guess I should answer ‘baking’ to this question. During weekends I can really enjoy putting lovely, sweet stuff into my oven. Although a simple almond cake is always met with lot of enthusiasm by friends and family, I love to try more difficult recipes. Macarons, for example, require a perfect mixture between punctuality, accuracy and a happy dose of creativity!

Favourite media

Unfortunately, apart from the articles in BJMO and BJH, I don’t have a lot of time to read. When on holidays, I usually read an exciting book or browse through typical ‘woman’s magazines’ such as Flair or Libelle. During the week, I pick up most news and features from listening to radio station StuBru or by quickly scrolling through an online newspaper.