Dr. Isabelle Kohler is a researcher at the Department of Bioanalytical Chemistry at the VU University Amsterdam. Her main research interests lie at the interface between bioanalysis, metabolomics, and forensic/clinical toxicology. As a trained pharmacist, she is interested in better understanding the pharmacokinetics and toxicokinetics of drugs and pharmaceutical compounds in the body. Her research expertise includes the development of state-of-the-art mass spectrometry-based approaches for the analysis of metabolites in complex biological fluids and tissues. She also focuses on the development of novel analytical approaches based on metabolomics for clinical and forensic applications.

Isabelle Kohler received her MSc in Pharmacy from the University of Geneva in Switzerland. She obtained her PhD from the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences (University of Geneva) in 2013. Her PhD research focused on capillary electrophoresis - mass spectrometry and the development of high sensitivity methods for clinical and forensic applications. In the same year, she received the Swiss Young Researcher Award in Analytical Chemistry from the Centre of Expertise in Analytical Chemistry and Toxicology. She then received a grant from the Swiss National Science Foundation to continue her career abroad. She joined the Center for Proteomics and Metabolomics at Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC) for a postdoctoral fellowship focused on using metabolomics (untargeted and targeted approaches) to investigate the biomolecular mechanisms of migraine at the metabolic level using a transgenic mouse model, a collaboration with the Department of Human Genetics at LUMC.

Before joining VU, she worked as an assistant professor at the Leiden Academic Center for Drug Research (LACDR) of Leiden University, in the group of Prof. Thomas Hankemeier, to further develop her expertise in clinical metabolomics, especially in the context of neurological disorders.

Isabelle Kohler is also actively involved in educational activities, as well as the guidance and mentoring of (PhD) students. She is particularly involved in the master chemistry track Analytical Sciences (combination VU/UvA); Drug Discovery and Safety, and Forensic Sciences (UvA). She obtained her university teaching qualification (Basiskwalificatie Onderwijs, BKO) in 2019. Her enthusiasm and teaching skills are appreciated by the students, which is underlined by her nomination in 2018 for the Leiden University Faculty of Sciences Teaching Award.

Isabelle Kohler is a board member of the following associations:

• Dutch Association for Mass Spectrometry (NVMS, secretary)
• Foundation for International Mass Spectrometry Conference 2022 (IMSC2022, Secretary)
• Society for Microscale Separations and Bioanalysis (SMSB, Secretary)