Heeren’s academic research interests are fundamental studies of the energetics of macromolecular systems, conformational studies of non-covalently bound protein complexes, translational imaging research, high-throughput bioinformatics, and the development and validation of new mass spectrometry–based proteomic imaging techniques for the life sciences. During his postdoctoral fellowship, he worked on the development of innovative ion sources, vacuums systems, data acquisition systems and novel temperature-controlled ion cyclotron resonance cells. He used the FTICR-MS instrument for the study of collisional energy transfer and internal energy distributions. These methods were deployed to investigate their role in the determination of dissociation pathways of biomolecular systems. As a project leader (1995–1997), Heeren led the application of high-resolution MS (FTICR-MS, FTIR imaging spectroscopy and SIMS) to the field of conservation science. He discovered and identified saponified pigment particulates in so-called protrusions in Rembrandt’s “
The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp” in collaboration with the
Mauritshuis museum in The Hague. Heeren and his group have pioneered the development of active pixelated detectors for mass spectrometry imaging. One such detector, the
Medipix detector has been adapted to enable microscope-mode imaging mass spectrometry for biomolecules to enable combined high-throughput and high-resolution molecular imaging using
MALDI and
SIMS. == Professional activities ==