In 2020, Lieke started her Bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Twente, where she worked on a project focused on the development of an in vitro diagnostic tool for liver cancer detection. After obtaining her Bachelor’s degree, she continued her studies at the University of Twente and completed a Master’s degree in Biomedical Engineering, specializing in Bioengineering Technologies, in 2025. During her Master’s thesis, Lieke focused on the development of xenogeneic-free, three-dimensional stem cell differentiation strategies for osteoarthritis therapeutics.

In July 2026, Lieke started her PhD project within the CTR group at MERLN. Her research focuses on developing next-generation in vitro models of musculoskeletal tissues, with particular emphasis on soft-to-hard tissue interfaces. She aims to incorporate the extracellular and biological zonal characteristics of interfaces such as the enthesis into advanced in vitro models that can be applied to high-throughput applications, including drug screening and the investigation of disease mechanisms.