Nathalie Vanderheijden currently serves as the coordinator for the European Partnership on Animal Health and Welfare (EUP AH&W) at UGent. This newly established consortium comprises 56 research performing organisations, 30 funding organizations and several authorities from 24 EU and non-EU countries. Nathalie holds a degree in Biology (Zoological Sciences) from UCL and obtained her Ph.D. in 1998 from ULiège, where she utilized molecular virology to develop a patented fish vaccine. She spent 6 years at a Biotech company (Eurogentec) to develop veterinary diagnostic tests and an additional 2 years at ULiège focusing on bovine vaccine development in collaboration with Maisons-Alfort in Paris.

In 1999, she joined the team of Prof. Dr. Hans Nauwynck at the Laboratory of Virology of the UGent Faculty of Veterinary Medicine. In 2003, she discovered a new viral receptor (sialoadhesin).