Name Activity "Tropical Bacteriology" "Head of unit: Prof. Jan JacobsThe Unit of Tropical Bacteriology (UTB) was created in 2008 in the Department of Clinical Sciences at the Institute of Tropical Medicine (ITM), Antwerp, Belgium. It is headed by Prof. Jan Jacobs (MD - clinical microbiologist. UTB combines biomedical research, education and support of laboratory services. We focus on antibiotic resistance and both generic and specific laboratory capacity sharing. In order to achieve real impact we work closely together with the laboratory teams of our partner institutions in low- and middle-income countries.The UTB is involved in capacity building and operational research programs in low-resource settings addressing laboratory quality, clinical bacteriology and development and implementation of adapted diagnostics.Research is further extended to tropical bacterial diseases such as invasive salmonellosis, cholera and melioidosis. Oversea partners and projects are located – amongst others – in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Mozambique, and Peru.As to education and training the UTB is actively involved in the courses of Tropical Medicine and International Health (lectures about hospital infection control and tropical bacterial diseases, laboratory medicine) and organisator of the AIM course, a short course on the containment of antibiotic resistance in low-resource settings." Biology "The three main research orientations of the department are: molecular biology, human biology and environment. The project focus on the following areas: 1. Parasitology; 2. Immunology and cancer therapy; 3. Development biology; 4. Environmental genetics; 5. Bio-diversity and plant genetics/engineering; 6. Nature conservation; 7. Marine and terrestrial ecology; 8. Mangroves preservation; 9. Eco-(geno) toxicity." "Central Services" "Joris Relaes" "Department of Biosystems (BIOSYST)" "Jean-Marie Aerts" "The Department of Biosystems (BIOSYST) consists of 3 divisions: Division of Mechatronics, Biostatistics and Sensors (MeBioS); Division of Crop Biotechnics; Division Animal and Human Health Engineering." "Department of Pathobiology, Pharmacology and Zoological Medicine" "Freddy Haesebrouck" "Within our department, research is being done on the following subjects:Staphylococcus infections in rabbitsSalmonella infections in chickens, pigeons, turtlesAspergillosis in birds - Infection diseases in reptiles and amphibiansThe expertise lies mainly in the field of antibiotic resistance, with the aim of estimating the possible transfer of this resistance from animal to human and defining measures. A second hatch is a study of germ-host interactions: understanding of molecular mechanisms of pathogenesis and the development of control measures against infectious diseases." "Eyckerman Lab" "Sven Eyckerman" "Research on cutting-edge computational solutions for the toughest problems in mass spectrometry data analysis, developing innovative technologies to study protein-protein complexes." "Faculty Education Services Bioscience Engineering" "Mieke Uyttendaele" "The Research Support Department is the central point of contact for all aspects relating to education. The service is divided into four clusters: Education supply, student administration, quality assurance and monitor." "Gevaert Lab" "Kris Gevaert" "Research on the introduction of proteomic technologies to address challenging questions in life sciences, understanding why proteins are N-terminally acetylated, study the function of N-terminal proteoforms, and develop technologies to identify cytolysis proteins as disease proxies." "Internationalization Services of the Faculty Bioscience Engineering" "Mieke Uyttendaele" "The international office has the following tasks: supervising students and lecturers who participate in international exchange programs, following up financing programs and singling of opportunities in this area and secretariat of the Internationalization Committee." "Microbial and Plant Genetics (CMPG)" "Jan Michiels" "Research topics of this unit are:• Bacteria-plant interactions• Symbiosis between Rhizobium etli and Phaseolus vulgaris• Symbiotic nitrogen fixation• Quorum sensing and biofilm formation in Rhizobium• Bacterial physiology: the stringent response in Rhizobium• Type III protein secretion in Rhizobium• Calcium-binding proteins in bacteria• Mechanisms of antibiotic resistance and tolerance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa: the problem of persistence"