Projects
The role of stromal components in urothelial cancer KU Leuven
Bladder cancer (BC) is the most common malignancy of the urinary tract and the ninth most commonly diagnosed cancer worldwide. The incidence of BC varies from region to region and country to country. More than 90% of BCs in Europe and North America are transitional cell carcinomas (TCC), originating from the urothelium or inner wall of the bladder. Approximately 75% of patients with BC show disease confined to the mucosa (stage Ta, CIS) or ...
Metabolomics 2.0: novel unique branches with promising valorisation tracks Ghent University
This project will focus on three new branches within metabolomics, i.e. the analysis of all metabolites (small molecules) in a cell, tissue or biofluid. These are: 1) DNA adductomics, which allows to characterize the whole of potentially harmful chemical alterations to DNA (i.e. the formation of DNA adducts) that are e.g. the first step in carcinogenesis and contribute to numerous diseases, 2) steroidomics, i.e. the analysis of all steroids ...
Impact of early-life multi-mycotoxin exposure on B cells epigenetic profile and infection by oncogenic viruses: unravelling interaction with immune-regulatory cytokines profiles & co-infections in young children Ghent University
Oncogenic viruses play an essential role in carcinogenesis. Chronic dietary intakes of multiple mycotoxins are hypothesized to be associated and interact with these viruses to enhance the risk of developing juvenile carcinomas. In this proposal we focus on infection by the Eppstein-Barr virus (EBV), which is linked to childhood Burkitt’s lymphoma, and endemic in parts of sub-Saharan Africa, where EBV and chronic mycotoxin exposure co-exist. ...
A novel class of reversible Exportin-1 inhibitors for cancer therapy KU Leuven
Implementation of breathomics in health and disease. University of Antwerp
Development of a novel class of Exportin 1 (XPO1/CRM1) inhibitors for anti-cancer therapy KU Leuven
Nuclear-cytoplasmic transport is essential for maintaining proper cellular homeostasis since it regulates the movement of large molecules (RNA and proteins) between the cytoplasm and the nucleus in a eukaryotic cells. Exportin 1 (XPO1 or CRM1) is the best characterised nuclear exporter and is responsible for the transport of a large number of different cargo proteins (e.g. p21, BCRA1, BCR-ABL and p53) to the cytoplasm. The correct ...
Imaging of receptor activator of the nuclear factor κ B ligand (RANKL) tumor microenvironment using immuno-positron emission tomography (PET) in models of head-and-neck and breast cancer. University of Antwerp
Parental Pesticide and Offspring Epigenome study (PaPOE): Assessment of pesticides exposure and association with cancer among farmers, pregnant women and their offspring KU Leuven
Environmental toxicants, like pesticides, can alter epigenetic regulatory features such as DNA methylation. The PaPOE (Parental Pesticides and Offspring Epigenome) study aims to investigate whether pesticides exposure could induce epigenetic changes associated with an increase in cancer risk. We will, in fact be, investigating how (re)programming in early life can have long-term consequences for later health outcomes through DNA methylation ...