Projects
Pathophysiology of the Cartilage Growth Plate Ghent University
Multicentric study of several ransgenic mouse models for human osteochondrodysplasias (achondroplasia, Ellis van-Creveld dysplasia, osteopoikilosis, diastrophic dysplasia, neurofibromatosis type I). The principle objective is to determine the molecular, cell and extracellular matrix pathology of a number of distinct skeletal dysplasia phenotypes by studying a series of mouse models using a multidisciplinary systems biology approach.
Deep single-cell phenotyping to identify governing principles and mechanisms of the subcellular organization of bacterial replication KU Leuven
Modern metagenomics has opened our eyes to the immense bacterial diversity that exists both among and within us. Despite this diversity, all bacteria share the basic challenge of organizing the various processes that ensure their faithful replication. All bacterial cells need to metabolize nutrients, generate building blocks, maintain their shape and size, replicate and segregate their chromosomes, synthesize cell walls and membranes, and ...
Bottom-up manufacturing of artificial anti-tumor T cells KU Leuven
T cells play a central role in anti-tumor immune protection. While their ability to target and eliminate emerging tumor cells is increasingly recognized, fully-established tumors can efficiently evade T cell response. Significant efforts spanning several decades of research have been made to develop T cell-based therapies manufactured from donor-derived T cells. The use of tumor-directed T cells engineered to express chimeric antigen ...
Making time-resolved cryo-EM available for the community of structural biologists: validate, improve, derisk (POC). Flanders Institute for Biotechnology
Protein-based next generation electronics PRINGLE Flanders Institute for Biotechnology
Immune Mechanisms of Necrotic DNA Phagocytosis by Neutrophils: A Role for Integrins KU Leuven
Cell death is inherently connected to the existence of multicellular organisms. Our body loses billions of cells a day due to thermal, mechanical or chemical damage in a cell death process with loss of plasma membrane integrity and pro-inflammatory properties known as necrosis. Organisms face necrosis frequently, thus, there must be specific pathways to remove the large amount of cellular debris left behind. In this way, it is no surprise ...
MiCrovasculaR rarefaction in vascUlar Cognitive Impairement and heArt faiLure KU Leuven
Vascular dementia and heart failure represent major health burden to morbidity, mortality and quality of life. Comorbidities (hypertension, aging, diabetes, etc.) affect all organs, but the brain and heart are especially sensitive to these chronic stresses resulting in cognitive impairment (a mental disorder) and heart failure (a non-mental disorder). These comorbidities also induce a reduction in microvascular density, called microvascular ...
Methodological developments for time-resolved single particle cryo-EM Flanders Institute for Biotechnology
Alzheimer Disease - gut connection KU Leuven
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the leading cause of dementia in the Western world and to date no cure nor any preventive strategy are available for this neurodegenerative disorder. Bacterial 16S rRNA sequencing from fecal samples revealed a remarkable shift in the gut microbiota of conventionally-raised AD mice compared to healthy, wild-type mice. Based on these findings, we generated germ-free Alzheimer (GF-AD) mouse model and discovered a ...