Publicaties
Evaluation of a self-amplifying mRNA reporter vaccine in explant models of broiler chickens Universiteit Gent
In order to minimize animal loss and eco-nomical loss, industrial poultry is heavily vaccinated against infectious agents. mRNA vaccination is an effec-tive vaccination platform, yet little to no comprehensive, comparative studies in avians can be found. Nevertheless, poultry mRNA vaccination could prove to be very inter-esting due to the relatively low production cost, especially true when using self-amplifying mRNA (saRNA), and their extreme ...
Novel polymers as promising non-viral carriers for self-amplifying mRNA-based applications Universiteit Gent
Recently, two messenger (m)RNA vaccines have been introduced worldwide to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. The vaccines of Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna both consist of mRNA and lipids, formulated as lipid nanoparticles (LNPs), and have proven their effectiveness by curbing the pandemic. However, the formulation and manufacturing process of these vaccines can be improved. Therefore, I combine an in house self-amplifying mRNA (saRNA) platform with a ...
Previous and current efforts to develop a mucosal vaccine against periodontal disease : are we close yet? Universiteit Gent
The impact of hepatocyte-specific deletion of hypoxia-inducible factors on the development of polymicrobial sepsis with focus on GR and PPARα function Universiteit Gent Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie
Introduction: Polymicrobial sepsis causes acute anorexia (loss of appetite), leading to lipolysis in white adipose tissue and proteolysis in muscle, and thus release of free fatty acids (FFAs), glycerol and gluconeogenic amino acids. Since hepatic peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPAR alpha) and glucocorticoid receptor (GR) quickly lose function in sepsis, these metabolites accumulate (causing toxicity) and fail to yield ...
Lipid nanoparticle delivery alters the adjuvanticity of the TLR9 agonist CpG by innate immune activation in lymphoid tissue Universiteit Gent Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie
Pharmacological strategies to activate innate immune cells are of great relevance in the context of vaccine design and anticancer immune therapy, to mount broad immune responses able to clear infection and malignant cells. Synthetic CpG oligodeoxynucleotides (CpG-ODNs) are short single-stranded DNA molecules containing unmethylated CpG dinucleotides and a phosphorothioate backbone. Class B CpG ODNs activate robust innate immune responses through ...
Xenogeneic equine stem cells activate anti-tumor adaptive immunity in a 4T1-based intraductal mouse model for triple-negative breast cancer : proof-of-principle Universiteit Gent
Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) remains difficult to treat, especially due to ineffective immune responses. Current treatments mainly aim at a cytotoxic effect, whereas (stem) cell therapies are being investigated for their immune stimulatory capacities to initiate the anti-tumor immunity. Here, a thoroughly characterized, homogenous and non-tumorigenic mixture of equine mesenchymal stem cells (eMSCs) harvested from horse peripheral blood ...
Molecular therapies and vaccines face the challenges of emerging infectious diseases Universiteit Gent
Regulatory guidelines and preclinical tools to study the biodistribution of RNA therapeutics Universiteit Gent
The success of the messenger RNA-based COVID-19 vaccines of Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech marks the beginning of a new chapter in modern medicine. However, the rapid rise of mRNA therapeutics has resulted in a regulatory framework that is somewhat lagging. The current guidelines either do not apply, do not mention RNA therapeutics, or do not have widely accepted definitions. This review describes the guidelines for preclinical biodistribution ...