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A research team at KU Leuven (Belgium) has developed a new technique that allows researchers to easily quantify the concentration of calcium in living organisms over a long period of time. Up to now, this was only possible with more complex experimental setups. This simplified method can be adapted to other molecules and tissues, making it a useful instrument for translational research and the development of applications.
Researcher Vickà Versele (VUB-KU Leuven) focuses with the TRANSPARENTS research project on the changes in body composition and lifestyle in couples having their first child. Her recent study - published in the international journal Pediatric Obesity - now shows that the lifestyle of mom and dad at the beginning of pregnancy has an impact on the weight curve during the first year of life for girls, but not for boys.
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An international research led the VUB Biology Department examined 21 st century changes in ocean-surface temperature, salinity, and density, across mangrove forests worldwide. The study suggests that changes in surface-ocean density may impact the dispersal patterns of widely distributed mangroves species, and more likely so in the Indo-West Pacific region, the primary hotspot of mangrove diversity.
The ESA Gaia mission has released its new treasure trove of data about our home galaxy. Astronomers - including Professor Conny Aerts from KU Leuven - describe strange 'starquakes', stellar DNA, asymmetric motions and other fascinating insights in this most detailed Milky Way survey to date. Gaia is ESA's mission to create the most accurate and complete multi-dimensional map of the Milky Way.
A research team at KU Leuven (Belgium) has developed a new technique that allows researchers to easily quantify the concentration of calcium in living organisms over a long period of time. Up to now, this was only possible with more complex experimental setups. This simplified method can be adapted to other molecules and tissues, making it a useful instrument for translational research and the development of applications.
Stem cell biologists identify how placenta cells are regulated DNA regulation is a critical process in a cell that allows it to fulfil its function. This process is key during pregnancy, when embryonic cells must develop into all cell types needed to form an embryo. An international team of researchers from KU Leuven, Babraham Institute, Radboud University, Ghent University and IMBA, have discovered that the first cell fate decision of embryonic development is regulated by a protein known as PRC2.
Researcher Vickà Versele (VUB-KU Leuven) focuses with the TRANSPARENTS research project on the changes in body composition and lifestyle in couples having their first child. Her recent study - published in the international journal Pediatric Obesity - now shows that the lifestyle of mom and dad at the beginning of pregnancy has an impact on the weight curve during the first year of life for girls, but not for boys.
Ghent University research in Burkina Faso: fortified food supplements increase the chance of a healthier baby Every parent around the globe wishes for a healthy baby.
Thursday, May 19, 2022 — The wood wide web has been a hot topic among biologists in recent years. Trees and plants are interconnected and not only share information, they also support each other by passing on signals or food. They do this by means of mycorrhizal fungi that live in symbiosis with the roots.
A system composed of four gravitationally bound stars has been followed by spectroscopy for several years by a team of researchers. This quadruple system is unstable and simulations of its future evolution show that, eventually, the stars may collide, which is likely to produce a thermonuclear supernova.
Successful and unsuccessful approaches to the pandemic by Western governments Tuesday, May 17, 2022 — Since 2020, the world has been experiencing the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic. The cause is obviously a virus, but the degree of its spread, and the associated number of infections and deaths, is largely dependent on socio-economic factors.
Not every type of greenery in an urban environment has the same positive effect on people. One large tree with a robust crown has more impact than ten young trees. That is the conclusion of a large-scale study by KU Leuven that was published today in the influential journal Environmental Health Perspectives.
In brief: It's a very promising world first! Scientists at University of Louvain (UCLouvain) have managed to identify the key that allows the Covid virus to attack cells Better still, they have also managed to close the lock to block the virus and prevent its interaction with the cell, in other words, to prevent infection This discovery raises a huge hope : that of developing an antiviral, in the form of an aerosol , which would help to eradicat
Antibiotics are commonly used to treat infections and ensure the safety of surgical procedures. However, their overuse has led to the emergence and spread of resistant bacteria, resulting in an -arms race- whereby ever more potent drugs are becoming a necessity.
All-Luxembourg study helps to anticipate a personal COVID-19 health trajectory From the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the majority of published studies have focused on severe COVID-19 patients in order to understand the causes of critical illness. However, it is equally, if not more important to understand the protective immune factors in our body.
To this day, cavities and damage to enamel are repaired by dentists with the help of synthetic filling materials. There is no natural alternative to this. A new 3D model with human dental stem cells could change this in the future. The results of the research led by KU Leuven Professor Hugo Vankelecom and Professors Annelies Bronckaers and Ivo Lambrichts from UHasselt have been published in Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences .
Researchers delve into the inner workings of the antibody immune response, finding key differences in the metabolism of two closely related immune cell subsets. Protection against viral diseases is a key role of our body's immune response, where antibodies are generated to seek out invading species and either neutralise or mark them for destruction.
A new study finds that five of the largest platform companies in Belgium fail to offer fair working conditions. The Fairwork research project in Belgium, at the Centre for Sociological Research at KU Leuven and in collaboration with the University of Oxford, rated the working conditions of Takeaway, Ring Twice, Deliveroo, Yoopies, and Top Help.
The European Research Council (ERC) has awarded its Consolidator Grants. Four KU Leuven researchers are among this year's recipients: bioscience engineer Rob Ameloot, theologist Christina Kreinecker, pediatric nephrologist Elena Levtchenko, and astronomer Jon Sundqvist.
VUB research shows that blockchain technology can strengthen democratic values Ledger technology or Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), of which blockchain is one system, offers new ways to bring government services to citizens and businesses. Governments have therefore started experimenting and investing in blockchain and DLT solutions for the public sector.
Researchers use new techniques to determine when limestone layers and fossils were formed during dinosaur age, 66 to 73 million years ago Wednesday, March 30, 2022 — Geologists from the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and KU Leuven, in collaboration with Maastricht Natural History Museum and Dutch conservation organisation Natuurmonumenten, have mapped the million-year-old rocks in the quarries near Maastricht.
An interdisciplinary manuscript reporting on a collaboration between physicists and computational engineers from the University of Luxembourg and Padova (Italy) has been published in Physical Review Letters. This work reveals that interactions between many electrons in materials can induce a colossal enhancement of atomic forces at the nanoscale and in large engineering-scale systems.
VUB Professor Dr. Sonja Snacken receives Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws 2022
ENLIGHT succesfully completes cooperative course with 9 European partner institutions

'Partnerships Global South helped us get VLIR-UOS funding for development cooperation project'
