news 2018

Scientists from KU Leuven and UCLA reveal why male and female cells behave differently after being reprogrammed into stem cells. Using a patient's skin cells to restore his vision? Thanks to a promising technique known as cell reprogramming, this science fiction scenario may soon become reality. The technique allows scientists to make stem cells from, for instance, a patient's skin cells.

The traditional pint is increasingly losing ground to speciality beers. Using herbs is one of the ways to give these beers their specific flavour. Research shows that the taste of these herbs depends a great deal on where they are grown and on their harvest year. Brewers can use this knowledge to maintain the flavour and quality of their product.

Geologists have discovered that some magmas split into two separate liquids, one of which is very rich in iron. Their findings can help to discover new iron ore deposits for mining. Iron ore is mined in about 50 countries, with Australia, Brazil and China as the largest producers. It is mostly used to produce the steel objects that are all around us - from paper clips to kitchen appliances and the supporting beams in skyscrapers.

Introduction: Biodiversity decline and climate warming are two important challenges for mankind. New research shows the possibility to address both problems at the same time, in the tropical rain forest. That is the core message a team of Belgian scientists brought along, back from an expedition in the rain forest of the DR Congo.

An assistant professor at Brussels' Vrije Universiteit and a visiting professor at Harvard, Vincent Ginis is a brilliant scientist who won a Solvay Award in 2014 and was designated as one of the top 50 tech pioneers in Belgium in 2017. His particular area of study is optics, but he makes a strong case for the combination of different scientific disciplines, or "languages", to drive progress in research.

Approximately 4 million people worldwide currently suffer from Parkinson's disease, and this number is only expected to increase. The most frequent genetic causes of the illness are mutations in the gene responsible for controlling the production of protein LRRK2, which includes two enzymes: a kinase and a GTPase.

The new technique was developed by Professor Tom Francart and his colleagues from the Department of Neurosciences at KU Leuven in collaboration with the University of Maryland. It will allow for a more accurate diagnosis of patients who cannot actively participate in a speech understanding test because they're too young, for instance, or because they're in a coma.

A study conducted by a team of international researchers, including Krishna Das from the Laboratory of Biological Oceanology ( FOCUS Research Unit), presents new data on the level of mercury in seven distinct populations of European seabass ( Dicentrarchus labrax ), an edible species whose flesh is highly appreciated by gourmets.

Researchers at the NANOCHEM laboratory (MolSys Research Unit) of the University of Liege have studied molecules synthesized by Sir Fraser Stoddart's group, Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry 2016 and professor at Northwestern University. The results obtained during this research and published in Nature Nanotechnology (1) open up new paths in the use of molecular machines, these synthetic molecules that carry out controlled motion on demand.

Introduction: International team researches frost damage because of warming climate. At first glance, one might think that plants have a reduced chance to suffer frost damage, as Earth warms. But appearances can be deceiving, as a new study shows, to which UAntwerp researchers Ivan Janssens and Yongshuo Fu contributed.

Interneuron migration controls cerebral cortical growth and its impairement could lead to macrocephaly A team from the University of Liège has discovered a new crosstalk between the migrating inhibitory interneurons and the stem cells that generate the excitatory neurons. The researchers discovered that this cellular dialogue controls the growth of the cerebral cortex and that its impairment leads a cortical malformation previously associated with autism in mice.

Just a year ago, on the 22 February 2017, at a press conference at NASA headquarters, an international team of researchers revealed the existence of a unique exoplanetary system, made up of seven planets orbiting a small nearby star. Known as TRAPPIST-1, this system created a hug buzz on the Web, in the media, and within the scientific community.

Researchers from KU Leuven and the universities of Pittsburgh, Stanford, and Penn State (US) have identified fifteen genes that determine our facial features. The findings were published. Our DNA determines what we look like, including our facial features. That appeals to the popular imagination, as the potential applications are obvious.

UCL Research - press release Johann Mignolet , post-doctoral researcher in the laboratory of the professor Pascal Hols, did a major breakthrough on bacterial behavior during his researches at UCLouvain (Life Sciences Institute) . He discovered that a bacterial inhabitant of the human gut produces a small molecule, called pheromone, to inform the whole bacterial population on what is the best timing to release antibacterial molecules (bacteriocins) and steal genes from the cadavers.

Bone cells do not just form new bone, they also influence the blood sugar level. Leuven scientists have now discovered a new mechanism that controls this link. The metabolism of bone cells determines how much sugar they use; if the bone cells consume more sugar than normal, this can lower the glucose level in the blood.

Scientists discovered that giant earthquakes reoccur with relatively regular intervals. When also taking into account smaller earthquakes, the repeat interval becomes increasingly more irregular to a level where earthquakes happen randomly in time. In their recent paper in Earth and Planetary Science Letters , Moernaut`s team of Belgian, Chilean and Swiss researchers presented a new approach to tackle the problem of large earthquake recurrence.

Vrije Universiteit Brussel launches a new study into the influence of stress and burnout on the quality of our relationships and sexual experiences. "The pressure on our personal lives nowadays is so significant that inevitably has consequences on our sexual wellbeing. Recent studies have shown that our sexual activity has diminished to 2-3 times per month," researcher and sexologist Bert Van Puyenbroeck of Vrije Universiteit Brussel explains.

A research team led by Prof. Julie Bakker (GIGA-ULiège) and Prof. Ulrich Boehm (Saarland University, Germany) has made a major advancement in our understanding of how the brain controls sex. Using female mice as a model, the researchers found that a hormone in the brain, (appropriately) called kisspeptin, drives both attraction to the opposite sex and sexual behavior.

The findings are an important next step in understanding the relationship between the two inflammatory diseases and to developing effective therapies. Scientists from VIB-UGent have discovered insights for a possible new therapy for eczema that also reduces the severity of asthma. The findings are an important next step in understanding the relationship between the two inflammatory diseases and to developing effective therapies.

KU Leuven scientists present a new way to generate oligodendrocytes, building blocks of the brain that play a crucial role in neurodegenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis and ALS. The method makes it much easier to study these cells and explore their therapeutic potential. KU Leuven scientists present a new way to generate oligodendrocytes, building blocks of the brain that play a crucial role in neurodegenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis and ALS.