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Our brain cells, and more specifically the channel proteins in the cell wall, need lipids - or fat - to function properly. These are the findings of an international study led by the Laboratory of Structural Neurobiology at KU Leuven. The researchers identified the structure of these proteins in the presence of a lipid molecule at the atomic level for the first time.

Research at KU Leuven suggests a cause for the neurodevelopmental disturbances experienced by a third of patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The discovery suggests possible underlying mechanisms of these problems, which appear targetable by therapeutic interventions in a cellular model. Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is an inherited neuromuscular disorder in which the muscles, including the heart and respiratory muscles, progressively become weaker.

Researchers at KU Leuven have developed a new research model to grow and study the human variant of the norovirus. The virus could thus far only be studied through a variant that occurs in mice. The new model, that is described in the journal PLOS Pathogens, should allow researchers to develop a treatment for stomach flu.

Researchers at KU Leuven have developed a technique to make sheep produce new antibodies simply by injecting the DNA building blocks. This approach is much cheaper and more efficient than producing antibodies industrially and administering them afterwards. The study in animals with a similar size as humans brings us a step closer to the clinical use of antibody gene therapy.

An international study led by Professor Jan Staessen and Professor Zhen-Yu Zhang has shown that 24-hour blood pressure monitoring, including when the patient is asleep, has the highest predictive accuracy for cardiovascular diseases. An international consortium followed 11,135 individuals for up to 14 years.

Biomedical researchers at KU Leuven have found a new way to study endometrial diseases such as endometriosis and cancer. They were able to grow three-dimensional cell structures from diseased tissue of patients. The biobank can be used to unravel the disorders and test drugs. Diseases of the endometrium are an important cause of infertility.

Chemotherapy attacks cancer cells but also healthy cells. In children, it often causes irreversible damage that can impact their adult lives. UCLouvain researcher Anabelle Decottignies has found a possible strategy for killing cancer cells, especially in children, without affecting healthy cells , as reported in the scientific journal Molecular Cell .

Patrice Cani, professor at UCLouvain, and his team conducted the first pilot study in humans to observe the impact of the bacteria Akkermansia (ingestion for 3 months), particularly on the reduction of cardiovascular risk factors. The results are published in the scientific journal Nature Medicine .

A team of researchers led by KU Leuven virologist Johan Neyts have discovered a new feature of so-called picornaviruses that may allow for the development of new antiviral medications for the common cold, polio, and other illnesses. Picornaviruses include rhinoviruses and enteroviruses. Rhinoviruses cause millions of cases of upper respiratory infections ("colds") yearly and contribute to asthma, and enteroviruses are responsible for millions of infections including cases such as meningitis, encephalitis and polio.

A collaborative study between the University of Antwerp and McGill University allows PET scanning on animals without the use of anesthesia. Have you ever spent half an hour trying to take the best photo of your pets but they won't stay still in the perfect angle? This is also true for small animal imaging research using positron emission tomography (PET).

Imec, UZ Leuven, KU Leuven, Ghent University, Agilent, Western Digital and BlueBee develop unique hybrid cloud platform for fast and cost-efficient whole genome sequencing and analysis. Today, on the occasion of the international DNA day, imec, a world-leading research and innovation hub in nanoelectronics and digital technologies, and its partners revealed their Genome Analytics Platform (GAP) platform, a unique platform that can perform a full genome analysis of 48 samples in only 48 hours and at an acceptable cost.

What happens inside a cell when it is activated, changing, or responding to variations in its environment? Researchers from the VIB-Ghent University Center for Inflammation Research have developed a map of how to best model these cellular dynamics. Their work not only highlights the outstanding challenges of tracking cells throughout their growth and lifetime, but also pioneers new ways of evaluating computational biology methods that aim to do this.

A new treatment for a common type of stroke may soon be possible, thanks to a discovery by an international team of researchers. In a study published today in the Journal of Experimental Medicine , researchers successfully used a new approach that significantly minimized brain damage caused by stroke in mouse models.

Researchers at VIB-KU Leuven have identified several gut bacteria that may be linked to depression. Their findings provide further evidence that our intestinal bacteria produce substances with a potential impact on our mental health. Jeroen Raes and his team at VIB-KU Leuven examined the faeces of 1,054 participants in the Flemish Gut Flora Project and combined this information with diagnoses of depression in the same group.

During fat ingestion , if everything works in our body, an enzyme from the intestine transmits to the brain (through the production of molecules) the message "stop, I am not hungry anymore". This gut-brain axis maintains a balanced food intake. Researchers from the UCLouvain were able to target this enzyme.

Breathing in sea air helps to beat cancer and to prevent a high cholesterol, research shows by Ghent University and the Flanders Marine Institute. Have you ever heard of sea spray? That's what researchers call vaporized sea water in the air. Sea spray contains natural substances produced by algae and bacteria, which are good for your health.

Ghent University scientists, in collaboration with American and Japanese researchers, unraveled the "grounded running" pattern, which drastically reduces the loading on the musculoskeletal system compared to the "classical" running pattern. Benefits (and disadvantages) of running Distance running is one of the most popular forms of physical activity, with health benefits given as one of the main reasons to go for a run.

The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), the philanthropic endeavour led by Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and his partner Priscilla Chan, has announced the launch of its Neurodegeneration Challenge Network. This new network brings together experimental scientists from various biomedical research fields, computational biologists, and physicians to understand the underlying causes of neurodegenerative disorders.

The non-invasive prenatal test (NIPT), developed to detect Down syndrome and other chromosomal abnormalities in unborn children, can also detect blood cancers. Not just in pregnant women but in everyone. This is because the test examines the DNA that is circulating in the blood - and that may include the genetic material of cancer cells.

One cannot overcome malaria without adrenal gland. Malaria affects the sugar metabolism and this has fatal consequences without the help of the adrenal gland. The study of the Laboratory of Immunobiology (Rega Institute) explores a new field within malaria research and was published. Malaria is still one of the most important infectious diseases.