For its first European base, pharmaceutical consultant Amador Bioscience has chosen to set up shop in Limburg province, Belgium. The company, which already had branches in the United States and China, was attracted to Hasselt because of the proximity of the University of Hasselt (UHasselt), which has a strong reputation in biostatistics. In the coming years, Amador Bioscience is looking to hire 120 biostatisticians and biomedical engineers at its Belgian site.
It has been a year with ups and downs for Mithra – the Liège-based specialist in women’s health. The company experienced huge success with its pioneering contraceptive pill Estelle, which became available in regions all over the world. But the company also discontinued the research program of another product, PeriNesta, developed to battle symptoms arising during menopause. Overall the company is doing good work though, developing innovations in a field that has historically been neglected.
In the global search for more sustainable materials, one substance has recently begun attracting a lot of attention: mycelium, the white roots of fungi. VUB researcher Elise Elsacker has been studying the unique properties of mycelium and its potential for lowering environmental impact in the building and manufacturing industries, helping us move towards a circular economy.
Assisted conception techniques have matured in the last few decades, with Belgian scientists playing a big part in the progress. The Aurora test, developed by the Belgian start-up Fertiga, now further improves the odds for couples wanting to be parents: the test doubles the chances of becoming pregnant after just one fertility treatment.
In the last decade, there has been a growing interest in the potential of microbiome-based therapeutics: using gut bacteria as a medication to battle a wide array of diseases. Ghent-based start-up MRM Health is an important innovator in this growing field, building on the expertise of sister company ProDigest and of prominent partners such as VIB and DuPont Nutrition Biosciences. In the coming months, MRM Health is starting clinical trials for a drug candidate for ulcerative colitis, a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
How did the Belgian chemical and pharmaceutical sector fare during the first year of the pandemic? A report from essenscia gives insight into the financial downturn caused by the global crisis in 2020, but also showed strong positive trends in job creation and innovation. There were record investments in research and development, particularly in the healthcare sector, which continues to score among the best in Europe.
Prof. Kevin Verstrepen, of the VIB-KU Leuven Center for Microbiology, has received a prestigious ERC Proof of Concept grant for the SUPERYEAST project. The goal is to develop industrial yeast strains that are easier to grow, which would increase the efficiency and sustainability of processes in a whole array of sectors. Notably, the research could enhance the production of fermented beverages like beer and wine, foods including bread and chocolate, and fuels like bioethanol.
The University of Antwerp spin-off D-CRBN is helping carbon-emitting industries transform greenhouse gases into useful products. Using plasma technology, the company can split harmful CO2 molecules into their basic building blocks, which can then be converted into biofuels and polymers. The company aims to contribute to the circular economy needed if the European Green Deal is to be a success.
For its first European base, pharmaceutical consultant Amador Bioscience has chosen to set up shop in Limburg province, Belgium. The company, which already had branches in the United States and China, was attracted to Hasselt because of the proximity of the University of Hasselt (UHasselt), which has a strong reputation in biostatistics. In the coming years, Amador Bioscience is looking to hire 120 biostatisticians and biomedical engineers at its Belgian site.
It has been a year with ups and downs for Mithra – the Liège-based specialist in women’s health. The company experienced huge success with its pioneering contraceptive pill Estelle, which became available in regions all over the world. But the company also discontinued the research program of another product, PeriNesta, developed to battle symptoms arising during menopause. Overall the company is doing good work though, developing innovations in a field that has historically been neglected.
In the global search for more sustainable materials, one substance has recently begun attracting a lot of attention: mycelium, the white roots of fungi. VUB researcher Elise Elsacker has been studying the unique properties of mycelium and its potential for lowering environmental impact in the building and manufacturing industries, helping us move towards a circular economy.
Assisted conception techniques have matured in the last few decades, with Belgian scientists playing a big part in the progress. The Aurora test, developed by the Belgian start-up Fertiga, now further improves the odds for couples wanting to be parents: the test doubles the chances of becoming pregnant after just one fertility treatment.
In the last decade, there has been a growing interest in the potential of microbiome-based therapeutics: using gut bacteria as a medication to battle a wide array of diseases. Ghent-based start-up MRM Health is an important innovator in this growing field, building on the expertise of sister company ProDigest and of prominent partners such as VIB and DuPont Nutrition Biosciences. In the coming months, MRM Health is starting clinical trials for a drug candidate for ulcerative colitis, a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
How did the Belgian chemical and pharmaceutical sector fare during the first year of the pandemic? A report from essenscia gives insight into the financial downturn caused by the global crisis in 2020, but also showed strong positive trends in job creation and innovation. There were record investments in research and development, particularly in the healthcare sector, which continues to score among the best in Europe.
Prof. Kevin Verstrepen, of the VIB-KU Leuven Center for Microbiology, has received a prestigious ERC Proof of Concept grant for the SUPERYEAST project. The goal is to develop industrial yeast strains that are easier to grow, which would increase the efficiency and sustainability of processes in a whole array of sectors. Notably, the research could enhance the production of fermented beverages like beer and wine, foods including bread and chocolate, and fuels like bioethanol.
The University of Antwerp spin-off D-CRBN is helping carbon-emitting industries transform greenhouse gases into useful products. Using plasma technology, the company can split harmful CO2 molecules into their basic building blocks, which can then be converted into biofuels and polymers. The company aims to contribute to the circular economy needed if the European Green Deal is to be a success.