University Hospital Ghent and VIB are assessing a drug called Leukine® to treat patients with respiratory illness associated with COVID-19. Major medical centers in Germany and Italy are considering joining the study. The study will evaluate the effect of Leukine® on lung function and patient outcomes.
Mechelen, Belgium, 24 March 2020 - The coronavirus has brought the whole world to a standstill. The Belgian company ElmediX wants to contain the virus with intensive heat treatments for corona patients. Controlled heating to 41.5 °C for three hours can inactivate the virus and activate the patient's immune system. ElmediX has launched a call to researchers and doctors and makes the technology available in the fight against the coronavirus.
Earlier this year, the lab of Xavier Saelens (VIB-UGent) announced the discovery of a unique antibody that is capable of binding the virus that causes COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2). The antibody was developed in collaboration with two research groups in the US. The team has now established that the antibody can neutralize a lab variant of the virus, an important step forward in the development of a potential antiviral drug against the new coronavirus. This progress was made possible thanks to the intensive efforts of various teams in the VIB-UGent Center for Medical Biotechnology.
Augustine Therapeutics is one of VIB’s latest spinoffs, developing a first-in-class drug for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease. The company recently announced a seed-funding round of €4.2 million, led by V-Bio Ventures. We spoke to several of the key persons in Augustine about how the startup is tackling the “Valley of Death”: the no-man’s-land between academia and industry where many potential therapies often fail.
Hetty Helsmoortel is a science communicator who has dedicated herself to bringing research breakthroughs to a broader audience. In her recent book “De Geknipte Genen”, she tackles CRISPR: a revolutionary gene editing technology whose applications raise tricky ethical questions. We sat down with Dr. Helsmoortel to discuss her views on CRISPR’s potential and why she feels it is so important for the public to be well informed on this technical topic.
Animals have been used throughout history to understand human physiology and to resolve scientific questions related to health and disease. Nowadays, however, both scientists and the public are pushing for better options to animal testing, and so increasing efforts are being put into developing and promoting these alternative methods. Two such initiatives are being spearheaded by the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB): The Innovation Centre for 3R Alternatives (IC-3Rs) and the RE-Place project.
University Hospital Ghent and VIB are assessing a drug called Leukine® to treat patients with respiratory illness associated with COVID-19. Major medical centers in Germany and Italy are considering joining the study. The study will evaluate the effect of Leukine® on lung function and patient outcomes.
Mechelen, Belgium, 24 March 2020 - The coronavirus has brought the whole world to a standstill. The Belgian company ElmediX wants to contain the virus with intensive heat treatments for corona patients. Controlled heating to 41.5 °C for three hours can inactivate the virus and activate the patient's immune system. ElmediX has launched a call to researchers and doctors and makes the technology available in the fight against the coronavirus.
Earlier this year, the lab of Xavier Saelens (VIB-UGent) announced the discovery of a unique antibody that is capable of binding the virus that causes COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2). The antibody was developed in collaboration with two research groups in the US. The team has now established that the antibody can neutralize a lab variant of the virus, an important step forward in the development of a potential antiviral drug against the new coronavirus. This progress was made possible thanks to the intensive efforts of various teams in the VIB-UGent Center for Medical Biotechnology.
Augustine Therapeutics is one of VIB’s latest spinoffs, developing a first-in-class drug for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease. The company recently announced a seed-funding round of €4.2 million, led by V-Bio Ventures. We spoke to several of the key persons in Augustine about how the startup is tackling the “Valley of Death”: the no-man’s-land between academia and industry where many potential therapies often fail.
Hetty Helsmoortel is a science communicator who has dedicated herself to bringing research breakthroughs to a broader audience. In her recent book “De Geknipte Genen”, she tackles CRISPR: a revolutionary gene editing technology whose applications raise tricky ethical questions. We sat down with Dr. Helsmoortel to discuss her views on CRISPR’s potential and why she feels it is so important for the public to be well informed on this technical topic.
Animals have been used throughout history to understand human physiology and to resolve scientific questions related to health and disease. Nowadays, however, both scientists and the public are pushing for better options to animal testing, and so increasing efforts are being put into developing and promoting these alternative methods. Two such initiatives are being spearheaded by the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB): The Innovation Centre for 3R Alternatives (IC-3Rs) and the RE-Place project.