About the ULB Center for Research in Immunology (U-CRI)
Given the major recent progresses in immunology, the teams involved in the field at the ULB have created a dedicated research institute. This institute brings together researchers from the Faculties of Sciences, Medicine and Pharmacy. Its aim is to promote fundamental and translational immunology. The teams, led by more than 25 principal investigators, are active on the BIOPARK campus (Gosselies) and the HEALTH POLE (Erasme campus, Institut Jules Bordet and Brugmann campus).
Research Axis:
Molecular Immunology : With a particular emphasis on innate immune cells and T lymphocytes, these projects involve state-of-the art approaches in molecular biology, flow cytometry and imaging to study transcriptional, post-transcriptional and epigenetic processes.
Pre-clinical Immunology : It involves the development of mouse models for human pathologies or therapeutic interventions. Several projects rely on implantable/genetic tumor models, infections and vaccination protocols or chronic inflammation. The animal facilities from the BIOPARK campus include a specific pathogen-free structure and several units dedicated to experimentation and infectious pathogens.
Human and translational Immunology : Research teams involved in human immunology are mainly located in the HEALTH POLE. It involves projects in vaccinology, infectious diseases, hematology and cancerology that rely on strong collaborative networks with clinicians.
Welcome and intro by ULB 12:45 – 13:00 Abdulkader Azouz, ULB
10x Genomics: Enabling the Next Generation of Single Cell Experiments 13:00 – 13:45 Koen De Gelas, 10x Genomics Identification of immunosuppressive mechanisms by which human macrophages hamper T cell-mediated antitumoral immunity 13:45 – 14:00 Aurélie Detavernier, ULB Abdulkader Azouz, ULB Coffee break 14:00 – 14:20 Unravelling γδ T cell biology through the lens of single cell genomics 14:20 – 14:35 Guillem Sánchez Sánchez, ULB Identification of predictive biomarkers...
New publication on the Preventive impact of maternal probiotics administration on the development of neonatal Th-2 type allergic airways disease
February 14th 2023 - 10:14
Gut microbiota plays a role in the neonatal immune education and could influence susceptibility to Th2-type immune disorders, such as allergies, the most prevalent chronic diseases in early childhood. Justine Smout and the team of Véronique Flamand observed that probiotic supplementation to pregnant/breastfeeding mice prevents the development of allergic airways disease in their offspring. In this setting, she demonstrated that the Lactobacillus rhamnosus strain (Vésale Pharma) modulates the neonatal allergen-specific CD4 Helper T-cell activation.
Inauguration of the European Plotkin Institute for Vaccinology
December 19th 2022 - 12:28
On May 24th 2022, The European Plotkin Institute for Vaccinology was inaugurated at the Academy Palace in Brussels in the presence of Stanley and Susan Plotkin. On this occasion, the Université libre de Bruxelles and the Universiteit Antwerpen jointly awarded the degree of Doctor Honoris Causa to Professor Stanley Plotkin for his immense contribution to public health and humanity through the development of vaccines and the promotion of vaccination. The degree was awarded by Professor Herman Van Goethem, Rector of the Universiteit Antwerpen, and Professor Annemie Schaus, Rector of the...
New publication on the ontogeny of human gamma delta T cells
October 05th 2022 - 14:57
Knowledge about the ontogeny of T cells in the thymus relies heavily on mouse studies because of difficulty to obtain human material. Here, Guillem Sanchez Sanchez and colleagues from the team of David Vermijlen) performed a single cell analysis of thymocytes from human fetal and paediatric thymic samples to characterise the development of human γδ T cells in the thymus. Click here to access the publication in Nature Communications
Doctorate School in Immunology : October 4 2022- save the date!
July 18th 2022 - 10:40
Dear members of the “Ecole doctorale thématique d’Immunologie” of the F.R.S.-FNRS,
after more than 2 years of absence, we am very pleased to announce the next Immunology Day 2022, taking place next October 4th, 2022, in Liège - Sart Tilman. We ll have a super exciting program and this event will be an outstanding opportunity to (re-)connect and present your work !
More infos about registration and abstract submissions coming soon following this link
The lectures of the CIVIS Summer school on « infectious respiratory disease and immunity with a focus on early life period » to be held at ULB-Erasme Campus (Popelin Auditorium) is accessible to all U-CRI members. Please join us, the full program will be accessible on the TEAMS U-CRI Group.
joint ULB-UNIL PhD summer course in cancer biology, Sept 12-16, Brussels
March 16th 2022 - 10:40
Organizers:
Dr. Jean Yannis Perentes, UNIL
Prof. Etienne Meylan, ULB
Where and when?
This course takes place in two consecutive years and participants are expected to attend both years.
In 2022, the course will be at ULB in the new Jules Bordet Institute in Brussels from Monday Sept 12th until Friday Sept 16th. The participants coming from Lausanne will travel by train on Sept 11th and Sept 17th. In 2023, the course will be at UNIL; the precise location and dates will be communicated later.
Goals of the 2022-2023 joint ULB-UNIL Summer courses in Cancer Biology:
Séance solennelle de remise des insignes de Doctorat Honoris Causa 2022
March 08th 2022 - 11:01
Séance solennelle de remise des insignes de Doctorat Honoris Causa à Madame Katalin Karikó professeure à l’Université de Pennsylvanie et figure majeure de la vaccination, pour ses recherches innovantes en thérapie génique basée sur l’ARN messager.
Type 2 Immunity in Early Life 9 & 10 May 2022, Liege, Belgium
January 07th 2022 - 11:50
Gestation through to weaning from our mothers is considered to be a time when immune systems show a bias to Type 2 immunity. The significance of this for mothers and offspring health during pregnancy, nursing and in later life is being recognised as being a key determinant of both positive and negative, short and long term health trajectories.
In this meeting we will present some of the latest insights into how this early life immune status influences important health scenarios and how these effects may be extended into later life once direct maternal offspring interactions have been...
New publication on the role of ACOD1 in Brucella infection
September 16th 2021 - 14:36
In this article published in PLOS Pathogens, Aurore Demars from the group of Eric Muraille explores the role of aconitate decarboxylase 1 gene (Acod1; also known as Immune responsive gene 1) in the control of pulmonary Brucella infection in mouse. They observe that Acod1 is upregulated in murine alveolar macrophages in response to Brucella infection and that Acod1 deficient mice display a higher bacterial load in their lungs than control mice, demonstrating that Acod1 participates in the control of pulmonary Brucella infection. The ACOD1 enzyme is mostly produced in mitochondria of...
