Bordet Institute
" On April 11th, 2020, four patients hospitalized for more than 7 days developed fever some of them respiratory symptoms compatible with Covid-19 infection and were detected positive for SARS-CoV2. A 5th patient was also detected positive , had minor symptoms and was admitted 2 days earlier for collecting PBSC As a consequence of this mini-outbreak a screening of healthcare workers at this Unit revealed 2 staff members positive for SARS-CoV2. Severe acute respiratory distress syndrome Coronavirus 2(SARS-CoV2), causing Covid19 pandemic is rapidly spreading from person-to-person, via respiratory droplets, direct contact with mucous membranes or indirect contact through touching infected surfaces and then touching own eyes, nose or mouth. Airborne transmission after generated aerosols (intubation, bronchoscopy, tracheal aspiration,…) have been previously reported for other Coronaviruses(SARS-CoV1, MERS) and has been postulated for SARS-Cov2. In critical units such as the...

Read more: Mickael Aoun, Infectiologist

UCLouvain/Cliniques universitaires Saint-Luc 
" COVID-19 pandemic has an important impact on the health care provided by the anesthesiologists. Different societies of anesthesiology have provided guidelines and recommendations on how to manage patients who have been tested positive for COVID-19 or suspected to be infected. It is therefore important to know whether these guidelines have been implemented or were possible to be implemented. Otherwise patients who are presenting COVID-19 often show pulmonary complications. The airway management and the ventilation management of these patients can be therefore challenging and can possibly influence their outcome. It is thus important to obtain a large database with information about the characteristics of these patients, how these patients have been managed and their in-hospital outcome. Information regarding the correct implementation of guidelines is as well necessary for future guidance of health care providers. "
Funding: None
Contact...

Read more: Mona Momeni, MD, PhD

LHUB-ULB - Royal Academy of Medicine of Belgium
" "The purpose of this study is to map the healthcare workers exposure risk in Saint-Pierre University Hospital by combining molecular methods with serological assays. In summary, the short-term objective is threefold: (1) Provide an estimate of the sero-prevalence at baseline among high-risk health care workers (2) Determine prospectively the incidence of new SARS-CoV-2 infections among high-risk health care workers (3) Estimate the healthcare worker exposure to the virus by serological data to help our five partner hospitals in their day-to-day management of the ongoing pandemic The mid-term objectives are: (1) Establish an accurate mapping of the spread of the virus among our population allowing to identify the chain of transmission, (2) Identify predictive immunological markers of susceptibility to infection and disease severity to inform vaccine strategies and, (3) Establish solid diagnosis algorithm that will help adequate lockdown...

Read more: O. Vandenberg, Pr. - N. Clumeck, Pr. - C. Montesinos, Pr. - N. Dauby, MD, PhD - C. Gilles, MD - C....

Erasme Hospital
" Precise the frequency of thrombosis events in COVID19 patients "
Funding: No need
Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

CHU of Liège
" The aim of this study is to search for the presence of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in the staff of CHU de Liège and University of Liège, and to follow the evolution of antibody levels on blood samples taken 1.5 and 3 months after the first sample. This will allow to : • carry out a COVID-19 seroprevalence study by assaying anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in people in contact with patients, compared to a population of "negative control" subjects, at baseline and 1.5 and 3 months after the first testing ; • observe the evolution of antibody levels between samples; • highlight possible seroconversion between samples in asymptomatic persons "
Funding: Wallonia Region CHU of Liège University of Liège Fondation Léon Frédéricq
Contact: Dr Pascale Huynen, Dpt of Clinical Microbiology, CHU of Liège and University of Liège Prof Pierrette Melin, Dpt of Clinical Microbiology, CHU of Liège and University of Liège Prof Yves Beguin, Dpt of Hematology, CHU of Liège and University of...

Read more: Pascale Huynen, Dr

Cliniques universitaires Saint-Luc, UCLouvain
" The objective of our project is to describe the nasopharyngeal (NP) microbiota and virome of SARS-CoV-2 infected patients at diagnosis through unbiased nextgeneration sequencing analysis and to correlate microbiota and virome profile with COVID-19 infectious phenotype. At a second stage of our project, provided additional findings are raised, those data will be enriched by NP transcriptome analysis of infected patients, and background genomic determination. Integration of those data and analysis through systems biology approach will enable better understanding of multidirectional host-pathogen interactions. "
Funding: FNRS CUR requested. Additional funding will be requested for further steps.
Contact: Pr L.Belkhir This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 02/7642198 --- Pr P.Cani This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ULiège, CHU - Royal Academy of Medicine of Belgium
" Nous faisons face à une pandémie d'infection COVID-19. Ce virus pathogène est source de complications pulmonaires aggravant fortement le pronostic de nos patients. De nos jours, tant les mécanismes physiopathologiques en cause que les marqueurs de sévérité de l'atteinte restent indéterminés. Il apparaît donc comme urgent de pouvoir identifier des marqueurs diagnostiques, pronostiques et prédictifs pour nos patients. Dans ce contexte, plusieurs voies rapidement explorables nous apparaissent comme critiques. Le but final de cette étude est de contribuer à une prise en charge plus ciblée des patients porteurs d'une infection au SRAS-Cov-2. "
Funding: Fonds Léon Frederic
Publication References: Dix publications représentatives : 1) Prevention of murine radiogenic thymic lymphomas by tumor necrosis factor or by marrow grafting. HUMBLET C, GREIMERS R, DELVENNE P, DEMAN J, BONIVER J, DEFRESNE MP. J Natl Cancer Inst 88 (1996), 824-831. IF...

Read more: Ph. DELVENNE, FNRS Research Director / Chef de service Anatomie pathologique - J. GUIOT, Chef de...

HUDERF and ULB
" Role of Children in Sars-Cov-2 transmission, Heath Care Worker protection, Paediatric epidemiology and disease burden "
Funding: FNRS funding under assessment.
Contact: Prof Pierre Smeesters Academic Children Hospital Queen Fabiola Molecular Bacteriology Laboratory, ULB This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ULB, Hôpital Erasme - FNRS
Lung injury, endothelial dysfunction and the role of RAAS during SARS-CoV-2 invection. " The first case of a person infected with SARS-Cov-2 virus can be tracked back on November the 17th, 2019, in China. On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic. On April 13, COVID-19 is affecting 210 countries and territories worldwide, about 2 million positive cases have been officially declared along with 115.000 deaths. The real number of infected and deaths is scarily higher, considering that up to 65% people are asymptomatic and thus, not tested. The percentage of patients with COVID-19 needed for intensive care unit (ICU) varied from 5 to 32% in Wuhan, China. It was up to 9% in Lombardy, Italy. According to available data from Lombardy, 99% of patients admitted to the ICU needed respiratory support (88% invasive ventilation, 11% non invasive ventilation). In this unprecedented time, while SARS-Cov-2 virus is halting...

Read more: Sofia Morra, FNRS Research Fellow

UMONS and Ambroise-Paré Hospital Mons
" Predictive plasma signature of the clinical behavior of COVID-19 patients. The clinical presentation of COVID-19 infection varies from mild to asymptomatic to pneumonia, which can be complicated by severe respiratory failure and/or cardiovascular, renal, hepatic and cutaneous involvement. The understanding of such a polymorphism is very incomplete and the prognosis is difficult. Several tracks involving inflammatory reactions are currently favored to better explain this disease. In particular, the significant increase in plasma cytokines IL2, IL7, IL10, GSCF, IP10, MCP1, MIP1A and TNFα, known as "cytokine storm", seems to be significantly associated with the ARDS and multi-organ onsets. In this context, IL6 seems to play an important role and targeted treatments against this cytokine seem promising. Also, the infection of endothelial cells by the coronavirus causing endothelium inflammation have been suggested as one of the fundamental...

Read more: Stéphane CARLIER, Prof - Jean-Marie COLET, Prof - Fabrice JOURNE, Dr - Sven SAUSSEZ, Prof- Vincent...

UMONS, CHU Ambroise Paré
" Following the observation of clinical cases of rashes at Ambroise Paré Hospital, the University of Mons and the team of dermatologists of the hospital initiated a research project to study various rashes that may be related to the current COVID-19 infection. These suspicious rashes are: acute urticaria, Gibert's pink pityriasis, frostbite, urticarial vasculitis, erythema multiforme and other atypical rashes. These rashes are known to accompany several viral infections, their current high number is of concern and we wish to evaluate whether COVID-19 infection could be the cause of them. "
Funding: internal funding
Contact: Pr. Sven Saussez, head of the laboratory of Human Anatomy and Experimental Oncology This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

UMONS/ Epicura/ CHU Ambroise Paré/ Hôpital Foch
" In recent weeks, many European ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialists and infectious diseases specialists have observed that patients infected with coronavirus (COVID-19) had impaired sense of smell and taste. These symptoms of anosmia and dysgeusia were found in a large number of patients infected in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, England and the USA. Faced with the multiplication of declarations medical press, a group of ENT specialists from IFOS (the International Federation of ORL Societies), has developed a survey to investigate these sense of smell and taste disorders in patients infected with COVID-19 (infection being proven by PCR test). Pr. Sven Saussez and Dr. Jérôme Lechien from the University of Mons coordinated this study which was conducted by 33 ENT physicians and researchers in 12 European hospital "
Funding: CUR project submitted UMONS funding
Publication References: Olfactory and gustatory dysfunctions as a clinical...

Read more: Sven Saussez, Professor - Jérôme Lechien, Doctor

ULiège
" The definition of populations at risk for severe Covid-19 might help to improve health care and to propose specific treatments. We investigate candidate genes that could be associated with these severe forms. "
Funding: Walloon Region (WALGEMED project) Fonds Léon Frédéricq (ULiège)
Contact: Vincent Bours, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.