UMONS
" The 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is a public health emergency of international concern. Authorities and population are facing a global health crisis which pose a challenge to adapt quickly and effectively. The aim of this preliminary study was to survey the general public in Belgium to better understand their levels of psychological impact, anxiety and stress during the initial stage of containment. The data also explored tips and tricks immediately adopt by the population to manage containment. From 20 March to 28 March 2020, we conducted an online survey using snowball sampling techniques on social network. The online survey collected information on demographic data, stress level in the past 7 days, knowledge and concerns about COVID-19 and the impact of using technologies for taking information and stay connected to others, precautionary measures (tips and tricks) during the beginning of containment, and additional information required with respect to...

Read more: Jennifer Denis, PhD in psychology research and teaching associate

UMONS, ULB, Sciensano
" A new type of biosensor to characterize in details antibodies specific for antigens of SARS-COV-2. "
Funding: UMONS
Publication References: E. Gosselin, O Denis, A. Van Cauwenberge, J. Conti, JJ Vanden Eynde, K. Huygen, J. De Coninck, "Quantification of the trichothecene Verrucarin-A in environmental samples using an antibody-based spectroscopic biosensor", Sensor Actuat. B.-Chem., 2012, 166-167, 549-555.
Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ULB, Faculty of Medicine, and Erasme Hospital
Suivi longitudinal de biomarqueurs sériques et urinaires de l'atteinte rénale aiguë associée au COVID-19 : impacts diagnostique et pronostique. " L'objectif principal de cette étude est de caractériser l'atteinte rénale aiguë par le virus SARS-COV2 chez des patients hospitalisés présentant une maladie COVID-19 à l'aide de biomarqueurs sériques et urinaires précoces et spécifiques à certains segments du néphron. L'objectif secondaire est d'établir une corrélation entre l'évolution de ces marqueurs observée durant la phase aiguë de l'insuffisance rénale et le passage éventuel à un stade chronique. "
Funding: Crédit Urgent de Recherche (CUR) sollicité auprès du FNRS
Publication References: BUNEL V, SOUARD F, ANTOINE M-H, STEVIGNY C, NORTIER JL. Nephrotoxicity of Natural Products: Aristolochic Acid and Fungal Toxins. In McQueen C.A., Comprehensive Toxicology, Third Edition. Vol 14, Oxford Elsevier Ltd (2018), pp 340-379. BUNEL V, TOURNAY Y...

Read more: Joëlle Nortier, Dr

ULiège
" Since SARS-CoV-2 testing began at the CHU of Liège we have been carrying out regular whole genome sequencing (WGS) of COVID-19 samples. At the time of writing we have uploaded 187 viral genomes to https://nextstrain.org/ (almost half of the 393 from Belgium). We have carried out regular WGS to monitor the evolution of viral haplotypes. Where possible we have concentrated on health care workers with the goal of identifying clusters of transmission. This included a cluster of seven individuals who were tested on the Roche cobas® instrument using the SARS-CoV-2 test, all were positive for the ORF1ab assay, but negative for the second E-gene assay. To date we have WGS data from four of these individuals, all share identical viral genomes and a SNP in the E-gene has been identified as the most probable cause of the test failure. This observation highlights the importance of redundancy in SARS-CoV-2 assays, especially as some testing regimes recommend an E-gene assay as a primary...

Read more: Keith Durkin, Dr - Maria Artesi, Dr - Sébastien Bontems, Dr - Marie-Pierre Hayette, Dr- Vincent...

ULiège, GIGA-Research
" Development of specific antigens to allow the detection of circulating antibodies against SARS-CoV-2. Our aim is to contribute to the development of serological tests that could help identifying the people previously infected by SARS-CoV-2 and detect the presence of neutralizing antibodies, which would predict an individual protection against COVID-19. With the help of local renowned companies, we are currently testing various antigens and optimizing their production. "
Contact: Dr. Laurence Delacroix (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.), Neurodevelopmental Biology, GIGA-Neurosciences and GIGA-Stem Cells, 15 avenue Hippocrate, CHU-B36, B-4000 Liège). Dr. Marielle Lebrun (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) and Pr. Catherine Sadzot (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.), laboratory of Immunology and Virology, GIGA-I3, 11 Avenue de l'hôpital, 4000 Liège.

ULiège
" The first objectives of our approach was to strongly increase the testing capacity for virus by using protocols that are as effective as possible and above all not very dependent on the external sources of consumables and reagents whose supply is threatened. The ULiege testing platform can analyse more than 3000 samples per day and is member on the National testing platform. "
Contact: Prof Fabrice BUREAU Vice-Recteur à la Recherche, Université de Liège Place du 20-Août, 7 B-4000, Liège Belgique Tél: +32 4 366 32 14 Prof Laurent GILLET Université de Liège Quartier Vallée, 2 Avenue de Cureghem, 10 B-4000, Liège Belgique Tél: +32 4 366 42 86

ULiège - FNRS - Royal Academy of Medicine of Belgium
" Massive infiltration of activated macrophages is associated with the development of a cytokine storm that leads to severe acute respiratory syndrome induced by SARS-CoV-2. Based on our results demonstrating the key role exerted by epigenetic regulation in the activity of macrophages, we propose to study the methyltransferase EZH2 in the pathogenesis induced by SARS-CoV-2. We have also shown that the PD-1 immune checkpoint is responsible for the macrophage anergy induced by the absence of EZH2. The goal of the project is to temper the excessive inflammatory responses associated with macrophages by interfering on the EZH2-PD-1 axis. "
Funding: Decision pending (FNRS Crédit Urgent de Recherche 40002642)
Publication References: - Inhibition of EZH2 methyltransferase decreases immunoediting of mesothelioma cells by autologous macrophages through a PD-1-dependent mechanism. Malik Hamaidia, Hélène Gazon, Clotilde Hoyos, Gabriela...

Read more: Luc Willems, FNRS Research Director

ULB - Royal Academy of Medicine of Belgium
" The project aims at understanding why men are more affected than women. Compelling evidences indicate sex-bias in SARS-CoV2 with male representing the majority of severe cases requiring intensive care. Excessive inflammatory symptoms attributed mainly to cytokine storm is the hall-mark of disease progress. We ask whether differences in genetic fitness between male and female patients could contribute to sex-bias and we focus, in particular, on potential role of microRNAs in fine tuning the type and magnitude of the inflammatory response "
Funding: Current application to FNRS IRIS research
Publication References: - Chamekh M, M Deny, M Romano, et al. Differential Susceptibility to Infectious Respiratory Diseases between Males and Females Linked to Sex-Specific Innate Immune Inflammatory Response. Front Immunol. 2017; 8: 1806. - Casimir, G. J., Lefèvre, N., Corazza, F et al. J. Sex and inflammation in respiratory diseases : a clinical...

Read more: Mostafa Chamekh, Professor (coordinator of the project) - Georges Casimir, Professor - Francis...

FARAH - ULiège 
" As of today, one of the most promising therapeutic solutions against COVID-19 is the use of convalescent plasma. A subset of the antibodies present in this plasma are able to bind the surface proteins of the virus, chiefly the Spike (attachment) protein, and to neutralize the ability of viral particles to infect permissive cells. Upon request of the Red Cross and ULiège CHU hospital, we developed seroneutralization assays to determine the titers in neutralizing antibodies of convalescent plasma. In collaboration with KU Leuven (Rega) and ITM Antwerp, we just completed an interlaboratory ring test. We screen convalescent plasmas on a routine basis for the Croix Rouge and Rode Kruis. Only plasmas with a titer in neutralizing antibodies above the cut-off value will be used therapeutically. The scarcity of the scientific literature on the subject (only a few studies on the therapeutic use of convalescent plasmas are currently available) make it difficult to fix a cut-off...

Read more: Mutien Garigliany, Professor - Daniel Desmecht, Professor

ULB
" I mostly helped setting up a testing facility within the Erasme campus and my laboratory "
Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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....

ULB/ERASME
" Severe COVID-19 patients have a greater risk of long-term health issues and sometimes develop permanent lung damage or fibrosis needing a long treatment to enhance their quality of life. The project aims to better quantify the breathing parameters of a patient to assess his revalidation evolution. A 3D image acquisition based system, provides contacless and non invasive measure. The system can be used as a complementary diagnosis tools as well for a quantitative follow up. "
Funding: So far the project is supported by volunteering inside the ULB/Laboratory of Image Synthesis and Analysis (LISA) and the Erasme Hospital
Contact: Olivier Debeir < This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.> & Olivier Van Hove < 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...