UMONS /Materia Nova/ CHU Ambroise Paré/ entreprise Biotech
" Development of a new serological test for the detection of antibodies to SARS-CoV-2. A research project for the PoC serological diagnosis for SARC-CoV2 antibodies that will be done in collaboration with the Walloon company D-tek. This company is well known, since 25 years, for the development and commercialisation of serologic diagnostic tests. The immuno-dot elisa test, in their proprietary BlueDiver instrument, could allow for rapid detection of IgM and IgG antibodies from patients previously infected with the virus."
Contact: Pr. Ruddy Wattiez, Vice-rector of research and innovation of the university of Mons This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

UMONS - Faculty of Engineering - ILIA and ISIA Departments
" This study allows an early Covid-19 diagnosis by using AI and explainable based classification and detection methods applied to CT and X-ray datasets. Many datasets form several hospitals in Belgium are used. The goal of the project is to use AI based methods to identify Covid-19 patients. Explainable AI methods are used to provide efficient interpretation and visualization tools for the classification and detection results obtained. The second goal of this project is to create a benchmark dataset composed of chest CT and X-ray database related to Covid-19 disease. To this aim, a semi-automatic annotation tool is developed in order to allow fast image annotation by radiologists. - Explainable artificial intelligence applied to Covid-19 detection based on CT and X-ray images. - Annotation tool development to build a benchmark database. "
Funding: University of Mons - Faculty of Engineering
Publication References: ...

Read more: Saïd Mahmoudi, Professor - Thierry Dutoit, Full Professor - Sidi Ahmed Mahmoudi, Professor- Xavier...

UCLouvain - Royal Academy of Medicine of Belgium
" TThe project US3R is a general population survey that will measure the magnitude of utilised, postponed and foregone medical care in relation with other health care needs than coronavirus symptoms during the confinement period in Belgium. The study aims to describe the magnitude of unsatisfied health care needs for various types of care. It will also identify the reasons for these postponed and foregone care according to gender, health status, geographical location and socioeconomic status. "
Funding: Budget Jeune Académique UCLouvain (Sandy Tubeuf)
Contact: Sandy Tubeuf, PhD Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Comment: Voir: https://uclouvain.be/fr/decouvrir/presse/actualites/coronavirus-avez-vous-renonce-a-des-soins-medicaux.html Lien vers l'enquête : https://uclouvainph.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8D3WX8lH34Lf6LP

UMONS 
" The outbreak of COVID-19 and the lockdown are undoubtably stressful (CDC, 2020; Liu et al., 2020). However, little is known about the influence of the lockdown on couple and family relationships. The goal of the present study is to investigate the longitudinal impact of the lockdown on couple and family relationships (i.e., distress, conflicts, problem-solving and aggression). Participants (N = 500) are completing 4 waves of data accross the different government announcements. An actor-partner interdependence model will be used to assess the dyadic developmental trajectory of partners. "
Funding: N/A
Contact: Sarah Galdiolo This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

UMONS 
" The outbreak of COVID-19 is undoubtably stressful (CDC, 2020; Liu et al., 2020). However, little is known about what types of stress individuals perceive across contexts and cultures (for notable exceptions see Kim, Sherman, & Taylor, 2008; Falconier, Randall, & Bodenmann, 2016). The goal of the present study is to investigate the perceptions of individual, relational, and systemic stress associated with COVID-19 for individuals in a romantic relationship living across the world. Specifically, this project will examine cross-cultural differences between various countries in Africa (Ghana), Asia (Indonesia, Malaysia, and South Korea), South Asia (India and Pakistan), Eastern Europe (Hungary, Romania, and Russia), Northern Europe (Belgium, Ireland and the United Kingdom), Southern Europe (Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Turkey), Western Europe (Austria, Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland), Middle East (Israel), North America (Canada and the United States), and South...

Read more: Sarah Galdiolo, Professor

UMONS 
" In view of the sanitary context, the UMONS Polytechnic Faculty has decided to replace its annual Créathon with a modified virtual version on the theme of containment. The professors at the origin of the initiative thus decided, in consultation with the academic authorities, to set up an activity whose objective was to enable students to meet (virtually) and to think about how, as engineers and citizens, they could put their skills at the service of society in this particular context. The question addressed to them was the following: "By what brilliant and simple means can we help our fellow citizens to better live the confinement and regain a smille? ». The 21 students who were present thus went through, during 4 hours of team work, the different stages of project creation (ideation, structuring of ideas, action plan of the selected idea and pitch) accompanied by their teachers. This session led to the presentation of 3 project ideas. The proposed solutions address well-known...

Read more: Sébastien Bette, Professor - Santo Raneri, Research and Teaching Assistant

CMMI
" The Center of Microscopy and Molecular Imaging (CMMI) is currently involved in establishing an accurate SARS-CoV-2 virus distribution topography in the organs and various cells of patients who died in COVID-19 units by providing immunohistochemistry and electron microscopy services (study director Pr. Isabelle Salmon). We have also developed and are currently offering preclinical multimodal quantitative imaging - of lung inflammation - of bacterial population (pathogen or no pathogen) - and of viral infection by isotopic imaging. All these models enable the understanding of pulmonary pathological features caused by SARS-viruses such as CoVID-19. From molecular to humanized animal models, the CMMI provides customized imaging solutions to research projects on Coronavirus The CMMI is also a proud partner of the ULB diagnostic platform set-up in Gosselies to face the epidemic of SARS-CoV2. "
Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Comment: The CMMI was co-founded by ULB et UMons and is supported...

Read more: Serge Goldman, Scientific Director

ULiège
" The Centre Spatial de Liege is developing a process for mask recycling by cleaning, decontamination and dehydradation. The process combines ethanol/water mix cleaning with an innovative outgassing step under vacuum. The decontamination is already proven thanks to the collaboration with the Veterinary Faculty . The outgassing step aims to retrieve mask performance (mainly filtration efficiency) close to original. "
Funding: No, internal ULiege project
Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ULB - FNRS
" Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, an unprecedented number of genomic sequences of the causative virus (SARS-CoV-2) have been publicly released. The resulting volume of available genetic data presents a unique opportunity to gain real-time insights into the pandemic, but also a daunting computational hurdle if analysed with gold-standard phylogeographic methods. We here describe and apply an analytical pipeline that is a compromise between fast and rigorous analytical steps. As a proof of concept, we focus on Belgium, one of the countries with the highest spatial density of sequenced SARS-CoV-2 genomes. At the global scale, our analyses confirm the importance of external introduction events in establishing transmission chains in the country. At the country scale, our spatially-explicit phylogeographic analyses highlight an impact of the national lockdown of mid-March on both the long-distance dispersal events and the dispersal velocity of viral lineages. Our...

Read more: Simon Dellicour, FNRS Postdoctoral Researcher

ULB, Erasme Hospital
" The outbreak linked to COVID-19 pandemic resulted in lock-down measures in almost all European countries. This research aims to assess these measures' implications on Mental Health in emerging adults. The online survey evaluate two psychometric variables (Resilience and Loneliness) and Mental Health status (mental health professional help-seeking, use of psychotropic drugs, or possible diagnosis) before and during lock-down measures. At least 600 healthy participants aged form 18 to 25 years old will be attended to fill the survey during the COVID-19 Pandemic lock-down measures. "
Funding: with the support of Julie Renson Fund, the Queen Fabiola Fund and the King Baudouin Foundation.
Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ULB
" FRAMEWORK: This is a collaborative project between the researchers of the UR2NF of the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) and the Institute of Psychology of the Eötvös Loránd University of Budapest (ELTE). AIMS: To examine the bidirectional relationship between subjectively assessed sleep quality and daytime functioning with a special emphasis on the interplay between altered patterns of sleep timing, duration, and quality and daytime behavior, cognition, and affect during a 2- week long confinement period amidst the Covid-19 pandemic in Europe. PROCEDURE: Phase 1: Cross-sectional, on-line questionnaire assessing trait-like measures of Cognitive Disorganization, PTSD-like symptoms, and depression. Phase 2: Selected participants will receive questionnaires twice a day (morning, late afternoon) for 2 weeks. SPECIFIC HYPOTHESES: Subjective sleep disruption (assessed in the morning) will be associated with increased rumination, negative affect, psychotic-like experiences, and...

Read more: Simor Péter, PhD

UCLouvain, IRSS 
" How the Covid-19 Pandemic changes the dynamics of meetings and organizations in the Health and Education Sectors? The containment measures deployed following the Covid-19 pandemic produced a partial, if not complete, shift to telework. In many sectors, virtual meetings are now at the heart of work organization and coordination. How do people feel about their virtual meetings? And what do virtual meetings say about our organizations ? To find an answer to these questions, we have distributed a survey within six Belgian universities (University Ghent, University Hasselt, VUB, UCLouvain, ULiège and ULB) and health care services and administrations. "
Funding: none
Publication References: https://www.lecho.be/opinions/carte-blanche/que-penser-des-reunions-virtuelles-qui-se-generalisent/10223471 https://uclouvain.be/fr/decouvrir/coronavirus-que-nous-apprend-la-pratique-des-reunions-virtuelles.html
Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Comment: "Virtual Meetings in the...

Read more: Sophie Thunus, Professor

UCLouvain - Royal Academy of Medicine of Belgium

Determination of Germ-Line Variations and Pathological Gene Expression that May Contribute to Immunopathology in COVID-19." The SARS-CoV-2 infection (1, 2), can be followed by a severe evolution with severe respiratory distress. We hypothesize that germline variants in genes involved in innate immunity, especially type I interferon induction and actions, predispose to delayed pathological response/cytokine storm. Our aims are to identify: i) such germ-line variants and ii) peripheral leukocyte gene expression that can predict unfavorable SARS-CoV2 infections. A group of SARS-CoV2 patients with unfavorable evolution, young and without co-morbidities (25) will be compared with an aged matched group of 25 SARS-CoV2 individuals with absence or a minimum of symptoms. Germ line DNA obtained from peripheral blood (PB) will be whole exome sequenced (WES) and analyzed with bioinformatics tools that are used for rare disease germline...

Read more: Stefan Constantinescu, Professor

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...

UNamur
" The goal is to solve one of the shortage in the COVID19 diagnostic since the lack of this specific sampling equipment also seriously impedes the diagnostic capacity. 3D printing technologies and coatings deposited by low pressure plasma are applied to develop new generation of swabs and collection tubes. The general purpose for the swabs is to optimize the design in order to maximize the collection and minimize the pain. This involves design of swab tip cavity by fluid mecanic and 3D CAD/CAM, roughness adpatation, plasma surface treatement, surface energy evaluation, wettability evaluation of nasopharyngeal samples, sampling performance by housekeeping gene evaluation (GaPDH ), ..... The general comfort of usage of various designs is also evaluated on humans. The general purpose for the collection tube is to accomodate the new swabs, but also to minimize the number of operation post-sampling. Also, opening the tube and transfer of the content to eppendorf in one single...

Read more: Stéphane Lucas, Full Professor - Richard Coos, Engineer