Seas and oceans harbor countless undiscovered treasures. One of these is the seagrass Thalassia, specifically the species Thalassia testudinum. Long recognized for its ecological importance, this marine plant serves as a vital food source for creatures like sea turtles and plays a key role in protecting vulnerable Caribbean coastal ecosystems. Recently, scientists have discovered that Thalassia contains significant anti-carcinogenic compounds, capturing the attention of researchers and marine science biomedical institutes.
Serpil, Sevgi en Fatma Degirmenci. Drie zussen, alle drie afgestudeerd aan de Universiteit Antwerpen. Serpil en Sevgi in de farmaceutische wetenschappen, Fatma in de biomedische wetenschappen. Na hun studies kozen ze er alle drie voor om ook de educatieve master in de gezondheidswetenschappen te volgen.
A new study by Dr. Peter Verstraelen, Prof. Jean-Pierre Timmermans and Prof. Winnok De Vos from the Laboratory of Cell Biology has revealed novel insights into how gut bacteria might influence our immune system and brain health.
Dr. Vanesa Nozal García, from Valladolid in Spain, works as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Antwerp. Under supervision of Professor Pieter Van Der Veken in the Laboratory of Medicinal Chemistry, she researches Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) and focusses on a new methodology: targeted protein degradation.
In a recent study published in the journal Nature Cell Biology, Dr. Elias Adriaenssens, Prof. Vincent Timmerman and colleagues have discovered a new function for a group of proteins called small heat shock proteins (HSPBs) in the human body. These proteins, which are found in the liquid (cytosolic) portion of cells, were found to play a critical role in the maintenance of the powerhouses of cells, the mitochondria.
I’m Lorenzo Cianni and my research focuses on targeting autophagy in cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. I was awarded a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Postdoctoral grant for this specific project. I’ll be working with Prof. Pieter Van Der Veken and Prof. Wim Martinet to tackle tissue-specific induction of autophagy as an innovative therapeutic strategy for cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.
My name is Roxanne Mols. Last June, I graduated as a Master in Biomedical Sciences: Infectious and Tropical Diseases at the University of Antwerp. It was a wonderful journey where I got to broaden my interests and meet lots of new people. I learnt so much and grew tremendously as a person. I was given lots of opportunities, and one initiative that I found particularly helpful was Academics For Development (AFD).
Servaas Hiel and Silke Schuerewegen traveled to Poland to provide help for Ukrainian refugees. Servaas is doing a bridging programme in Biomedical Sciences at UAntwerp. Silke is an undergraduate at the Karel de Grote Hogeschool and is studying Medical Laboratory Techniques. For the past two weeks Servaas and Silke have been in Przemyśl, Poland to assist the local aid organizations.
I’m An-Marie Schyvens and I recently graduated from UAntwerp with a Master of Biomedical Sciences. I had the wonderful opportunity to do an Erasmus exchange in a lab at the Institut Pasteur in Paris. I arrived in Paris in November 2020, right in the middle of a lockdown! At Institut Pasteur, I worked on finding new treatments for deafness.
My name is Kaat Colman and I’m currently completing my third Bachelor year in Biomedical Sciences at UAntwerp. In the 3rd Bachelor of Biomedical Sciences there is the course ‘Bachelor Thesis with Internship’. I had to choose a topic on which I would write my Bachelor thesis and later also perform an internship. I chose to do an internship on the auditory system at the Antwerp University Hospital (UZA).
My name is Michelle Zurek and I study Biomedical Sciences at UAntwerp. Last year, I won the ActUA prize which is awarded by the UAntwerp Service Council. This prize supports personal development through an internship abroad at one of the partner institutions of the Young Universities for the Future of Europe (YUFE) alliance. In my blog article, I’ll share my experiences of my Erasmus exchange with you.
I’m Eva Wachtelaer. Since primary school, I knew that I wanted to learn all about the human body. However, choosing between studying Biomedical Sciences or Medical School after secondary school wasn’t an easy choice for me. I’ll tell you about my journey from studying Biomedical Sciences to starting Medical School.
