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VIB Blog

On our blog, you can find content curated by the VIB community. Discover our research through the eyes of our scientists.Want to be kept...

Op onze blog vindt u inhoud samengesteld door de VIB-gemeenschap. Ontdek ons onderzoek door de ogen van onze wetenschappers.

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An update on CRISPR-Cas Genome editing in plants

Facts series Reviewed

In 2019, our Facts series on genome editing was published. The revolutionary technology of CRISPR-Cas took biotechnology by storm, and questions from the public started to come in. Thanks to our publication, many of these questions were answered. However, science doesn’t stand still . New techniques and applications emerge every year, with new economical and societal impacts. Politicians around the world are adapting and updating their legislations in function of these scientific evolutions. In summer 2023, the European commission will propose a new regulatory framework on genome editing. At VIB we see this as the perfect opportunity to review our Facts series from 2019 and update you on how genome editing has evolved over the past 4 years, and what a changing legislation might mean for you.

A journey of innovation in sustainable agriculture

Harnessing the power of soybeans

Soybeans are not only a vital source of plant-derived protein for food and feed but they also offer numerous benefits beyond their nutritional value. Soy cultivation contributes to soil improvement and reduces nitrogen pollution via nitrogen fixation by associated bacteria, which makes it a sustainable crop, especially in the face of a changing climate and shifting dietary patterns. However, growing soybeans in Belgium is challenging due to the lack of adaptation to local soil and environmental conditions. Perhaps, though, bacteria can come to the rescue…

Ludo Van Den Bosch (left), Philip Van Damme (center), and Sandrine Da Cruz (right), ALS researchers at the VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain & Disease research

LEUCALS: Meet the Labs working together to fight ALS

Ludo Van Den Bosch (left), Philip Van Damme (center), and Sandrine Da Cruz (right), ALS researchers at the VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain &...

“Turning an idea into reality is an immensely rewarding experience”

Dr. Melanie Matheu, founder of Prellis Biologics, receives the 2023 VIB Alumni Award

On to its fourth edition, the VIB Alumni Award recognizes members of the VIB community who have gone on to make an extraordinary impact on society. Dr. Melanie Matheu definitely meets that description: after a PhD and two postdocs at UC Irvine, VIB, and UCSF, she founded Prellis, a startup developing ultrafast technology for high-resolution 3D bioprinting. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the company put its full weight into developing human SARS-CoV-2 antibodies using their EXIS™ platform to create lymph node organoids.

For many organizations, automation is the holy grail of process optimization. At VIB Technologies, the potential of robotics has become more apparent over the years as well. To save time on labor-intensive and repetitive processes such as sample preparation, VIB’s Core Facilities have recently started to rely on Opentrons. The implementation of these multipurpose robots has enabled the Cores to make strides in time efficiency and data reproducibility, with decreased waiting times for end users as a result.

Leveling up throughput and reproducibility at VIB’s Core Facilities with Opentrons

For many organizations, automation is the holy grail of process optimization. At VIB Technologies, the potential of robotics has become more...

Bringing Scientific & Clinical Expertise Together to Tackle ALS

Between Bench and Bedside

ALS (or Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) became a household name in 2014 when the Ice Bucket Challenge took the internet by storm almost a decade ago, making a massive impact in raising awareness of and accelerating the fight against the disease. In this devastating disorder, motor neurons – cells in the central and peripheral nervous system that transmit signals to make muscles work – degenerate, leading to muscle weakness and wasting that gets worse over time. Despite significant increases in research funding and efforts, effective treatments for ALS are still lacking. Most people die between 2-5 years of disease onset.

Insights from VIB's Revolutionizing Next Generation Sequencing conference

The future of next-generation sequencing: Interview with Shawn Levy of Element Biosciences

This blog post is part of the VIB Technologies campaign.

The strengths of the VIB Nanobody & Protein Cores

To the Core of the matter

To get to the heart of biology, we need to zoom in. Beyond tissues, beyond cells, down to the level of proteins. These proteins are the tools, encoded in our genome, that make life work. Advances in life sciences research now allow us to refine these tools for our own purposes. This is what the VIB Nanobody and Protein Cores do. These two Core facilities stand out from the others by offering “production-based” molecular services. Their extensive experience and state-of-the-art technology allow them to produce their respective, often protein-based, products efficiently. Their close partnership allows them to build on each other’s work, which makes them both prominent players in the field of applied and basic protein biology.

An interview with VIB's newest group leader

Emanuela Pasciuto: making an impact in neuroimmunology

Emanuela Pasciuto starts her first lab of Neuroimmunology at the VIB-UAntwerp Center for Molecular Neurology in April 2023. I sat down with her in a cozy meeting room at the VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain & Disease Research and interviewed her about her vision for it.