In 2023, one in five Belgians was prescribed sleep medication, making Belgium the European leader. “Many people see a sleeping pill as an innocent thing,” says GP and clinical pharmacologist Ellen Van Leeuwen, “but sleeping pills are not sweets.”
In her master’s dissertation, bioengineer Elisa Kooy demonstrated how fish waste could find alternative uses, among others in future generations of rechargeable batteries. Her dissertation landed her the NBN Sustainability Award, which is part of the Flemish Dissertation Award. “The prize is wonderful but the process was even more valuable.”
2024 was a turbulent year, with ongoing military conflicts and geopolitical tensions. And judging by the news reports, 2025 is also shaping up to be a tumultuous year. So what is the status of our security in Europe? Should we be preparing for war?
The technology developed by Professor Thomas De Beer and his team from the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences may play a key role in containing future virus outbreaks. ‘Continuous spin freeze-drying’ may facilitate and accelerate the development, production, storage and transport of, for instance, mRNA vaccines.
They number 15,000, the colony of zebrafish in the Core Zebrafish Facility Ghent at the site of UZ Gent. They are nurtured and cared for under optimum conditions as laboratory animals by the researchers of the Centre for Medical Genetics. “But research into genetic disorders is not all we do here,” professor Paul Coucke emphasises.
TV show Het verhaal van Vlaanderen was certain: the box just unearthed from the City of Ghent's heritage depot contained the remains of the one and only Judith, the progenitor of the Counts of Flanders. But was that really true?
With the aid of AI, Ghent-based company AlfaSent is able to recognise emotions in texts. It’s a prime example of language technology, an area that is rapidly gaining ground. Founder and UGent alumna Ellen De Geyndt: “I’ve always been interested in both language and technology but I wasn’t aware that I could combine the two.”
No traditional opening for the Olympic Games in Paris, but a spectacular fleet of 95 boats on the Seine with 10,500 athletes on board. It was a historic moment and a technical feat. The research group of Evert Lataire, Ghent University professor of Ships and Marine Technology, trained the captains for this unique boat parade.
Holidays! You're already looking forward to all the delicious things you'll eat while travelling, but wait ... Can you just eat anything? "There are some foods that you need to be a bit careful with.” Professor Sarah Gabriel tells us how to avoid taking an extra passenger back home
If the Belgian track cyclists win a medal at the upcoming Olympic Games, it will not only be the result of top performances but also of top research. In the Flemish Cycling Centre Eddy Merckx, a stone's throw from the Watersportbaan, a group of researchers from the IDLab of UGent-imec supports our track cyclists with the help of artificial intelligence (AI).
Creating new pieces of bone, muscle, skin or fat with a 3D printer to heal injuries. Sounds futuristic? The first steps are already being taken today! We spoke with plastic surgeon and professor Phillip Blondeel about his research into tissue engineering.
Marine biologist and Professor Emeritus Patrick Sorgeloos (Faculty of Bioscience Engineering) was instrumental in shaping modern aquaculture in recent decades. If his career has taught him one thing, it is that aquaculture has a crucial role to play in continuing to ensure food security. “By 2050 more than half of our food must come from the sea. And it’s possible.”
