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On 15 March 2023, Prof. Henri-François Renard and Prof. Alison Forrester introduced the new advanced bioimaging tools of the UNamur Morphology & Imaging technology platform available to a broad audience of users.

Since 1996, the European Radiation Research Society (ERRS) has awarded the Bacq and Alexander Prize each year to an outstanding European researcher in recognition of the recipient's achievements in the field of radiation research. This year, the award was presented to Professor Carine Michiels, from the University of Namur.

In the summer of 2022, we set out to discover the qualified researchers at UNamur who were awarded funding by the FNRS in 2022. Today, we meet Alison Forrester, currently a postdoctoral researcher at the Institut Curie (Paris), who will soon be joining UNamur for her new term as an FNRS qualified researcher at the NARILIS Institute. Her research focuses on studying compounds that could modify the efficiency of the protein production process and thus open up new therapeutic approaches.

Jointly founded by the University of Namur and UCLouvain, the spin-off Intercept Bio aims to take a new step forward in the prevention of viral respiratory infections. Stemming from research conducted by the teams of Professor Stéphane Vincent at the UNamur Bio-Organic Chemistry Laboratory and Professor David Alsteens at the Louvain Institute of Biomolecular Science and Technology at UCLouvain, and a researcher at the WEL Research Institute, the start-up is developing a nasal spray designed to act right at the entry point for respiratory viruses: the nasal passages.

At the University of Namur, a thesis led by Fabian Delhalle, with support from SPW Research as part of the Win4Doc program, is exploring an innovative approach to producing proteins of therapeutic interest. In collaboration with Bio-Sourcing and the Walloon Center for Agricultural Research, this project aims to better understand the mechanisms of lactation in goats in order to optimize biopharmaceutical production that is more accessible, more flexible, and more environmentally friendly.

At UNamur, research is not confined to laboratories. From physics to political science, robotics, biodiversity, law, AI, and health, researchers collaborate daily with numerous stakeholders in society. The goal? To transform ideas into concrete solutions to address current challenges. 

At UNamur, a doctoral thesis led by Juliette Liégeois—with support from SPW Recherche as part of the Win4Doc program—aims to modernize the automated production of radiotracers used, in particular, to diagnose certain cancers and other diseases. Called SMART, the project is being developed in collaboration with Synlock, a company that designs synthesis robots for academic and industrial laboratories.

Catherine Linard, a researcher in the Department of Geography at UNamur, was recognized for her work at the intersection of geography and epidemiology. This Francqui-Collen fellowship will allow her, starting in September and for the next three years, to be relieved of most of her teaching duties so she can devote more time to her research on the influence of environmental changes on the spread of infectious diseases. 

Abstract Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is a heterogeneous malignancy in which human papillomavirus (HPV) status strongly influences therapeutic response. HPV-positive tumors generally show greater sensitivity to treatment, whereas HPV-negative tumors are associated with a poorer prognosis and increased resistance. This thesis investigated how HPV status shapes cellular adaptation to therapeutic stress, with a particular focus on therapy-induced senescence (TIS), autophagy, and MMS19.HPV- HNSCC cells developed a senescence-like phenotype following cisplatin or X-ray irradiation, whereas HPV+ cells showed limited induction. Silencing of the viral oncogenes E6 and E7 in HPV-positive cells enhanced this phenotype, indicating that HPV actively modulates treatment-induced cellular responses. Proteomic analyses further identified autophagy- and lysosome-related pathways as major features distinguishing HPV- from HPV+ cells. Autophagy inhibition predominantly impaired proliferation and clonogenic survival in HPV- cells, supporting an HPV-dependent autophagy–senescence axis involved in treatment adaptation.The second part of this thesis identified MMS19, a component of the cytosolic iron–sulfur cluster assembly machinery, as a potential determinant of HPV- HNSCC resistance. MMS19 was associated with poorer clinical outcomes, while its silencing impaired proliferation and clonogenic survival, particularly in HPV- cells.Together, these findings identify autophagy-dependent remodeling and MMS19-associated genome maintenance as potential vulnerabilities contributing to therapeutic resistance in HPV- HNSCC. Jury Prof. Anne-Catherine HEUSKIN (UNamur), ChairProf. Carine MICHIELS (UNamur), SecretaryProf. Francis RODIER (UMontreal)Prof. Yves POUMAY (UNamur)Prof. Anabelle DECOTTIGNIES (UCLouvain)Prof. Marc THERRIEN (University of Montreal)Prof. Sue YOM (UCSF)

AbstractPopulation aging is accompanied by an increase in the prevalence of neurodegenerative diseases, including tauopathies. This family of diseases, which includes Alzheimer’s disease, is characterized by the mislocalization, hyperphosphorylation, and accumulation of the tau protein in a pathological form, leading to neuronal dysfunction and ultimately neuronal death within the central nervous system. Numerous studies conducted in humans and in various animal models have demonstrated an association between repeated head trauma and the development of a specific tauopathy, chronic traumatic encephalopathy. This progressive neurodegenerative disease is attributed to repeated exposure to impacts to the head that generate acceleration-deceleration forces in the brain.Although the brain and spinal cord share many cellular and tissue characteristics, the consequences of spinal cord trauma on the development of tauopathies remain largely unexplored. To investigate this question, a new mouse model of repeated mild spinal cord trauma was developed in the PS19 mouse, a transgenic model of tauopathy that replicates several characteristics of frontotemporal dementia. Two low-intensity spinal cord contusions (30 kDynes), administered three weeks apart, were performed at two months of age to assess their impact on the long-term progression of the disease.Although these injuries induce neither immediate clinical deficits, nor detectable tissue lesions, nor neuronal loss, they elicit a marked glial response as well as neuronal and axonal damage, as evidenced by increased circulating concentrations of neurofilament light chains. Longitudinal follow-up of the animals revealed an earlier onset of motor and sensory deficits, associated with an accelerated decline in their overall health.In the short term (3.5 months), no worsening of tauopathy was observed. However, at 6.5 months of age, a significant increase in the density of hyperphosphorylated forms of tau, detected by the pTau(Ser202/Thr205) and pTau(Ser422) antibodies, was observed near the epicenter of the lesion in the contusion-injured animals. By 9 months, this exacerbation of the pathology had spread along the rostral-caudal axis, between spinal cord segments C2 and C7, as well as to the thalamus. Although spinal cord injuries did not alter Tau protein aggregation, in vitro analyses showed that the insoluble protein fraction extracted from the spinal cord of contusion-injured animals possessed greater recruitment capacity.Although no direct causal link could be established, histological, biochemical, and transcriptomic analyses suggest the involvement of microglia, type I interferon signaling, and the p38 MAP kinase pathway in stimulating Tau hyperphosphorylation.Taken together, these results highlight a previously largely underestimated role of mild spinal cord injuries as a factor promoting the development and progression of tauopathies. They also reinforce existing literature suggesting that neuroinflammation—and more specifically, microglial activation and type I interferon signaling—contributes to the progression of these diseases. Finally, this study underscores the importance of long-term follow-up for individuals exposed to spinal cord injuries—even mild ones—due to the potential increased risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases involving the Tau protein.JuryProf. Pascal KIENLEN-CAMPARD (UCLouvain)Prof. Karelle LEROY (ULB)Prof. Aurélie LADANG (ULiège)Prof. Charles NICAISE (UNamur)Prof. Patsy RENARD (UNamur), ChairProf. Laurence RIS (UMons)

Stanford University has published a prestigious ranking that highlights the most influential researchers in a wide range of scientific fields. The list, based on bibliographic criteria, aims to provide a standardized means of identifying the world's scientific leaders. It is one criterion among others for assessing the quality of scientific research. Twelve researchers from the University of Namur are among them!

In an ever-changing world, where health, environmental and societal crises are intertwined, it is becoming imperative to rethink health in a global and interconnected approach. It was against this backdrop that the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Namur inaugurated its new "One Health" teaching unit (UE) on Thursday February 06, 2025, in the presence of Minister Yves Coppieters. This initiative, offered to all UNamur undergraduates, aims to train tomorrow's healthcare professionals in a systemic vision, where human, animal and environmental health are considered as one and the same reality.