Scientific papers

In accordance with its mission to support high level research in Belgium, the University Foundation provides financial support towards the publication in high level international journals of scientific papers which report on research in Belgian research groups. Financial support may be granted to partially cover the costs due by the author for illustrations, for page charges and for article processing fees, and for linguuistic control. 

Because the possible support is restricted to Belgian research groups, the regulations and application procedures are only available in French  and in Dutch.

Articles subsidized by the University Foundation

What follows is a list of articles to which a subsidy was awarded by the University Foundation. The titles are ordered by year of publication and by title.

Houtan Ghaffari & Paul Devos

Ghaffari, H. and Devos, P. (2024), On the role of audio frontends in bird species recognition, Ecological Informatics, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoinf.2024.102573.

Automatic acoustic monitoring of bird populations and their diversity is in demand for conservation planning. This requirement and recent advances in deep learning have inspired sophisticated species recognizers. However, there are still open challenges in creating reliable monitoring systems of natural habitats. One of many open questions is whether predominantly used audio features like mel-filterbanks are appropriate for such analysis since their design follows human’s perception of the sound, making them susceptible to discarding fine details from other animals’ vocalization.

M. Pigeolet et al.

M. Pigeolet et al. (2024) Outcomes of external versus internal fixation for traumatic lower limb fractures in low- and middle-income countries. Bone and Joint Open 5(11): 1020–1026, DOI: 10.1302/2633-1462.511.BJO-2024-0163.

Aims Lower limb fractures are common in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and represent a significant burden to the existing orthopaedic surgical infrastructure. In high income country (HIC) settings, internal fixation is the standard of care due to its superior outcomes. In LMICs, external fixation is often the surgical treatment of choice due to limited supplies, cost considerations, and its perceived lower complication rate.

Siem Buseyne, Amelie Vrijdags, Sameh Said-Metwaly, Thierry Danquigny, Jean Heutte, Fien Depaepe & Annelies Raes

Buseyne S. et al.(2024) Peering into the team role kaleidoscope: the interplay of personal characteristics and verbal interactions in collaborative problem solving. Frontiers in Psychology, 15:1345892, doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1345892.

The objective of this study is to explore the relationship between personalityand peer-rated team role behavior on the one hand and team role behavior and verbal behavior on the other hand. To achieve this, different data types were collected in fifteen professional teams of four members (N = 60) from various private and public organizations in Flanders, Belgium. Participants’personalities were assessed using a workplace-contextualized personality questionnaire based on the Big Five, including domains and facets.

T. Van Den Berghe et al.

Van Den Berghe T. et al.  (2024)  Predicting cytogenetic risk in multiple  myeloma using conventional whole‑body MRI, spinal dynamic contrast‑enhanced MRI, and spinal diffusion‑weighted imaging  Insights into Imaging 15:106  https://doi.org/10.1186/s13244-024-01672-1

Objectives Cytogenetic abnormalities are predictors of poor prognosis in multiple myeloma (MM). This paper aims to build and validate a multiparametric conventional and functional whole-body MRI-based prediction model for cytogenetic risk classification in newly diagnosed MM.

Babette Demeester, Maïté Verloigne, Sara Willems, Kenji Leta & Emelien Lauwerier

Demeester B., Verloigne M., Willems S., Leta K. & Lauwerier E. (2024) Preventing smoking initiation in adolescents living in vulnerable socioeconomic conditions: Study protocol of the KickAsh!-interventionScandinavian Journal of Public Health DOI: 10.1177/14034948241236232.

Aims: Adolescents living in vulnerable socioeconomic conditions are confronted with tobacco-related health disparities. As school-based interventions appear to be less effective among these youngsters, other approaches are necessary. One promising avenue is youth social work settings that offer sport and recreational activities (SR-settings). SR-settings have been examined as a levering context for health promotion, but evidence regarding smoking prevention is currently lacking.

Sofie Van Nerom, Kobe Buyse, Filip Van Immerseel, Johan Robbens, and Evelyne Delezie

Van Nerom, S. et al (2024) Pulsed electric field (PEF) processing of microalga Chlorella vulgaris and its digestibility in broiler feed. Poultry Science 103:103721 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psj.2024.103721.

Microalgae have potentially beneficial  effects  on  animal  health  and nutritional value when added  to  feed. Crucial  hereby  is that intracellular  bio-active molecules are released in  the intestinal tract. Digestibility of Chlorella vulgaris and its impact on total digestibility of broiler feed is a first step in assessing its characteristics as feed supplement. Different methods could be used to increase the digestibility of the algae.

Lena De Hondt et al.

De Hondt et al. (2024) Quantification of ADHD medication in biological fluids of pregnant and breastfeeding women with liquid chromatography: a comprehensive review. Frontiers in Public Health, 12, 1437328.

Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that has long been considered a concern only in the pediatric population. However, symptoms often sustain into adulthood and may require medication. For women with ADHD, this also means dealing with the disorder during the reproductive period. Medication safety during pregnancy and breastfeeding is a critical concern, and the potential transfer of ADHD medication to infants remains a topic of scientific interest.

Anne E.M. van den Oever et al.

van den Oever, A. et al. (2024) Revisiting the challenges of ozone depletion in life cycle assessment.  Cleaner Environmental Systems. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cesys.2024.100196.

Recent works have highlighted the interconnected impacts of stratospheric ozone depletion, ultraviolet (UV) radiation, and climate change on various sectors, including water quality, agriculture, human health, and biodiversity. Increased UV-B exposure has diverse environmental impacts, including potential benefits like enhanced plant resistance and reduced vitamin D deficiency. However, the quantification of these effects remains incomplete. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) serves to quantify the environmental impacts of product systems.

Arnaud Bruyneel et al.

Bruyneel A. et al. (2024) Social health gradient and risk factors among patients hospitalized for COVID-19 and pre-pandemic respiratory infections. A linked national individual case-control study in Belgium. Frontiers in Public Health Vol. 12, https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1426898.

Introduction: The literature establishes a clear social gradient in health for transmissible respiratory diseases. However, this gradient’s extent remains largely unexplored in the context of COVID-19, and it is uncertain whether the pandemic has exacerbated this gradient. The study aims to compare the socio-economic profiles and comorbidities during the COVID-19 pandemic with a control population affected by viral pneumonia/respiratory disease in 2019.

Michal P. Heller, Alexandre Serantes, Michał Spaliński & Benjamin Withers

Heller, M.P. et al. (2024) The space of transport coefficients allowed by causalityNature Physics. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41567-024-02635-5

As an effective theory, relativistic hydrodynamics is fixed by symmetries up to a set of transport coefficients. A lot of effort has been devoted to explicit calculations of these coefficients. Here we adopt a more general approach, deploying bootstrap techniques to rule out theories that are inconsistent with microscopic causality. What remains is a universal convex geometry in the space of transport coefficients, which we call the hydrohedron. The landscape of all consistent theories necessarily lies inside or on the edges of the hydrohedron.

Kyara Baert, Mathieu Ombecq, Myriam Van Winckel, Silke Henry, Eline Tommelein & Valérie Vanhoorne

Baert, K. et al. (2024) The viscosity-enhancing effect of carob bean gum and sodium carboxymethylcellulose when added to infant formulaFood Science and Nutrition. 2024;00:1–10. 

Despite limited supporting evidence, the practice of thickening breast milk or infant formula with commercially available thickening agents is prevalent. This study explored the viscosity-enhancing impact of carob bean gum (CBG) and sodium carboxymethylcellulose (NaCMC) when added to infant formula at various concentrations and for different thickening durations. The findings indicate that thickening leads to an exponential increase in milk viscosity, from 25% of the recommended dosage onward.

Lena Imeraj & Sylvie Gadeyne

 Imeraj L. &  Gadeyne S. (2024) Trapped in Place? Ethnic and Educational Heterogeneity in Residential Mobility and Integration of Young Adults in Brussels. European Journal of Population  40:5 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10680-023-09690-3.

Spatial assimilation theory asserts that immigrants’ socioeconomic progress leads to residential adaptation and integration. This association has proven robust in USA and European urban areas through much of the twentieth century, but drastic change of ethnic and class compositions yet persistent (neighbourhood) inequality in the urban landscape urge us to reconsider the dynamic interaction between stability and change.

Camille Tooth et al.

Tooth, C. et al. (2024) Upper limb functional testing: does age, gender, and sport influence performance? JSES International.

Background: Musculoskeletal adaptations are common in overhead athletes. As they also are involved in injury prevention, there has been an increase in their evaluation through shoulder screening over the last years. However, for some evaluations, and especially for functional testing, there is a lack of normative values, which limits the interpretation of the values measured. Moreover, the influence of age, gender, and sport on upper limb functional tests remains underexplored.

Jelena Luyts

Luyts, J. (2024)  Who should I interview in a household survey? The role of multiple interviews in research on adaptation to environmental change.  Local Environment: The International Journal of Justice and Sustainability,  1–7. https://doi.org/10.1080/13549839.2024.2402724.

Data collected in 2022 in rural Senegal on household adaptation to environmental change highlights the benefits of interviewing multiple members of a household. Not only does it enrich the data collected, with each member complementing the interview of the others, but it also provides access to different lived experiences. This is critical to ensuring that policy responses are appropriate for all members of a household and that all lived realities are made visible.

Alexandre Perrot, Boris Hespeels, Karine Van Doninck & Anne‑Catherine Heuskin

Perrot, A., Hespeels B., Van Doninck K. & Heuskin A. (2023) Adineta vaga under fire: simulating the impact of radiation Hydrobiologia. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-023-05324-1

Previous studies have demonstrated the remarkable resistance of bdelloid rotifers to ionizing radiation, making them an interesting model system for studying radiation effects on living organisms. In this study, we use simulations, instead of direct experimental exposures, to examine whether all bdelloids are affected equally by radiation exposure and to explore the relationship between biological data and energy deposition patterns induced by low and high linear energy transfer (LET) radiation.

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