Our Expertise

The main competences of the Toxicological Centre relate to various aspects of the exposomics, such as human and environmental exposure risk assessment, in vitro studies of contaminant metabolism, identification of (bio)transformation products, and environmental and human monitoring. Much emphasis is given to the development and validation of analytical methods for the determination of a broad range of legacy and emerging organic contaminants (including pesticides, plasticizers and plastic additives, PFAS, flame retardants, POPs, chlorinated paraffins, etc.) in environmental, food, and human samples. Recent research activities include also untargeted and suspected screening of contaminants and their transformation products in human and environmental matrices, and the use of metabolomics where we develop and optimise (bio)analytical comprehensive workflows for polar metabolites and lipidomics to investigate metabolic responses at cellular, tissue, and organismal levels (including zebrafish and black soldier fly larvae). 

The ECOSPHERE research group aims to study both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems that are continuously challenged by natural and anthropogenic stressors. Its research focuses on acquiring fundamental and applied knowledge at different levels of structural and functional organization in order to underpin environmental management decisions.

It combines laboratory experiments, field investigations, and mathematical modeling and goes beyond the impact studies toward solution-based research (mitigation and nature-based solutions). Within this framework, we focus on the interactions between organisms and physicochemical factors on all levels of biological organization. Our main research themes are 1) Integrated water management; 2) Water and soil risk assessments; 3) Macro- and micronutrients for healthy ecosystems; 4) Bioavailability and accumulation of macro- and microcontaminants; 5) Physiological and molecular mechanisms of stress and toxicity of macro- and microcontaminants; and 6) Conservation and restoration.

​The Laboratory of Experimental Medicine and Pediatrics (LEMP) incorporates 7 clinical divisions united around the topic of inflammation and has a strong track record in a broad range of diseases affecting several organs including the lungs, gastrointestinal tract, liver, pancreas, kidneys, endocrine glands, and fat tissue, both in adults and children. Furthermore, as inflammation is one of the hallmarks of cancer, special attention is also given to cancer research.

The ZebrafishLab is active in European consortia working on the understanding mechanisms of toxicology with a focus on endocrine disruption and with particular emphasis on cross-species approaches to bridge the gap between environmental and human health.

The research group Veterinary Physiology and Biochemistry concentrates its academic scientific research within the Gamete Research Center, a platform where the female gamete, the embryo and the early embryonic development have a central position. More specifically, (environmental) factors are studied that might have a (negative) influence on oocyte developmental capacity and embryo growth, including possible consequences during pregnancy, for the newborn and in later life. Most of this research is based on self-developed ''high throughput'' in vitro models, such as bovine, murine and zebrafish in vitro models for the study of follicular development, oocyte prematuration and maturation, fertilization and in vitro embryo culture.

The research group NatuRAPT of the University of Antwerp has a unique expertise in Flanders in the areas of Pharmaceutical Analysis, Medicinal plants and Nutraceuticals and Pharmaceutical Technology. NatuRAPT is active in the field of medicinal plants, natural products, functional food science and formulation. This includes the isolation and identification of biologically active substances from medicinal plants, the development and validation of analytical methods,  the evaluation of the health effects of herbal medicinal products and functional foods, and formulation- and process-optimization for innovative dosage forms. 

The Adrem Data Lab builds on a long standing and internationally strong reputation ranging from the theoretical foundations to the practical application of data sciences. The nexus between theory and applications positions the lab in a unique way. From its embedding in the department of Mathematics and Computer Science, the lab covers many important facets required to manage, query, interpret and analyze data, in all its forms. This results in a broad and recognised excellence in areas ranging from data management, data cleaning, data mining, machine learning, and artificial intelligence.

• Studying how the environment and climate change affects human health and the ecosystem.
  
• Creating a cleaner future with Bio-based pollution removal and Bio-based products.
  
• Understanding tomorrow’s challenges through Monitoring biodiversity and Educational & Policy transition.