Originally launched in April 2020 under the aegis of the Research Luxembourg COVID-19 Taskforce, the CON-VINCE study aims to evaluate the prevalence and dynamics of the spread of COVID-19 within the Luxembourgish population, with a specific focus on asymptomatic and mildly symptomatic individuals. The last round of testing of the CON-VINCE participants is due to start in April 2021, approximately one year after the first set of visits upon inclusion in the study. The final wave will provide a comprehensive insight into the evolution and transmission of the disease over an extended timeframe, particularly from an immunity perspective.

On February 9th, Eleftheria Charalambous and Mohaned Benzarti, doctoral candidates from the LIH Department of Infection and Immunity (DII) and the LIH Department of Oncology (DONC), respectively, were awarded the 2020 Pelican Grant by the Fondation du Pélican de Mie et Pierre Hippert-Faber. The grant will support training and mobility activities in the context of their research projects on the microbiome and on cancer metabolism.

Originally launched in April 2020 with the aim of identifying risk factors and biomarkers associated with COVID-19 severity in the adult population, Predi-COVID has now officially been extended to children. The study, coordinated by the Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH) and carried out under the aegis of the Research Luxembourg COVID-19 Task Force, will particularly benefit from the collaboration with the Centre Hospitalier de Luxembourg (CHL) for the recruitment of younger children.

The National Centre of Excellence in Research on Parkinson’s Disease (NCER-PD) launches a nation-wide research survey on sleep behaviour disorders under the patronage of the Ministry of Health.

On February 9th, Erica Grant, doctoral candidate within the Eco-Immunology and Microbiome group of the LIH Department of Infection and Immunity (DII), was awarded the 2020 Pelican Grant by the Fondation du Pélican de Mie et Pierre Hippert-Faber. The grant will support her training and mobility activities in the context of her research project on the gut microbiome.

Several PhD candidates from the LIH Departments of Infection and Immunity (DII), Population Health (DoPH) and Oncology (DONC) contributed to “LUX:plorations”, an innovative series of catchy cartoons promoted by the Doctoral Education in Science Communication (DESCOM) project of the University of Luxembourg. The aim of the initiative? Explaining science and research to the lay public in a colourful and artistic way!

Based on the results of the large-scale testing programme run in Luxembourg, researchers show that asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 carriers represent an important vector for transmission.

On February 25th, Prof Simone Niclou, Director of the LIH Department of Oncology (DONC) and group leader of the NORLUX Neuro-Oncology Laboratory, was awarded a EUR 850,000 check by the Fondation Cancer and the Luxembourg National Research Fund (FNR) in support of the GLASS-LUX study.

On February 25th, three LIH group leaders from the Department of Oncology (DONC) were awarded a symbolic check by the Fondation Cancer and the Luxembourg National Research Fund (FNR) in support of their cancer research projects.