In a world with an ageing global population, we could all use some good news when it comes to age-related health. The latest findings in a study led by Dr Feng Hefeng at the Luxembourg Institute of Health’s (LIH) Immune Systems Biology Group could be just the tonic, having identified surprising age-defying effects on the immune system resulting from a gene deficiency usually causing Parkinson’s disease

On January 13, 2022, the Minister of Higher Education and Research, Claude Meisch and the heads of the University of Luxembourg (UL), the public research centers LIH (Luxembourg Institute of Health), LIST (Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology) and LISER (Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research), as well as the National Research Fund (FNR), have signed the multi-year agreements between the State and the respective institutions.

The Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH) has never been better positioned to become a leader in patient-based research in Luxembourg and Europe. In light of its new strategy, the LIH is pleased to announce the change in name for the Department of Oncology, and for the Department of Population Health to reflect their strategic transversal, translational research programs.

Hannah Wurzer, Postdoctoral Fellow at the Luxembourg Institute of Health, was conferred the Excellent Thesis Award for doctoral graduates who demonstrated excellence, originality and depth of knowledge in their thesis.

The Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH) and Advanced Biological Laboratories (ABL) are joining forces to predict immune protection against COVID-19 and support long-term vaccination strategies. To this end, the two laboratories have signed a license agreement and a collaboration agreement to provide two in vitro diagnostic solutions to measure neutralizing antibody levels.

Prof. Dr. Stefan Fröhling, Managing Director of the National Center for Tumor Diseases Heidelberg and the head of the division of Translational Medical Oncology of the German Cancer Consortium DKFZ, is a central character to the Precision Oncology programme in his Institute, focusing on research that aims to provide as many patients as possible with individually tailored cancer treatments. In occasion of his visit as a guest speaker for the Lecture Series Cancer Research, the LIH took the opportunity to ask Prof. Dr. Fröhling a few questions about his extensive experience in the field of cancer research.

A Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH) study in collaboration with the Cancer Research Centre of Toulouse (Inserm, France), involving Toulouse University Hospital, VIB Center for Cancer Biology, Leuven, the University of Geneva, The Alfred Hospital and the Monash University has identified key mechanisms responsible for the development of drug resistance in patients suffering from acute myeloid leukemia (AML). The results could pave the way for new combination therapies to inhibit relapse in patients following initially successful chemotherapy.

In response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the international unCoVer network plans to exploit available real-world data from numerous partners worldwide to better understand the pathophysiology, progression and treatment, as well as epidemiological pattern of this disease. With its ongoing study Predi-COVID, the Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH) adds to its existing efforts to combat COVID-19 by joining the unCoVer network, contributing to creating an international, harmonised real-world data bank.

YOUNG 50 is a European Commission funded project to screen and prevent cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in people aged 50. The project aims to use an integrated model of assistance to help modify or reduce risk factors among healthy people, promote interventions to improve lifestyle habits, and increase knowledge and perceptions of CVD risks among the general population.