Uncategorized 4 - EXIMIOUS

Immune-mediated disorders: take-aways from the 2nd EXIMIOUS Symposium

Mapping Exposure-Induced Immune Effects: Connecting the Exposome and the Immunome

Immune-mediated disorders: take-aways from the 2nd EXIMIOUS Symposium

8 February 2022

More than 70 participants joined the second EXIMIOUS Symposium “Immune-mediated diseases: an interplay between environment and genetics” held online last Thursday, 3 February 2022. Did you miss it? Worry not, you can watch the full recording on the EXIMIOUS YouTube channel.

The four guest speakers, Prof. Ellen De Langhe (UZ Leuven, Belgium), Dr. Signe Hjuler Boudigaard Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark), Dr. Michael Pollard (The Scripps Research Institute, USA) and Dr. Tue Bjerg Bennike (Aalborg University, Denmark), each provided a different and unique lense through which to look at immune-mediated disorders, making the topic accessible for the non-expert audience while also sharing new insights for clinicians and epidemiologists.

The interplay between environment and genetics was explored through clinical case studies presented by Prof. De Langhe, the occupational perspective (i.e., how exposures experienced in the working environment might play a role in immuned-mediated disorders) discussed in terms of exposure to respirable crystalline silica by Dr. Boudigaard, the experimental animal models approach to studying autoimmune disorders associated to mercury exposure discussed by Dr. Pollard and the example of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), such as Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulecrative colitis (UC) presented by Dr. Bennike. The common thread was clear, and as also recalled by the speakers, it can be summarised by the famous quote of Judith Stern “Genetics load the gun, but the environment pulls the trigger”.

While there is still much to be understood about this interplay of factors affecting our health, we take these symposia as opportunities to stimulate interest, raise awareness and hopefully also promote exchange of knowledge and further collaborations that can advance research towards a better understanding and, eventually, improved wellbeing.

We’re looking forward to more exposome research highlights and insights during the Spring/Summer 2022 edition of the EXIMIOUS Symposium, so stay tuned. If you’d like to be notified about the next EXIMIOUS Symposium you can also subscribe here and we’ll send you an invitation in due time.

In the meanwhile, the next exposome-related event to look out for is the policy forum Researching the Roots of Obesity and the Impact across the Life-Course, planned for 30 March 2022 by the project LongITools, one of the projects that together with EXIMIOUS and other seven EU-funded projects is part of the Eurpean Human Exposome Network.

Register for the 2nd EXIMIOUS Symposium

Mapping Exposure-Induced Immune Effects: Connecting the Exposome and the Immunome

Register for the 2nd EXIMIOUS Symposium

24 January 2022

The second EXIMIOUS Symposium goes live on 3 February 2022! Register now and join us online at 16:00 – 18:00 (CET) to learn more about “Immune-mediated diseases: an interplay between environment and genetics”.

This second EXIMIOUS Symposium is open to all audiences and will ease into the topic of immune-mediated diseases, providing an introduction to what these are, as well as how the working and living environments surrounding us play a role in their development. Our invited guest speakers will present their latest research on the topic and will be available to answer questions during a dedicated time for Q&A following each of the four presentations.

Programme EXIMIOUS Symposium “Immune-mediated diseases: an interplay between environment and genetics”:

Time	Title	Speaker
16:00 - 16:30	Auto-immune disorders – What does this mean & clinical relevance	Prof. Ellen De Langhe UZ Leuven, Belgium
16:30 - 17:00	Occupational exposure to respirable crystalline silica and risk of autoimmune rheumatic diseases	Dr. Signe Hjuler Boudigaard Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark
17:00 - 17:30	Environmental exposures, genetics and autoimmunity	Dr. K. Michael Pollard The Scripps Research Institute, USA
17:30 - 18:00	Autoimmune diseases and breach of immune tolerance	Dr. Tue Bjerg Bennike Aalborg University, Denmark

Join us online on 3 February 2022 at 16:00 (CET) for what we hope will be an informative and interactive exchange to learn more about how the environment affects our health.

Partner in the spotlight: VHIR

Mapping Exposure-Induced Immune Effects: Connecting the Exposome and the Immunome

Partner in the spotlight: VHIR

January 10, 2022

We’re glad to welcome the New Year by continuing our partner in the spotlight series. Under the spotlight today is the Vall d’Hebrón Research Institute (VHIR), that promotes and develops biomedical research, innovation and teaching at Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, the largest hospital of Barcelona (Spain).

Since its creation in 1994, VHIR works to find solutions to the health problems of society, and contribute to spread them around the world. Under the motto: ‘the research of today will become the medicine of tomorrow’, VHIR develops clinical research, collaborating in a complex sanitary environment, Campus Vall d’Hebrón. Close interaction with Vall d’Hebrón Hospital enables the development of pioneer translational research. The clinical and basic research activity of the Pneumology Group at VHIR is mainly focused on areas of inflammation and repair, respiratory failure and tissue hypoxia, and there is complementarity and interrelatedness of these areas for the study of diseases such as asthma, COPD, pulmonary fibrosis, infections, lung transplant, pulmonary hypertension and sleep-disordered breathing.

Within EXIMIOUS, the VHIR team including María-Jesus Cruz, Xavier Muñoz, David Espejo and David Soler investigate job exposures relative to immune function in an occupational cohort and in an occupational cohort:
1) the park workers cohort, icncluding workers from the Urban Pest Control and Surveillance Service in Spain, who experience a broad range of exposure to avian and fungal antigens. This cohort will be studied with specific emphasis to the degree of sensitization to specific antigens relative to the potential for risk of hypersentivity pneumonitis and autoimmune diseases development.
2) the Hypersentivity Pneumonitis (HP) cohort, which includes patients who suffer from this disease due to avian or fungal antigens. Hypersensitivity Pneumonitis is characterized by bronchoalveolar inflammation which originates from the inhalation of some usually organic substances. A population-based case control study will be established within EXIMIOUS with HP patients recruited from the pulmonary fibrosis clinic at VHIR. The patients will be matched with a healthy control group to compare and investigate whether exposure is different in patients versus controls.

Partner in the spotlight: accelopment Schweiz AG

Mapping Exposure-Induced Immune Effects: Connecting the Exposome and the Immunome

Partner in the spotlight: accelopment Schweiz AG

29 November 2021

From left to right: Michel Eckle, Kevin Keyaert, Denise Diggelmann, Michael Hönger, Emily Rose Ciscato Andreia Cruz, Liam Colman, Sara Rodriguez, Johannes Ripperger, Jeanette Müller, Julia Götz, Jacqueline Strehler, Géraldine Messmer, Belhassen Ghoul, Joanna Plesniak, Moritz Aufdenblatten, Patrick Schneier, Marco Cavallaro, Patrik Jinek

This month we’re pleased to introduce accelopment Schweiz AG, our EXIMIOUS partner in the lead for the project’s communication, dissemination and exploitation work package. Based in Zürich, Switzerland, accelopment has been a sparring partner in the acquisition, management and communication and dissemination support of EU funded projects for research and innovation since 2008. With 75 years of combined experience under the EU Framework Programmes, Eurostars and other funding programmes, accelopment’s team of experts is passionate about supporting researchers in transforming innovative ideas into real solutions for a sustainable future.

As EXIMIOUS carries out critical research to investigate the connections between human exposures to the environment and immune-mediated diseases, the themes of the project touch on people’s everyday lives. It is, thus, especially important that the activities and output of the project are effectively communicated and disseminated to a broad audience, also enabling the opportunity for exchange between these and the project’s partners. The strategies to implement a variety of targeted activities on this front are the hallmark of accelopment’s contribution within EXIMIOUS.
With complementary backgrounds in research, project management, marketing and communication, the accelopment team supports researchers from academia and industry in identifying the right funding scheme and call for their project, in preparing a competitive proposal, leading the communication and dissemination of results of funded projects, and sharing their knowledge through a variety of training activities. While the KU Leuven team coordinates the EXIMIOUS project, Emily Rose Ciscato, Kevin Keyaert and Julia Götz from the accelopment team in Zürich are very pleased to be supporting the EXIMIOUS consortium in both communication and dissemination of results, and are looking forward to bringing to life the many activities planned for the next three years together.

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Watch the EXIMIOUS-EPHOR Joint Symposium at IOHA 2021

Mapping Exposure-Induced Immune Effects: Connecting the Exposome and the Immunome

Watch the EXIMIOUS-EPHOR Joint Symposium at IOHA 2021

16 November 2021

You can now rewatch the symposium titled ‘Exposure assessment in the exposome context – need for precise – broad-scope – external exposure assessment’, which was held at the IOHA 2021 international conference (11-15 September 2021). The event was virtually co-hosted by the Korean Industrial Hygiene Association (KIHA) and the International Occupational Hygiene Association (IOHA) in Daegu, South Korea. Themed Bridging Gaps in Occupational Hygiene Development, Opening New Horizons, the conference held its 12th edition to exchange new knowledge about the various facets in which occupational hygiene has been impacted, including within the context of the global COVID-19 pandemic. A record-breaking 1200 occupational health professionals from 62 countries attended the online conference with over 50 break-out sessions being hosted across the entire event.

IOHA 2021 presented an opportunity for EXIMIOUS to join forces with H2020 project EPHOR to set up a joint symposium on exposure assessment in the exposome context and the development of exposome tools for this as part of the European Human Exposome Network (EHEN). Moderated by Peter Hoet (KU Leuven, EXIMIOUS) and Anjoeka Pronk (TNO, EPHOR), the symposium delved deeper into how a more holistic approach to exposure assessment can be developed for broad exposome characterization. Four speakers, Miranda Loh (IOM), Maaike le Feber (TNO), Murali Jayapala (imec) and Jeroen Vanoirbeek (KU Leuven), shared their insights on various dimensions of exposure assessment in relation to occupational health. Looking at a whole range of exposures, including Volatile Organic Substances (VOS), minerals, particles and metals, our understanding of diseases in an environmental and occupational context can be greatly improved in order to also prevent them.

Speakers:

Miranda Loh (IOM – EPHOR) | The application of a low-cost sensor box for the assessment of working life exposures – experience from the EU EPHOR project
Maaike le Feber (TNO – EPHOR) | Beyond particle detection: development of a sensor that analyses composition of particles
Murali Jayapala (imec – EXIMIOUS) | Exposure assessment using spectral imaging techniques – possibilities in EU EXIMIOUS project and beyond
Jeroen Vanoirbeek (KU Leuven – EXIMIOUS) | Dermal exposure vs inhalation exposure: what is the relative contribution to the internal dose?

Moderators: Anjoeka Pronk (TNO, EPHOR) and Peter Hoet (KU Leuven, EXIMIOUS)

Partner in the spotlight: UCLouvain

Mapping Exposure-Induced Immune Effects: Connecting the Exposome and the Immunome

Partner in the spotlight: UCLouvain

25 October 2021

We are delighted to introduce our partner UCLouvain from Brussels, Belgium. UCLouvain, whose representation in the project is led by toxicologist François Huaux, is the fourth in our EXIMIOUS Partner in the Spotlight series.

Let’s start with some background on what motivates their research. Epidemiological studies have reported a strong correlation between occupational exposure to airborne toxicants (particles and solvents) and autoimmune diseases. This was particularly clear in silica-exposed patients from a Belgian cohort conjointly established by clinicians associated to UCLouvain and KULeuven. Although it is clear that genetic mutations play a critical role in autoimmune manifestations, these clinical studies have been increasingly highlighting the importance of the exposome and its impact on both latency and severity of autoimmune disorders. The mechanism by which the exposome interacts with the immunome and induces autoimmunity is explored in the EXIMIOUS project, with the goal of identifying the key exposome-related immune factors that elicit a loss of tolerance and autoreactivity in autoimmune disorders.

To achieve this ambitious goal, in EXIMIOUS, the UCLouvain team (François Huaux, Chiara Longo and Jean-François Geuens, LTAP/IREC) collects samples from patients suffering from autoimmune disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and systemic sclerosis (SSc) (learn more about the EXIMIOUS disease cohorts). These patients are recruited by rheumatologist collaborators Frédéric Houssiau (SLE), Patrick Durez (RA) and Marie Vanthuyne (SSc) from Cliniques Universitaires Saint Luc (CUSL) and IREC/UCLouvain. A population-based case-control study will be performed with adult patients and family-related healthy controls. The UCLouvain team is also implicated in occupational and environmental exposure monitoring. It intends to measure the blood/urine/tissue metallome (more than 18 metals present in airborne toxicants) of the study participants in collaboration with the group of Vincent Haufroid (biologist/pharmacist, CUSL/LTAP/IREC/UCLouvain) and Perrine Hoet (Occupational physician, LTAP/IREC/UCLouvain) and the technical help of Francine Uwambayinema (LTAP/IREC/UCLouvain). The team’s overall objective remains challenging because it relies on mixing basic and clinical sciences and associating research groups with diverse expertise (clinicians, nurses, pharmacists, biologists and technicians).

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Meet the UCLouvain team (from left to right): François Huaux (Toxicologist and Principal Investigator), Chiara Longo (Pharmacist and PhD student), Jean-François Geuens (Sample Manager), Vincent Haufroid (Biologist and Pharmacist), Perrine Hoet (Occupational physician), Francine Uwambayinema (Technician, ICP-MS Coordinator), Frédéric Houssiau (Professor of Rheumatology, systemic lupus expert), Patrick Durez (Professor of Rheumatology, rheumatoid arthritis expert), Marie Vanthuyne (Rheumatologist clinician, systemic sclerosis expert), Tatiana Sokolova (Ethics document manager)

Looking back at the first EXIMIOUS Symposium

Mapping Exposure-Induced Immune Effects: Connecting the Exposome and the Immunome

Looking back at the first EXIMIOUS Symposium

21 June 2021

We’re happy to share with you that the first EXIMIOUS Symposium “Exposome-immunome interactions: A broad introduction” was successfully held online last Tuesday.

More than 60 participants joined on the afternoon of 15 June 2021 to learn more about key aspects of exposome-immunome interactions at different stages of life, looking into ways of measuring the internal exposome and the effects of occupational settings. Dr. Petter Brodin (Karolinska Institutet, Sweden), kicked-off the webinar presenting the latest research developments from his group, looking at how immune and environmental factors interplay early in life to shape the human immune system, focusing on Bifidobacteria-mediated imprinting. A comprehensive overview of biomarkers (of iflammation) and a plethora of methodological approaches to determine and assess these was presented by Prof. Dr. Torben Sigsgaard (Aarhus University, Denmark), while Dr. Hung-Chang Tsui (KU Leuven, Belgium) closed the series with insights into the interactions between chemical exposures via skin and occupational asthma, sharing experince from animal and clinical studies.

As the EXIMIOUS coordinaor, Dr. Peter Hoet, mentioned when wrapping up this first symposium, we’re looking forward to bringing more exposome research highlights and insights during the next EXIMIOUS Symposium, so stay tuned for the Autumn/Winter edition.

In case you missed it, watch the full recording of this first symposium!

Launch of the EXIMIOUS Symposium series

Mapping Exposure-Induced Immune Effects: Connecting the Exposome and the Immunome

Launch of the EXIMIOUS Symposium series

11 June 2021

In case the news didn’t reach you yet, next Tuesday, 15 June 2021 we’ll be launching our very own EXIMIOUS Symposium series! Register now and join us online at 16:00 – 18:00 (CET) for the first EXIMIOUS Symposium “Exposome-immunome interactions: A broad introduction”.

As part of the EXIMIOUS project we will periodically organise topical symposia (webinars) covering topics related to environmental and occupational exposures and measurements, exposure and immunity, and gene-immune-environment interactions. This first EXIMIOUS Symposium will explore key aspects of the exposome-immunome interactions, providing a broad introduction to the topic and aiming to foster an interactive and constructive exchange. Our invited guest speakers will present their latest research, covering exposome-immunome interactions at different stages of life, starting from early life and moving on to environmental and occupational settings. A dedicated time for Q&A will follow each of the three presentations.

Programme EXIMIOUS Symposium “Exposome-immunome interactions: A broad introduction”:

Time	Title	Speaker
16:00 - 16:40	Early life imprinting by environmental factors on the developing human immune system (research study)	Dr. Petter Brodin Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
16:40 - 17:20	Introduction to the environmental immune response from the human perspective	Prof. Dr. Torben Sigsgaard Aarhus University, Denmark
17:20 - 18:00	The interaction between the chemical exposure via skin and the occupational asthma: experience from animal and clinical studies	Dr. Hung-Chang Tsui KU Leuven, Belgium

Join us online on 15 June at 16:00 (CET) for what we hope will be an informative and interactive exchange to learn more about how the environment affects our health.

Partner in the spotlight: Imec

Mapping Exposure-Induced Immune Effects: Connecting the Exposome and the Immunome

Partner in the spotlight: Imec

7 April 2021

We’re excited to introduce you to our partner Imec, represented within the EXIMIOUS project by Carolina Blanch, Murali Jayapala and Andy Lambrechts.

Headquartered in Leuven, Belgium, Imec is a world-leading research and innovation hub in nanoelectronics and digital technologies and is a leader in combining microchip technology, software, and ICT. Imec’s research bridges the gap between fundamental research at universities and technology development in industry. One of their recent developments is a small, low-cost hyperspectral imaging (HSI) sensor which has already had a huge impact on fields as diverse as food inspection, forensics, and space exploration. This technology will greatly improve our ability to map the exposome in a rapid and cost-efficient way.

Within EXIMIOUS, Imec’s main contribution is to build prototype hyperspectral systems that will measure samples in the lab and in the field. The goal is to use these hyperspectral systems to identify substances on collection substrates, taken in parallel during exposure assessment (skin exposure and airbone exposure) and establish a correlation between them (Task 3.3.2). Imec will also contribute to tool development for field measurements (Task 3.3.3).

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Partner in the spotlight: BeCOH

Mapping Exposure-Induced Immune Effects: Connecting the Exposome and the Immunome

Partner in the spotlight: BeCOH

4 March 2021

Next up in our news posts series “Partner in the spotlight”, meet the Belgian Center for Occupational Hygiene (BeCOH). Represented within the EXIMIOUS project by Pieter Bertier and Steven Verpaele, BeCOH is a non-profit organisation set up to promote the advancement of knowledge concerning occupational hygiene.

BeCOH aims at being a contact point for industry and public organizations to inform them about standards, exposure assessment campaigns and analytical methods, and by providing exposure sampling, analytical and reporting services related to occupational hygiene. BeCOH keeps up with the advancements in its field by participating in international research projects. Another important part of the mission of BeCOH is to actively share its expertise and resources by participation in organizations aimed at improving workplace health in regions of the world where that is most needed, such as WHWB (Workplace Health Without Borders) and OHTA (Occupational Hygiene Training Association). Within EXIMIOUS, BeCOH’s main contributions will be in the assessment of the exposure. They will organize and perform the exposure assessment campaigns in the different cohorts. These campaigns are corroborated by exposure modelling, based on their in-house expertise and industry-wide exposure data collection. In addition, BeCOH will apply its analytical expertise to develop novel analytical techniques for the assessment of newly identified exposure threats and more efficient, direct, on-site exposure assessments.

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