Publications by authors named "Piet Cools"

Article Synopsis
  • The study focuses on improving the quantification of phages for personalized therapy and industrial use, highlighting that the traditional culture-based method is accurate but time-consuming.
  • A DNase treatment before using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) is proposed to enhance the accuracy of phage quantification, though qPCR still tends to overestimate compared to the gold standard method.
  • Findings indicate that the differences in phage quantification methods vary based on the age of the phage stocks, and electron microscopy confirmed the presence of free DNA influencing the results.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Dried blood spots (DBS) are broadly used for different serological analyses, including severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibody assessment. In order to biobank DBS samples, an understanding of the preservation of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies is needed. Therefore, we assessed the stability of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies on DBS during short- and long-term storage under different storage temperatures.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

(1) Background: early in the COVID-19 pandemic, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) testing was limited. Assessing seroprevalence helps understand prevalence and reinfection risk. However, such data are lacking for the first epidemic wave in Belgian nursing homes.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Despite the many guidelines for reprocessing of medical instruments, challenges persist such as microbial resistance to biocides, corrosive effects on materials, and time-consuming reprocessing procedures. Ultraviolet (UV) C light-emitting diode (LED) chambers might provide a solution but the integration in healthcare is still in its infancy. Here, we evaluated the efficacy of a novel ZAPARAY UVC LED chamber as a time and energy-efficient alternative for reprocessing of medical instruments for which current disinfection protocols exhibit limitations.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Trichomoniasis is the most prevalent curable, non-viral sexually transmitted infection (STI), with an estimated 156 million new infections in 2020. It can potentially result in adverse birth outcomes as well as infertility in men, whilst it also increases the risk of acquiring HIV and contracting other vaginal infections. It is mostly prevalent among women in low-income countries and especially in Africa and the Americas.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

When COVID-19 vaccines were implemented, nursing home residents (NHRs) and staff (NHS) in Belgium were prioritized for vaccination. To characterize the vaccine response over time in this population and to identify poorly responding groups, we assessed antibody concentrations two (T1), four (T2) and six months (T3) after primary course BNT162b2 vaccination in six groups of infection-naive/infection-primed NHRs/NHS, with/without comorbidity (NHRs only). Participant groups (N = 125 per group) were defined within a national serosurveillance study in nursing homes, based on questionnaire data.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) is transforming clinical bacteriology but traditional bacterial typing methods have limitations, prompting the search for more accurate alternatives.
  • A study optimized a nanopore sequencing protocol to evaluate two alternative typing methods alongside antibiotic resistance profiling using clinical bacterial isolates.
  • Results showed that the new methods (ANI and DDH) correlated well with standard multi-locus sequence typing (MLST) and provided better strain resolution, while WGS-based antibiotic resistance predictions were accurate for certain antibiotics, but less reliable for others.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Accurate DNA quantification is key for downstream application including library preparations for whole genome sequencing (WGS) and the quantification of standards for quantitative PCR. Two commonly used technologies for nucleic acid quantification are based on spectrometry, such as NanoDrop, and fluorometry, such as Qubit. The DS-11+ Series spectrophotometer/fluorometer (DeNovix) is a UV spectrophotometry-based instrument and is a relatively new spectrophotometric method but has not yet been compared to established platforms.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Vaginal colonization (CC) can lead to vulvovaginal candidiasis, the second most prevalent vaginal condition worldwide, and has been associated with adverse birth outcomes. However, no data on CC in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are available. We investigated the prevalence, species, clinical correlates, risk factors and pregnancy outcomes in women with CC in the second trimester of pregnancy.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

We describe vaginal microbiota, including species and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), during pregnancy and their associations with recurrent spontaneous preterm birth (sPTB). We performed a prospective cohort study in a tertiary referral centre in the Netherlands, among pregnant women with previous sPTB <34 weeks' gestation. Participants collected three vaginal swabs in the first and second trimester.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In Belgium, nursing home (NH) staff (NHS) and residents were prioritised for the initial COVID-19 vaccination and successive booster doses. The vaccination campaign for the first booster started in September 2021 in Belgian NH. Our first study about vaccine hesitancy towards the COVID-19 vaccine in Belgian NHS already showed a degree of fear for the primary vaccination course (T1).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Unlabelled: Hot springs are potential sources of diverse arrays of microbes and their thermostable hydrolytic enzymes. Water and sediment samples were collected from three hot springs of Ethiopia and enriched on nutrient and thermus agar media to isolate pure cultures of potential microbes. A total of 252 bacterial isolates were screened and evaluated for the production of amylase, protease, cellulase, and lipase.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

People with cystic fibrosis (pwCF) often suffer from chronic lung infections with . While antibiotics are still commonly used to treat infections, there is a high discordance between and antibiotic efficacy, which contributes to suboptimal antibiotic therapy. In the present study, we found that isolates from the same sputum sample had highly diverse antibiotic resistance profiles [based on the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC)], which may explain the reported discrepancy between and antibiotic efficacy.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

During the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, rapid and sensitive detection of SARS-CoV-2 has been of high importance for outbreak control. Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) is the current gold standard, however, the procedures require an equipped laboratory setting and personnel, which have been regularly overburdened during the pandemic. This often resulted in long waiting times for patients.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In a previous study in Belgian nursing homes (NH) during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, we found a SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence of 17% with a large variability (0-45%) between NH. The current exploratory study aimed to identify nursing home-specific risk factors for high SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence. Between October 19th, 2020 and November 13th, 2020, during the second COVID-19 wave in Belgium, capillary blood was collected on dried blood spots from 60 residents and staff in each of the 20 participating NH in Flanders and Brussels.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Vitamin D is an essential nutrient for various physiological functions, including immunity. While it has been suggested that higher vitamin D levels/supplementation are associated with a better immune response to COVID-19 vaccination, conflicting data exist. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the association between vitamin D (25-hydroxyvitamin D) deficiency/supplementation, and SARS-CoV-2 antibody responses post-vaccination in nursing home residents (NHRs) and staff (NHS).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Infection with high-risk human papillomavirus (hrHPV) is well recognized as the main cause of cervical cancer. The recently developed Seegene Allplex HPV28 assay is a novel quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay designed to separately detect and quantify 28 distinct HPV genotypes in a fully automated and user-friendly manner. This study evaluated and compared the performance of this new assay with the performance of the Roche Cobas 4800, the Abbott RealTime high-risk HPV, and the Seegene Anyplex II HPV28 assays.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Soil-transmitted helminth (STH) control programs currently lack evidence-based recommendations for cost-efficient survey designs for monitoring and evaluation. Here, we present a framework to provide evidence-based recommendations, using a case study of therapeutic drug efficacy monitoring based on the examination of helminth eggs in stool.

Methods: We performed an in-depth analysis of the operational costs to process one stool sample for three diagnostic methods (Kato-Katz, Mini-FLOTAC and FECPAKG2).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Female genital schistosomiasis (FGS) can occur in   infection and is caused by egg deposition in the genital tract. Confirming a diagnosis of FGS is challenging due to the lack of a diagnostic reference standard. A 2010 expert-led consensus meeting proposed visual inspection of the cervicovaginal mucosa as an adequate reference standard for FGS diagnosis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Breast cancer is the most common cancer type in women worldwide. Due to hormone receptor positivity in the majority of the breast cancer tumours is endocrine therapy a crucial part in the treatment landscape of breast cancer. Endocrine therapy consists of the use of selective oestrogen-receptor modulators or aromatase inhibitors.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a condition that, if symptomatic, is characterized by discharge and odor, with high recurrence rates even when treated. This study aims to review what literature exists on the association between BV and the emotional, sexual, and social health of women.

Methods: MEDLINE, Embase and Web of Science databases were searched from inception until November 2020.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The identification of gastrointestinal helminth infections of humans and livestock almost exclusively relies on the detection of eggs or larvae in faeces, followed by manual counting and morphological characterisation to differentiate species using microscopy-based techniques. However, molecular approaches based on the detection and quantification of parasite DNA are becoming more prevalent, increasing the sensitivity, specificity and throughput of diagnostic assays. High-throughput sequencing, from single PCR targets through to the analysis of whole genomes, offers significant promise towards providing information-rich data that may add value beyond traditional and conventional molecular approaches; however, thus far, its utility has not been fully explored to detect helminths in faecal samples.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Female genital schistosomiasis (FGS) occurs when eggs are deposited in reproductive tissue. Female genital schistosomiasis in the cervical mucosa is associated with increased vascularity. If FGS is associated with the presence of hemoglobin in cervicovaginal lavage (CVL), the use of urinary reagent strips to detect hemoglobin in CVL could supplement FGS diagnosis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Nursing home residents (NHR) and staff have been disproportionally affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and were therefore prioritised in the COVID-19 vaccination strategy. However, frail older adults, like NHR, are known to have decreased antibody responses upon vaccination targeting other viral antigens.

Objectives: As real-world data on vaccine responsiveness, we assessed the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies among Belgian NHR and staff during the primary COVID-19 vaccination campaign.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • - The SCOPE study tracked SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in Belgian nursing home residents and staff following their COVID-19 vaccination, analyzing data from 1,554 residents and 1,082 staff across 69 nursing homes.
  • - Initial seroprevalence was very high at two months post-vaccination (91% for residents, 99% for staff), but it decreased significantly by six months (68% for residents, 89% for staff).
  • - The decrease in antibody levels was more pronounced among infection-naive and older residents, highlighting the importance of ongoing monitoring for this vulnerable population to ensure effective protection against COVID-19.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF