Members

Camille graduated as a Master in Bioscience Engineering with a major in Cell and Gene Biotechnology and minor in Human Health Engineering at the University of Leuven (Belgium) in 2014. She did her master thesis research in the Lab of Gene Technology (KU Leuven), led by prof. Rob Lavigne, on bacteriophage therapy. Afterwards she started her PhD research at the LebeerLab at the University of Antwerp (Belgium) on glycomolecules of Lactobacillus and their interaction with Candida, together with prof. Peter Delputte from the faculty of pharmaceutical and biomedical sciences as copromotor. Camille completed her PhD in June 2019 and started working as a consultant in the in vitro diagnostics industry. In 2020, she returned to academia as a research manager in the group of prof. Filip Meysman (University of Antwerp, Belgium), leading large-scale citizen science project CurieuzeNeuzen. She rejoined the team of the LebeerLab in April 2022 part-time as a postdoc working on female health and the Isala citizen science project. She is also helping to set out the spin-out trajectories of the lab. 

Ilke has completed her studies of Bioscience Engineering in Cell- and Gene Biotechnology with a minor in Applications for Human Health Engineering at the KU Leuven in 2014. After she graduated, she started her PhD at the University of Antwerp in the LebeerLab, entitled ‘Study of the upper respiratory tract microbiota and the potential of probiotics in the management of chronic rhinosinusitis’. Her PhD was performed in close collaboration with the ear, nose and throat department of the Antwerp University Hospital, led by prof. Olivier Vanderveken (co-promotor of her PhD). In November 2019, she successfully obtained her PhD. Currently, she works as a postdoctoral researcher in the LebeerLab with a main focus on the research line on the potential of probiotics for the upper respiratory tract, for which she received an FWO junior postdoc grant (2021-2025, extended with one additional year due to maternity break). She is also the coordinator of the clinical trials and biobank of the lab (decentral hub).

Thies joined the LebeerLab as a PostDoc in February 2021. With a Bachelor in computer science at the Heriot Watt University in Scotland, and a Master’s and PhD in bioinformatics (from the TU Delft in The Netherlands), he has a computational background. Previously, he has worked on far flung themes from machine learning, the genetics, epigenetics and transcriptomics in mushroom formation, to the (inherited) genomic factors influencing longevity and the metabolomic and transcriptomic effects of metabolism in healthy ageing. In the LebeerLab, he is working on the ERC Lacto-BE project, investigating the role of lactobacilli across human, fermentative and artificial niches. Notably on the vaginal microbiome within the Isala study.

Irina obtained a joined Ph.D. degree in Bioscience Engineering in 2018 at the Catholic University of Leuven (Belgium) and the University of Antwerp (Belgium). Her thesis focused on the oral and intranasal application of genetically modified probiotics in mouse models of allergic asthma to modulate airway function and inflammation, and the gut microbiome. Currently, she works as a postdoctoral researcher at the LebeerLab, interested in the immunomodulatory and anti-pathogenic effects of topically applied probiotic lactobacilli in the respiratory, vaginal and skin niches. She implements in vitro models of skin and vaginal infection (e.g. Staphylococcus aureus, GBS) alongside mouse models of viral respiratory diseases (e.g. RSV). In addition, she is interested in genetic manipulation of probiotic lactobacilli for heterologous (e.g. fluorescent) protein expression, and in microbiome modulation by probiotics in health and disease.

Dieter obtained a Master in Bioscience Engineering with a specialization in Cell and Gene Biotechnology at the University of Leuven (Belgium) in 2010. That year he started a Ph.D. at the Laboratory of Gene Technology (KU Leuven) under the guidance of Prof. Rob Lavigne, and the Laboratory for Drug Delivery and Disposition (KU Leuven) led by Prof. Guy Van den Mooter. In this Ph.D. research he studied the processability of bacteriophages into a dry inhalable powder formulation using spray drying as an option to tackle bacterial lung infections in cystic fibrosis patients. After his promotion in 2015, he joined the LebeerLab as a postdoctoral researcher with a focus on environmental probiotics, genetic improvement of novel probiotic strains, and the pharmaceutical processing of probiotics. In 2018, Dieter received a scholarship for the Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science (日本学術振興会) to perform genetic research at the Institute for Biomedical Sciences of the Shinshu University (信州大学) in Japan, under the guidance of Prof. Takeshi Shimosato. Anno 2019, he returned to the LebeerLab, supporting the genetic, environmental, and pharmaceutical processing research lines.

Stijn obtained a master’s degree in bioinformatics from the KULeuven in 2016. He did a joint PhD between the Lebeer Lab and the van Noort group (KULeuven) and is now continuing his research as a postdoctoral researcher at the Lebeer Lab. Stijn studies the ecology and evolution of Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) by comparing genome sequences from public databases and in-house isolates of the lab. He develops software to gain new types of insights from these datasets, or to process them on a larger scale. He then applies these novel computational tools as well as existing tools to study how different species of LAB are related to each other, how they adapted to different lifestyles (e.g., free-living vs host-adapted) and how they interact with their viruses and other mobile genetic elements. In addition, he implements pipelines and writes software for the analysis of microbial community data generated within the lab; both for amplicon and metagenomic shotgun sequencing data. Finally, he is involved in the Isala project on the female microbiome. 

Check out some of Stijn’s code on his GitHub page.

Max completed his Master of Biomedical Sciences with a specialization in Environmental and Health Sciences at the University of Antwerp in 2019. He performed his master’s thesis at the LebeerLab investigating the capacity of leaf-associated bacteria to biodegrade volatile organic compounds in the air. Due to his interest in environmental health in relation to air pollution, he now continues this research path in a Ph.D. on the biodegradation of air pollutants, mainly focusing on polyaromatic hydrocarbons. This research includes the isolation, molecular and genetic characterization, and appliance of biodegrading bacteria as an innovative solution to mitigate air pollution.

Jelle finished a MSc in Bioscience engineering with specialization in Cell and Gene technology at KU Leuven in 2019. He completed his MSc thesis at the laboratory of gene technology (LoGT) at KU Leuven (under the promotership of Prof. Joleen Masschelein and Prof. Rob Lavigne), where he investigated the biosynthetic potential of plant-associated bacteria. Due to his interest in natural product biosynthesis and human health, he started a Ph.D. in 2020 at the LebeerLab. Certain members of the Lactobacillus Genus Complex are known to produce interesting compounds which have beneficial effects on human health. During his doctorate, Jelle will study these compounds on the genetic and molecular biological level and try to uncover the underlying mechanisms behind these beneficial effects with the aim to characterize novel probiotics.

Tom started his Ph.D. in the LebeerLab in 2019 on the ERC Lacto-Be project, after completing his Master in Bioscience Engineering, with a specialization in Cell and Gene Biotechnology and a minor in Bioinformatics. In this ERC project, he will study the habitat adaptation and the dominance of Lactiplantibacillus and Leuconostoc in vegetable fermentations with a combination of multi-omics and genetic engineering. Next to this ecological study, he will also characterize potential industrial applications derived from specific Lactiplantibacillus and Leuconostoc isolates. 

Babette has completed her Master in Biology with a specialization Biodiversity: Conservation and Restoration at the University of Antwerp (Belgium) in 2017. After doing a thesis at the Laboratory of Environmental & Urban Ecology, led by Prof. Roeland Samson, she started her Ph.D. in April 2018, with Prof. Sarah Lebeer as co-promotor. Her research mainly focuses on the phyllosphere and finding the best plant-phyllosphere bacteria combination as an innovative solution to mitigate outdoor air pollution.

Jari obtained his Master in Bioscience Engineering with specialization in Environmental technology at the University of Ghent in 2021. He conducted his master thesis at the LebeerLab as a joint thesis between the University of Ghent (Prof. G. Smagghe) and the University of Antwerp under the dedicated supervision of Marie Legein. Jari now investigates the microbiome of the phyllosphere as a potential source for biocontrol organisms in plant protection. In collaboration with the UGent, Jari explores the use of insects for the dissemination of these beneficial micro-organisms onto commercial plants and crops for their protection against harmful plant pathogens. Recently, he took up a project in the lab in which he investigates the use of beneficial micro-organisms for air quality applications. Therefore, he delves into their biodegradation potential and survival under harsh environmental conditions. He aims to use these micro-organisms to reduce the need for chemical cleaning of technical HVAC equipment. 

Joke completed her Master in Bioscience Engineering with a major specialization in Cell and Gene Technology and minor specialization in Nutrition and Health at the KU Leuven (Belgium) in 2021. She had already joined the Lebeerlab during her Bachelor and Master dissertation. She started her Ph.D. at the Lebeerlab in 2021. She studies the microbiome of the upper respiratory tract and the potential of lactic acid bacteria as potential probiotics for the URT. Within her Ph.D., she will focus on genetic engineering of beneficial streptococci and their probiotic potential as an alternative treatment for otitis media.