Biomedical Master students Arnaud Thomaes and Elena De Rijbel presented their research today, showcasing scientific maturity, curiosity, and dedication. It’s inspiring to see young scientists communicate their work so clearly and confidently. Well done to both, and mentor Charlotte Matton & supervisor Miriam Bauwens and to everyone contributing to this research community! All this resulted in a happy PI. 

Thanks to heavy snowfall and cold temperatures, our team and collaborators from neighboring labs were able to work on an unorthodox project together. Thanks to a team effort a new lab, but very temporary, lab mascotte was built.

We welcome a new doctor as Edith has defended her PhD thesis titled: 'Multi-level exploration of the photoreceptor-specific nuclear receptor NR2E3 implicated in autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa'. It gets better: Edith will start as a postdoc with one of her copromotors, Frauke Coppieters who runs the TaRGeT group.

A digital copy can be found here. 

Building on the success of the last five Genetics of Ocular Development (GoOD) Meetings, the 2025 meeting was held in the beautiful city of Ghent, organized by lab De Baere. All participants had two stimulating days of science combined with an enjoyable social program. 

More info and pictures can be found on here.

Our lab participated in the EMBO Workshop on Enhancer Mechanics and Enhanceropathies (https://meetings.embo.org/event/25-enhanceropathies), held at the historic Hindsgavl Castle in Middelfart, Denmark. This international workshop focused on the fundamental mechanisms of transcriptional enhancers and chromatin structure, and explored how enhancer dysfunction contributes to human diseases. PhD student Nelson and post-doctoral fellow Eva D’haene presented their research during the poster sessions. Prof. Elfride De Baere delivered a talk titled “Decoding the Role of Ultraconserved and Functionally Conserved Regulatory Elements in Rare Eye Enhanceropathies”, highlighting the lab’s work on understanding the regulatory mechanisms underlying rare genetic eye disorders.

This event provided a valuable platform to exchange ideas with leading experts and strengthen collaborations in the field of enhancer biology. 

In May 2025, our team participated in the European Society of Human Genetics (ESHG) Meeting in Milan. PhD students Eline and Charlotte had the opportunity to present their research, while Prof. Elfride De Baere delivered an inspiring keynote lecture on multi-omics approaches in inherited retinal diseases.