Vrije Universiteit Brussel

Best practices to master robotic preparation of ready-to-administer systemic anticancer therapy in hospital pharmacies

Automated reconstitution or preparation of systemic anticancer therapy has gained traction in the past decade. Transitioning from traditional manual workflows to fully automated production offers multiple benefits: decreased pharmacy staff workload, reduced risk of repetitive str...

Integrating planetary boundaries into energy system optimisation models for absolute environmental sustainability assessment: a methodological framework

Abstract Transforming energy systems to address climate change must avoid shifting burdens to other planetary boundaries. Yet most energy models still focus primarily on greenhouse gas reduction, often neglecting broader life-cycle impacts on critical Earth-system processes. This...

Terminology in para sport research: is there a “correct” way to speak about disability?

Language used in disability sport reflects societal values and shapes how athletes are perceived. In adapted, Para, and Paralympic contexts, terms are not merely descriptive – they influence identity, inclusion, and respect. Two main approaches are discussed: person-first languag...

Micro-CT radiomics reveals the microcalcification-surrounding tissue interface as the diagnostic epicenter of breast microcalcifications

In clinical breast imaging, microcalcifications (MCs) are routinely interpreted as small radiological signs, typically analyzed in clusters. They guide radiologists in assessing breast lesions and determining the likelihood of malignancy. Yet, increasing biological evidence indic...

Percentiles for crying, regurgitation, stool consistency, and CoMiSSTM in presumed healthy infants

Parents frequently consult health care professionals because of infant regurgitation, crying and stool consistency. The Cow’s Milk-related Symptom Score (CoMiSS TM ) is an awareness tool for cow’s milk allergy. We aimed to characterize the distribution of CoMiSS items in presumed...

Language ideology in Aruban secondary education: A nexus exploration

Aruban language-in-education policy is shaped by a tension between the dominant home language, Papiamento, and Dutch, the primary language of instruction in most schools. This presentation introduces a proposed analysis of three key policies, interviews with teachers (n = 8), foc...

Photoactive Lignin-Derived Nanolayers for Camouflaged Bioaromatic Interfaces

Abstract Bioaromatic polymers derived from lignin have largely been confined to bulk materials or dispersed (nano)particles, limiting their ability to control interfacial phenomena at the nanoscale. Here, we establish lignin as a platform for programmable photoactive bioaromatic...

Variations in lower‑limb body composition asymmetry and leg length discrepancy by sex and training level, and their association with performance in recreational endurance runners: a cross‑sectional study

Body composition plays a critical role in endurance running. While anthropometric characteristics have been incorporated into performance prediction models, potential inter-limb morphological asymmetries in lower-limb body composition remain largely unexplored. Therefore, this st...

Altered excitation-inhibition balance in the somatomotor and default mode network in multiple sclerosis

Excitation-Inhibition (E/I) balance is a system-level principle governing healthy neuronal information processing. Its disruption has been implicated in the pathophysiology of multiple sclerosis (MS), yet in vivo characterization of E/I balance in MS remains under debate. In MS,...

Oligogenic inheritance in epilepsy: A systematic exome‐wide analysis

Abstract Objective Genetic factors contribute to the majority of epilepsies, but the exact genetic cause remains unknown in most patients. Incomplete penetrance and variable expressivity are frequent, and recent studies showed a burden of deleterious variants in epilepsy genes, s...

Transcranial alternating current stimulation as treatment for delirium: A multicenter randomized double-blind sham-controlled pilot study on safety and feasibility

Delirium is an acute neuropsychiatric syndrome with currently no effective treatment. The acute encephalopathy underlying delirium is characterized by diffuse oscillatory slowing on electroencephalography (EEG). Based on its capacity to modulate oscillatory activity, 10 Hz transc...

The recent enhancement of the surface melt over the Antarctic Peninsula dictated by thermodynamics

Intense surface melt and subsequent meltwater ponding are the key triggers for the disintegration of ice shelves in the Antarctic Peninsula (AP). Although a long-term decline in AP surface melt has been evident since the early 1990s, episodes of intense surface melt events have f...

An elementary form of agency at planetary-scale

Abstract The claim that climate homeorhesis—non-equilibrium steady-state dynamics that underlie Earth’s long-term habitability—depends on an integrated biosphere–climate system capable of acting on its own is central to debates surrounding the Gaia hypothesis. This paper presents...

Valorization of Ficus carica Pruning Residues as Selective Botanical Insecticides: Optimized Furanocoumarin Extraction, Efficacy Against Neotropical Stink Bugs, and Mechanistic Insights via Molecular Docking

ABSTRACT The Neotropical stink bugs Euschistus heros and Diceraeus melacanthus are major pests of soybean and maize in South America, yet current chemical control strategies face widespread resistance, highlighting the urgent need for sustainable alternatives. This study investig...

Coprime extensions of indecomposable solutionsto the Yang–Baxter equation

We introduce a method to extend involutive nondegenerate set-theoretic solutions to the Yang-Baxter equation by means of equivariant mappings to graded modules, thus leading to the notion of a twisted extension.Furthermore, we define coprime extensions of solutions and prove that...

Transport disadvantage and suppressed travel among low-income older adults: Lived experiences of social housing tenants in Ghent

Transport disadvantage is widely researched, yet less is known about how mobility constraints translate into suppressed travel: desired but unrealised trips. This paper examines suppressed travel among low-income older adults, focusing on social housing tenants in Ghent, Belgium....

Scala Tympani Versus Scala Vestibuli Cochlear Implantation in Incomplete Partition Type III Malformation

Incomplete partition type III (IP-III) is a congenital inner ear malformation characterized by a deficient separation between the cochlear modiolus and the internal auditory canal (IAC). In patients with IP-III and severe-to-profound sensorineural hearing loss, cochlear implantat...