Team

Permanent Members

Head of the Research Laboratory on Human Reproduction

Isabelle Demeestere, MD, PhD

Responsible for the oncofertility preservation program at Erasme Hospital and for the Research projects in the laboratory.

Contact : isabelle.demeestere@ulb.be

@IDemeestere

Principal Investigator

Pascale Lybaert, DVM, PhD

Responsible for the fundamental and translational projects in male reproductive biology

Contact : pascale.lybaert @ulb.be

David Gall, PhD

Associate professor in biophysics. Principal Investigator on projects related to the role of ion channels on spermatogenesis and sperm capacitation (in collaboration with Prof. Pascale Lybaert)

Technicians

Julie Dechene, BA

Research Activities : Labmanager, Responsible of clinical trials.

Contact: julie.dechene@ulb.be

Géraldine Van den Steen, BA

Research Activities : Management of the Biobank and Responsible of experimental animals welfare.
Research Projects : Safety of cryopreserved ovarian tissue grafting in patients with high risk of tumoral dissemination.

Contact: geraldine.van.den.steen@ulb.be

Fabienne Leleux, BA

Research Activities : Reference technician for experimental techniques in projects on spermatogenesis

Contact: fabienne.leleux@ulb.be

Grégory Vegh, BA

Research Activities : Histology, Fluorescence spectroscopy

Contact : gregory.vegh@ulb.be

PhD Students

Betrand de Prelle de la Nieppe , MS, TP assistant

Research Projects : Based on a mathematical model of capacitation that we developed in the lab, I am investigating how it is possible to control the capacitation process of spermatozoa.

An Nguyen, MS

Research Projects : Gold Nanoparticles, a new delivery vesicles of MicroRNAs as potential fertility preservation strategy

David Pening, MD

Research Projects : Evaluation of sperm capacitation as a parameter of male fertility diagnosis and impact of the cryopreservation process

Charlotte Klees, DVM

Research Projects : Pharmacologic protection of testis against gonadotoxic effects of treatment

Joana Dias Nunes, MS

Research Projects : "Impact of new therapeutic strategies on the fertility of young BRCA-mutated breast cancer patients"

Students

Soualah Aya (Master en biologie médicale) année académique 2023-2024

Post Doc

Johanne Grosbois, MS, PhD

She completed her PhD thesis in our laboratory on the Regulation of human primordial follicle activation in vitro.

She left us in 2019 for a post doc in the Telfer's team in the University of Edinburgh.

And now, she's back in our laboratory to work on the project : "Landscape of the chemotherapy-induced microenvironmental alterations in the human ovary"

Past Members

Margherita Condorelli, MD, PhD (2019-2023)

She's a gynecologist and she studied the impact of assisted reproduction technologies and new therapeutic regimens on fertility and oncological outcomes in young breast cancer patients during her phD thesis.
Currently, she works in the Fertility Clinic in CUB-Erasme Hospital.

Casper Janssens, MS (2021-2023)

He worked on the role of Hippo/YAP pathway in in vitro ovarian follicular activation

Melody Devos, MS, PhD (2018-2022)

She performed her PhD thesis on The PI3K/Akt signaling pathway in ovarian follicular activation
She left us for a post doc in the Columbia University in New York.

Nathalie Donfack Jiatsa, PhD, post-doc (2018-2021)

Nathalie's research had been on follicle activation during the cryopreservation of bovine ovarian tissue.

Paula Diaz Vidal, BA (2019-2021)

Research Activities : Technical support, Responsible of COVART Study

Elissavet Ntemou, PhD, post-doc (2019-2021)

Elissavet had worked on gonadotoxicity of new chemotherapeutic treatments for breast cancer.

Ovarian toxicity of carboplatin and paclitaxel in mouse carriers of mutation in BRIP1 tumor suppressor gene

Chrysanthi Alexandri, MS, PhD (2015-2019), post-doc (2019-2021)

Chrysa performed her PhD thesis on the role of MicroRNAs as potential fertility preservation strategy to reduce chemotherapy induced ovarian damage in cancer patients

Matteo Lambertini, MD, PhD (2015 - 2018)

PhD thesis : Unmet fertility and pregnancy-related issues in young breast cancer patients

Goldrat Ornit, MD, PhD (2013 - 2018)

Ornit is a gynecologist and studied the Efficiency and the safety of fertility preservation and pregnancy in young breast cancer patients as part of her thesis.
Currently, she is assistant of the head of the Fertility Clinic in CUB-Erasme Hospital.

Florence Horicks, MS, PhD (2012-2017)

Florence did her thesis at the laboratory supported by the FRIA. It was titled :" Investigation of potential action mechanisms of gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues to prevent ovarian damage during chemotherapy".

Laurence Bockstaele, MS, PhD ( 2008-2014)

Laurence performed her post doc project on the safety of ovarian tissue autotransplantation and the detection of residual disease in breast cancer patients.

Past Students

Elze Prokurotaite (Master en médecine 2021-2022)
Joana Dias Nunes (Master BIME 2020-2021)
Marnie Constant (Master en médecine 2020-2021)
Adrian Mattens (Master en médecine 2019-2020)
Benedetta Bonardi (International medicine doctor program (Universita Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milano) 2018-2019)
Amélie Daniel (Master in biological reproduction (Université François-Rabelais, Tours) 2018 -2019
Nathalie De Landtsheer (Master en médecine 2018-2019)
Agathe Rabattu (Master en médecine 2018-2019)
Maelle Sens (Master en médecine 2017-2018)
Manon De Cooman (Master en médecine 2017-2018)
Melody Devos (Master BIME 2016-2017)