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Assessment and follow-up of aortic valve regurgitation in horses, including the importance of hemodynamic effects
No full textPublic defense: 2025-06-06D
Toward an authoritarian and populist monarchy in Belgium : Leopold III and Hendrik de Man during the 1930s crisis
No full textIn historiography, the relationship between the Belgian socialist Hendrik de Man and King Leopold III has been addressed mainly in the context of what became the so-called 'Royal Question' after the war, that is, the question of whether Leopold's return to the throne was possible and desirable given his collaborationist attitude during the German occupation. The years before the Second World War have received much less attention, even though this was a period during which both men played no less remarkable a role, De Man as the spiritual father of the Labour Plan and as the protagonist of an authoritarian-led corporate state, and Leopold III as the king who, disillusioned with parliamentary democracy and its political elite, sought more and more support from the people. This paper pays attention to these themes that have faded into the background and to the sympathy that De Man and Leopold shared for a managed economy and an authoritarian populist monarchy. It does so first by outlining the divergent theoretical and ideological backgrounds of their thinking, then by examining their common ground, and finally by outlining the political scope of their alliance.In historiography, the relationship between the Belgian socialist Hendrik de Man and King Leopold III has been addressed mainly in the context of what became the so-called 'Royal Question' after the war, that is, the question of whether Leopold's return to the throne was possible and desirable given his collaborationist attitude during the German occupation. The years before the Second World War have received much less attention, even though this was a period during which both men played no less remarkable a role, De Man as the spiritual father of the Labour Plan and as the protagonist of an authoritarian-led corporate state, and Leopold III as the king who, disillusioned with parliamentary democracy and its political elite, sought more and more support from the people. This paper pays attention to these themes that have faded into the background and to the sympathy that De Man and Leopold shared for a managed economy and an authoritarian populist monarchy. It does so first by outlining the divergent theoretical and ideological backgrounds of their thinking, then by examining their common ground, and finally by outlining the political scope of their alliance.A
Engineering microbial strains for the production of building blocks from industrial gas streams
No full textWhile polymers have become an indispensable part of our daily lives, the vast majority of current commercial polymers are still derived from fossil-based resources and thus contribute to climate change and global warming. Biopolymers, which are biodegradable and derived from renewable and sustainable resources, could offer a solution. However, to be able to cover the broad range of applications of fossil-derived plastics, new types of biopolymers have to be investigated. Even more, the associated production cost should be kept at a minimum to be able to compete with traditional products. With respect to this, the use of industrial gas streams rich in CO2 offers a promising route forward. This project aims to engineer a microbial strain to produce 2-pyrone-4,6-dicarboxylic acid (PDC) from CO2 as a new and vastly promising building block for the production of biodegradable biopolymers, paving the way towards the sustainable and cost-efficient production of bio-based building blocks for novel polymers with a wide variety of applications.While polymers have become an indispensable part of our daily lives, the vast majority of current commercial polymers are still derived from fossil-based resources and thus contribute to climate change and global warming. Biopolymers, which are biodegradable and derived from renewable and sustainable resources, could offer a solution. However, to be able to cover the broad range of applications of fossil-derived plastics, new types of biopolymers have to be investigated. Even more, the associated production cost should be kept at a minimum to be able to compete with traditional products. With respect to this, the use of industrial gas streams rich in CO2 offers a promising route forward. This project aims to engineer a microbial strain to produce 2-pyrone-4,6-dicarboxylic acid (PDC) from CO2 as a new and vastly promising building block for the production of biodegradable biopolymers, paving the way towards the sustainable and cost-efficient production of bio-based building blocks for novel polymers with a wide variety of applications.C
The European Union and the protection of cultural heritage in third countries : legal and policy aspects /
No full textDissertation presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of doctor in laws (PhD)/doctor of criminological sciences (PhD
Supporting reparations after armed conflict : how discursive ‘memory battles’ affect political solidarity with Guatemalan Indigenous survivors
No full textLiterature on survivor mobilization in transitional justice contexts has largely overlooked the relevance and dynamics of solidarity-based support by non-victimized groups. This article studies the relation between contentious processes of discursive 'memory-making' and public support for reparations in post-conflict Guatemala. Using a nationwide survey-embedded experiment with 300 respondents, we measure how contrasting representations of the temporality of harm and prospects for peace - drawn from elite versus survivor narratives - influence political solidarity with Indigenous survivors and support for their reparation demands. Findings show that while perceptions of survivors' continued suffering and reparations' peace-building potential are key predictors of solidarity and support, the contrasting narrative primes did not significantly influence these perceptions or resulting attitudes. The survey's open-ended responses suggest that, in engaging with prevalent public discourses, respondents have developed relatively stable yet highly diverse interpretations of the necessity and ability of reparations to address social, psychological, and economic harms, and to promote beneficial outcomes for society at large. Mapping these responses onto the quantitative scores indicates that solidary support is more likely to emerge when non-victimized groups situate conflict-related harms within an ongoing history of structural violence and position reparations as building blocks for recognition, development and social integration - signalling the importance of discursive and expressive dynamics in public engagement with reparation processes.Literature on survivor mobilization in transitional justice contexts has largely overlooked the relevance and dynamics of solidarity-based support by non-victimized groups. This article studies the relation between contentious processes of discursive 'memory-making' and public support for reparations in post-conflict Guatemala. Using a nationwide survey-embedded experiment with 300 respondents, we measure how contrasting representations of the temporality of harm and prospects for peace - drawn from elite versus survivor narratives - influence political solidarity with Indigenous survivors and support for their reparation demands. Findings show that while perceptions of survivors' continued suffering and reparations' peace-building potential are key predictors of solidarity and support, the contrasting narrative primes did not significantly influence these perceptions or resulting attitudes. The survey's open-ended responses suggest that, in engaging with prevalent public discourses, respondents have developed relatively stable yet highly diverse interpretations of the necessity and ability of reparations to address social, psychological, and economic harms, and to promote beneficial outcomes for society at large. Mapping these responses onto the quantitative scores indicates that solidary support is more likely to emerge when non-victimized groups situate conflict-related harms within an ongoing history of structural violence and position reparations as building blocks for recognition, development and social integration - signalling the importance of discursive and expressive dynamics in public engagement with reparation processes.A
JWST/MIRI detects the dusty SN1993J about 30 years after explosion
No full textContext. Core-collapse supernovae (CCSNe) have long been considered to contribute significantly to the cosmic dust budget. Newly-formed dust in the SN ejecta cools quickly and is therefore detectable at mid-infrared (mid-IR) wavelengths. However, before the era of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), direct observational evidence for dust condensation was found in only a handful of nearby CCSNe, and dust masses (similar to 10(-2) - 10(-3) M-circle dot, generally limited to 500 K temperatures) have been two to three orders of magnitude smaller than theoretical predictions and dust amounts found by far-IR/submillimeter observations of Galactic SN remnants and in the very nearby SN 1987A. Aims. As recently demonstrated, the combined angular resolution and mid-IR sensitivity of JWST finally allow hidden cool (similar to 100-200 K) dust reservoirs in extragalactic SNe beyond SN 1987A to be revealed. Our team received JWST/MIRI time for studying a larger sample of CCSNe to fill the currently existing gap in their dust formation histories. The first observed target of this program was the well-known Type IIb SN 1993J that appeared in M81. Methods. We generated its spectral energy distribution (SED) from the current JWST/MIRI F770W, F1000W, F1500W, and F2100W fluxes. We fit single- and two-component silicate and carbonaceous dust models to the SED in order to determine the dust parameters. Results. We find that SN 1993J still contains a significant amount (similar to 0.01 M-circle dot) of dust similar to 30 yr after explosion. Comparing our results to those from the analysis of earlier Spitzer Space Telescope data, we observed a similar amount of dust as was detected similar to 15-20 yr ago, but at a lower temperature (noting that the modeling results of the earlier Spitzer SEDs have strong limitations). We also found residual background emission near the SN site (after point-spread-function subtraction on the JWST/MIRI images) that may plausibly be attributed to an IR echo from more distant interstellar dust grains heated by the SN shock-breakout luminosity or ongoing star formation in the local environment.Context. Core-collapse supernovae (CCSNe) have long been considered to contribute significantly to the cosmic dust budget. Newly-formed dust in the SN ejecta cools quickly and is therefore detectable at mid-infrared (mid-IR) wavelengths. However, before the era of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), direct observational evidence for dust condensation was found in only a handful of nearby CCSNe, and dust masses (similar to 10(-2) - 10(-3) M-circle dot, generally limited to 500 K temperatures) have been two to three orders of magnitude smaller than theoretical predictions and dust amounts found by far-IR/submillimeter observations of Galactic SN remnants and in the very nearby SN 1987A. Aims. As recently demonstrated, the combined angular resolution and mid-IR sensitivity of JWST finally allow hidden cool (similar to 100-200 K) dust reservoirs in extragalactic SNe beyond SN 1987A to be revealed. Our team received JWST/MIRI time for studying a larger sample of CCSNe to fill the currently existing gap in their dust formation histories. The first observed target of this program was the well-known Type IIb SN 1993J that appeared in M81. Methods. We generated its spectral energy distribution (SED) from the current JWST/MIRI F770W, F1000W, F1500W, and F2100W fluxes. We fit single- and two-component silicate and carbonaceous dust models to the SED in order to determine the dust parameters. Results. We find that SN 1993J still contains a significant amount (similar to 0.01 M-circle dot) of dust similar to 30 yr after explosion. Comparing our results to those from the analysis of earlier Spitzer Space Telescope data, we observed a similar amount of dust as was detected similar to 15-20 yr ago, but at a lower temperature (noting that the modeling results of the earlier Spitzer SEDs have strong limitations). We also found residual background emission near the SN site (after point-spread-function subtraction on the JWST/MIRI images) that may plausibly be attributed to an IR echo from more distant interstellar dust grains heated by the SN shock-breakout luminosity or ongoing star formation in the local environment.A
Sample preparation in analytical peptidomics : it's all about timing
No full textIdentifying reliable biomarkers for rapid and accurate disease detection, prognosis, and treatment is becoming increasingly important. Peptides have recently emerged as a promising group in this domain. However, detailed information about their short-term analytical stability remains limited, from sample collection to the obtention of stabilized aliquots for UPLC-MS/MS analysis. This study assessed the impact of time-dependent sample preparation from blood and saliva on the stability of 17 structurally diverse quorum sensing peptides, a class of biologically active peptides. A significant time effect was observed, defined as the percentage ratio of slow versus rapid sample preparation under clinically relevant conditions. The average (+ SEM) stability of the investigated peptides was found to be 55 (+19) % in blood and 32 (+22) % in saliva. A more detailed analysis of the kinetic profiles of five selected peptides revealed that metabolization (notably in blood) and adsorption (notably in saliva) were the primary factors influencing the observed time effect. The implications of these findings on detection limits were also discussed. This study highlights the critical importance of precise timings in analytical peptidomics procedures.Identifying reliable biomarkers for rapid and accurate disease detection, prognosis, and treatment is becoming increasingly important. Peptides have recently emerged as a promising group in this domain. However, detailed information about their short-term analytical stability remains limited, from sample collection to the obtention of stabilized aliquots for UPLC-MS/MS analysis. This study assessed the impact of time-dependent sample preparation from blood and saliva on the stability of 17 structurally diverse quorum sensing peptides, a class of biologically active peptides. A significant time effect was observed, defined as the percentage ratio of slow versus rapid sample preparation under clinically relevant conditions. The average (+ SEM) stability of the investigated peptides was found to be 55 (+19) % in blood and 32 (+22) % in saliva. A more detailed analysis of the kinetic profiles of five selected peptides revealed that metabolization (notably in blood) and adsorption (notably in saliva) were the primary factors influencing the observed time effect. The implications of these findings on detection limits were also discussed. This study highlights the critical importance of precise timings in analytical peptidomics procedures.A