Anton De Spiegeleer

Contact Info

Anton De Spiegeleer (MD, PhD)

Drug Quality and Registration (DruQuaR) group
Ottergemsesteenweg 460, 9000 Ghent (Belgium)

Phone: + 32 (0)9 264.80.94

E-mail: Anton.DeSpiegeleer@UGent.be

Research

The role of the gut microbiota in sarcopenia.

Summary:

Sarcopenia is the loss of muscle mass, strength and function with ageing. It represents an important health issue of the 21st century because of its devastating effects on quality and length of life in addition to an increased prevalence of aged people. The mechanisms that might lead to sarcopenia are still poorly understood. However, recent studies indicate a link between sarcopenia and the microbes in the gut, the so-called microbiome.

This project is a collaboration with the geriatrics and rheumatology department of the Ghent University Hospital, and seeks to investigate potential mechanistic links between the microbiome and sarcopenia. The research focus is on quorum sensing peptides (QSP) as bacterial mediators. In vitro C2C12 cell cultures, in vivo worm and mice experiments and peptide bio-analytics (cell/mice/human) will be conducted to uncover new insights in the theranostics of sarcopenia

Keywords: quorum sensing peptides; sarcopenia; translational