Luxembourg Institute of Health

11/09/2025

"By unravelling the 'molecular magic' of insect venom immunotherapy, researchers are one step closer to addressing the global allergy epidemic and advancing personalised medicine."
— Prof. Markus Ollert, Director of the Department of Infection & Immunity

A breakthrough in allergy research, paving the way towards more effective treatments and personalised healthcare solutions 🌿🔬✨

Discover more pioneering research and achievements in our Annual Report 2024:
https://www.lih.lu/en/annual-report-2024/

10/09/2025

New breakthrough in cancer research! 🔬

In their search for effective immune-based treatments, immuno-oncology experts from the Tumour Stroma Interactions (TSI) group at LIH’s Department of Research, led by Dr Jerome Paggetti and Dr Etienne Moussay, mapped the immune system of CLL patients at single-cell resolution using an unprecedented collection of biopsies from lymph nodes, blood, and bone marrow.

Published in Nature Communications with the DKFZ German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), the study identified the protein galectin-9 as a key driver of immune suppression in Chronic Lymphocytic (CLL).

Blocking galectin-9 reactivates exhausted T cells, opening new doors for more effective immunotherapies — in CLL and beyond.

🔗 Read more on our website: https://www.lih.lu/en/article/identification-of-a-promising-immunotherapy-target-for-incurable-leukaemia/

10/09/2025

Explorez le monde fascinant de la recherche biomédicale !🔬✨

Le Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH) vous ouvre ses portes pour deux journées exceptionnelles.

📍 Samedi 20 septembre – 13h à 17h
Site de Dudelange – IBBL

Venez découvrir les coulisses d’une biobanque internationale et comment les échantillons biologiques contribuent à faire progresser la médecine 🔬

📍 Dimanche 21 septembre – 13h à 17h
Site de la Ville de Luxembourg

Plongez au cœur de la recherche clinique :

🔹 Témoignages de patients et projets collaboratifs
🔹 Jeu façon Fort Boyard au Centre d’Investigation Clinique
🔹 Expériences interactives sur l’ADN, le pH et les UV
🔹 Ateliers de prévention du cancer avec des données réelles et outils ludiques

Un programme riche pour petits et grands afin de comprendre, expérimenter et échanger avec nos chercheurs 💙

👉 Entrée libre – Ouvert à tous
Ne manquez pas cette occasion unique de découvrir la science de l’intérieur !

08/09/2025

🌸 The Luxembourg Institute of Health is joining the 7th edition of Race for the Cure! 🌸

The Race for the Cure is the largest run & walk event in Europe, dedicated to supporting breast hashtag patients, raising funds for research, and increasing hashtag .

Every step you take will make a difference, and let’s be real—what could be better than walking or running for such an important cause? 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️

So go on and register today 👇
https://www.raceforthecure.eu/en/Races/Race/Id/20

📅 Sunday, 12 October 2025
📍 Echternach Lake

Oragnised by Think Pink Lux 🩷

05/09/2025

In our new video series, we’re shining a light on the people behind the Luxembourg Institute of Health 👩‍⚕️✨

This time, meet Sandrine Lavalle, who leads our patient and public involvement initiatives. Her work is all about building meaningful connections between researchers and patients — making sure that science is not only about listening, but about truly integrating patients’ perspectives into every step of our projects.

By working together, researchers and patients can co-create solutions that make a real impact and improve lives 💙

🎥 Watch the full video to discover what working at LIH means to Sandrine.

03/09/2025

Advancing from Precision-Medicine towards Prevention in Parkinson’s disease 🧠
Celebrating 10 Years of NCER-PD 🎂

The CHL is proud to take part in this milestone conference, marking a decade of exceptional collaboration between Luxembourg’s leading research and healthcare institutions. Within NCER-PD, major advances have been achieved: building one of Europe’s most comprehensive cohorts, developing new biomarkers, and driving patient-centered innovation.

Join us at the conference on 16–17 October 2025 in Luxembourg
📍 Maison du Savoir, Auditorium A.3500, 2 avenue de l’Université, L-4365 Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg

Information and registration: https://www.parkinson-anniversary.lu/en/

Luxembourg Institute of Health / University of Luxembourg

02/09/2025

26/08/2025

Are you willing to help researchers in Research?🔬

We are seeking 83 healthy volunteers to take part in research involving sample donation 🩸

You can take part if you meet the following criteria:

🎂You are more than 18 years old
🦠You have not had any infection within 3 weeks prior to participating in this study
💪You are in good health
🚭You don’t smoke

👉 You are eligible to give 50 mL of blood for our research work!

📩 If you are interested, please contact us!
An appointment will be arranged with a CIEC nurse at the University of Luxembourg (exclusively between Tuesday and Thursday, in the morning).

Any questions?

A CIEC nurse (LIH) will inform you about the project, its goals, the procedures involved, the risks, and any associated inconvenience or precautions.

📞✉️ Contact for more information:
+352 26970400 or immel@lih.lu

21/08/2025

Have you recently been bitten by a tick? Here’s why it matters.

⚠️ Tick bites can sometimes trigger a rare but serious allergic reaction called α-Gal syndrome—a delayed allergy to red meat and other mammalian products. Unlike typical food allergies, symptoms can appear several hours after eating and range from:

✨ Skin reactions
🤢 Gastrointestinal issues
😮‍💨 Respiratory problems

The Luxembourg Institute of Health’s ImmunoGal study is investigating how tick bites lead to this allergy and aims to answer key questions:

🐜 Which tick species cause these bites?
🦠 How often do ticks carry harmful pathogens?
🤔 Why does the immune system sometimes overreact, causing severe allergies?

If you’ve been bitten within the last 48 hours, your participation could provide valuable insights to help improve diagnosis, treatment, and prevention.

Interested in contributing? Find out more and join the ImmunoGal study today!
🔗 https://www.lih.lu/en/research-scope/research-department/department-of-infection-and-immunity/molecular-and-translational-allergology/immunogal/

21/08/2025

The Luxembourg Institute of Health is proud to lead Clinnova, part of the National Centres of Excellence in Research (NCER) program funded by the Luxembourg National Research Fund - FNR.This initiative brings together the University of Luxembourg, the Centre Hospitalier de Luxembourg (CHL), and the Hôpitaux Robert Schuman, alongside partners from France, Germany, and Switzerland🌍

Clinnova uses AI and health data to improve care for patients with inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), rheumatic diseases, and multiple sclerosis (MS). 🤖📊

Since 2024, Dr Spyridon Sofos, head of Clinnova-IBD, has been actively enrolling patients at the CHL. In April this year the first patient completed their one-year follow-up - an important milestone. 🔬

Clinnova is creating a federated digital medicine ecosystem in the heart of Europe. Learn more on the project's website: https://www.clinnova.eu/en/clinnova-a-precision-medicine-program-in-the-heart-of-europe/

19/08/2025

The hashtag and hashtag progression group, directed by Clément THOMAS, previously identified the importance of the internal scaffolding of cancer cells, known as actin filaments, in promoting tumoral resistance to NK cell attack 🔬

In their recent paper, “Cancer cells suppress NK cell activity by actin-driven polarisation of inhibitory ligands to the immunological synapse” 📄, the group describes how tumors use these actin filaments to transport the necessary inhibitory signals.

Discover more here: https://www.lih.lu/en/article/new-docr-publication-in-pnas-sheds-light-on-how-cancer-cells-avoid-the-immune-system/

18/08/2025

Bitten by a tick? Help science understand what happens next!🔬

The Molecular and Translational Allergology group at the Luxembourg Institute of Health is launching the ImmunoGal study to explore how tick bites might trigger α-Gal syndrome, a delayed allergy to red meat.

If you’ve been bitten within the last 48 hours, your participation can help researchers uncover how the immune system reacts and contribute to preventing severe allergic reactions.

Join the study now by visiting our website 👉 https://www.lih.lu/en/research-scope/research-department/department-of-infection-and-immunity/molecular-and-translational-allergology/immunogal/

Your contribution matters—for science and for public health!💙