Barcoding Facility for Organisms and Tissues of Policy Concern

Scientific publications

In press

  • Van Bortel, W., Deblauwe, I., Rebolledo, J., Smitz, N., Müller, R. Mosquito-borne diseases in Belgium: a real threat or just hype?. submitted to Proceedings of the Royal Academy of Overseas Sciences.

2024

  • De Coninck L, Soto A, Wang L, De Wolf K, Smitz N, Deblauwe I, Mbigha Donfack KC, Müller R, Delang L, Matthijnssens J. 2024. Lack of abundant core virome in Culex mosquitoes from a temperate climate region despite a mosquito species-specific virome. mSystems 0:e00012-24. https://doi.org/10.1128/msystems.00012-24
  • D’hondt B., Meganck K., Van Acker K., De Beer D. 2024. Genetic confirmation for the presence of the rare moss Atrichum angustatum (Brid.) Bruch & Schimp. in Belgium. Dumortiera 123: 5-8. Link
  • Schols R., Smitz N., Vanderheyden A., Huyse T. 2024. Expanding the swimmer’s itch pool of the Benelux: a first record of the neurotropic Trichobilharzia regenti and potential link to human infection. Parasites & Vectors 17:126. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-024-06218-4
  • Vanderheyden, A., Dekoninck, W., Smitz, N., Lombal, A., De Meyer, M., Backeljau, T. First record of three alien termite species in Belgium. BioInvasions Records 13(2): 335–344. https://doi.org/10.3391/bir.2024.13.2.04

2023

  • Dekoninck, W., Smitz, N., Vanderheyden, A., Grootaert, P. 2023. DNA-based species identification of mosquitoes collected with Malaise Traps in the Botanical Garden “Jardin Massart” (Diptera: Culicidae). Belgian Journal of Entomology 134: 247-255. 
  • Pauwels, S.G. O., Brecko, J., Baeghe, D., Venderickx, J., Vanderheyden, A. and Backeljau, T. 2023. Morphological, acoustic and genetic identification of a reporoducing population of the invasive African clawed frog Xenopus laevis (Anura, Pipidae) recently discovered in Belgium. Zookeys 1184: 41-64. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1184.103702

2022

  • Chomchoei, N., Backeljau, T., Segers, B., Wongsawad, C., Butboonchoo, P., Nantarat, N. 2022. Morphological and molecular characterization of larval trematodes infecting the assassin snail genus Anentome in Thailand. Journal of Helminthology 96, e52: 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022149X22000463
  • Deblauwe, I., De Wolf, K., De Witte, J., Schneider, A., Verlé, I., Vanslembrouck, A., Smitz, N., Demeulemeester, J., Van Loo, T., Dekoninck, W., Krit, M., Madder, M., Müller, R., Van Bortel, W. 2022. From a long-distance threat to the invasion front: invasive Aedes mosquito species in Belgium between 2007 and 2020. Parasites & Vectors 15:206. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-022-05303-w
  • Deblauwe, I., Brosens, D., De Wolf, K., Smitz, N., Vanslembrouck, A., Schneider, A., De Witte, J., Verlé, I., Dekoninck, W., De Meyer, M., Backeljau, T., Gombeer, S., Meganck, K., Vanderheyden, A., Müller, R., Van Bortel, W. 2022. MEMO: Monitoring of exotic mosquitoes in Belgium. GIGAbyte: 1-9. https://doi.org/10.46471/gigabyte.59
  • Edmunds, S.C., Fouque, F., Copas, K.A., Hirsch, T., Schigel, D., Shimabukuro, P.H.F., Andrade-filho, J.D., Marceló, C., Morales, C.A., Lesmes, M.C., Fuya, P., Méndez, S., Cadena, H., Ávila-Díaz, A., Santamaría, E., Južnič-Zonta, Z., Eritja, R., Palmer, J.R.B., Bartumeus, F., dos Santos-Conceição, M., Chahad-Ehlers, S., Silva-Inácio, C.L., Lozovei, A.L., de Andrade, A.J., Paull, S., Miranda, M.A., Barceló, C., Schaffner, F., Della-Torre, A., Brosens, D., Dekoninck, W., Hendrickx, G., Van Bortel, W., Deblauwe, I., Smitz, N., Brilhante, A.F., Ceccarelli, S., Balsalobre, A., Vicente, M.E., Curtis-Robles, R., Hamer, S.A., Landa, J.M.A., Rabinovich, J.E., Marti, G.A. 2022. Publishing data to support the fight against human vector-borne diseases. GigaScience 11: giac114. https://doi.org/10.1093/gigascience/giac114
  • Harbi, A.,  Abbes, K.,  Elimem, M.,  Lazheri, H.,  Meganck, K., Chermiti, B. 2022. The seedcorn maggot Delia platura (Diptera: Anthomyiidae): An emerging pest of garlic crops in Tunisia. EPPO Bulletin 52: 149– 153. https://doi.org/10.1111/epp.12841 
  • Ibáñez-Justicia, A., Smitz, N., Blom, R., Vanderheyden, A., Jacobs, F., Meganck, K., Gombeer, S., Backeljau, T., Koenraadt, C.J.M., Griep, J.S., De Meyer, M. and Stroo, A. 2022. Anopheles maculipennis complex in the Netherlands: First record of Anopheles daciae (Diptera: Culicidae). Diversity 14(8):636. https://doi.org/10.3390/d14080636
  • Kurucz, K., Zeghbib, S., Arnoldi, D., Marini, G., Manica, M., Michelutti, A., Montarsi, F., Deblauwe, I., Van Bortel, W., Smitz, N., Pfitzner, W.P., Czajka, C., Jost, A., Kalan, K., Susnjar, J., Ivović, V., Kuczmog, A., Lanszki, Z., Toth, G.E., Somogyi, B.A., Herczeg, R., Urban, P., Bueno-Marı, R., Soltesz, Z., Kemenesi, G. 2022. Aedes koreicus, a vector on the rise: Pan-European genetic patterns, mitochondrial and draft genome sequencing. PlosONE 17(8): e0269880. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0269880
  • Mariën, J., Laurent, N., Smitz, N., Gombeer, S. 2022. First observation of Aedes albopictus in the Tshuapa province (Boende) of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. African Entomology 30:e11932. https://doi.org//10.17159/2254-8854/2022/a11932
  • Van Bortel, W., Van den Poel, B., Hermans, G., Vanden Driessche, M., Lerouge, D., Deblauwe, I., De Wolf, K., Schneider,  A., Van Hul, N., Müller, R., Wilmaerts, L., Gombeer, S., Smitz, N., Kattenberg, J.H., Monsieurs, P., Rosanas-Urgell, A., Van Esbroeck, M., Bottieau, E., Maniewski-Kelner, U., Rebolledo, J. 2022. An outbreak report of the two autochthonous cases of airport malaria in Belgium in 2020. Euro Surveillance 27(16): pii=2100724. https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2022.27.16.2100724
  • Vanderheyden, A., Smitz, N., De Wolf, K., Deblauwe, I., Dekoninck, W., Meganck, K., Gombeer, S., Vanslembrouck, A., De Witte, J., Schneider, A., Verlé, I., De Meyer, M., Backeljau, T., Müller, R., Van Bortel, W. 2022. DNA identification and diversity of the vector mosquitoes Culex pipiens s.s. and Culex torrentium in Belgium (Diptera: Culicidae). Diversity 14(6): 486. https://doi.org/10.3390/d14060486

2021

  • Aydin, M., Biltekin, D., Breugelmans, K. and Backeljau, T. 2021. First record, DNA identification and morphometric characterization of Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas (Thunberg, 1793) in the southern Black Sea. BioInvasions Records 10(4): 838–852 https://www.reabic.net/journals/bir/2021/4/BIR_2021_Aydin_etal.pdf
  • Deblauwe, I., Ibáñez-Justicia, A., De Wolf, K., Smitz, N., Schneider, A., Stroo, A., Jacobs, F., Vanslembrouck, A., Gombeer, S., Dekoninck, W., Müller, R., Van Bortel, W. 2021. First Detections of Culiseta longiareolata (Diptera: Culicidae) in Belgium and the Netherlands. Journal of Medical Entomology. tjab127. https://doi.org/10.1093/jme/tjab127
  • Smitz, N., De Wolf, K., Gheysen, A., Deblauwe, I., Vanslembrouck, A., Meganck, K., De Witte, J., Schneider, A., Verlé, I., Dekoninck, W., Gombeer, S., Vanderheyden, A., De Meyer, M., Backeljau, T., Müller, R., Van Bortel, W. 2021. DNA identification of species of the Anopheles maculipennis complex and first record of An. daciae in Belgium. Medical and Veterinary Entomology 2021: 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1111/mve.12519
  • Nsengimana, V., Vanderheyden, A., Gombeer, S., Smitz, N., Meganck, K., De Meyer, M., Backeljau, T., Fisher, B.L., Dekoninck, W. 2021. First record of the ant Pheidole megatron Fischer and Fisher, 2013 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Rwanda. African Zoology 2021: 1-5. https://doi.org/10.1080/15627020.2021.1901605
  • Smitz, N., De Wolf, K., Deblauwe, I., Kampen, H., Schaffner, F., De Witte, J., Schneider, A., Verlé, I., Vanslembrouck, A., Dekoninck, W., Meganck, K., Gombeer, S., Vanderheyder, A., De Meyer, M., Backeljau, T., Werner, D., Müller, R., Van Bortel, W. 2021. Population genetic structure of the Asian bush mosquito Aedes japonicus (Diptera, Culicidae) in Belgium suggests multiple introductions. Parasites & Vectors 14:179. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-021-04676-8
  • Wat’senga Tezzo, F., Fasine, S., Manzambi Zola, E., del Carmen Marquetti, M., Binene Mbuka, G., Ilombe, G., Mundeke Takasongo, R., Smitz, N., Andre Bisset, J., Van Bortel, W., Vanlerberghe, V. 2021. High Aedes spp. larval indices in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. Parasites & Vectors, 14(1):92. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-021-04588-7
  • Fagbémi, M.N.A., Pigneur, L.-M., André, A., Smitz, N., Gennotte, V., Michaux, J.R., Mélard, C., Lalèyè, P.A., Rougeot, C. 2021. Genetic structure of wild and farmed Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) populations in Benin based on genome wide SNP technology. Aquaculture 535(2021):73432. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2021.736432
  • De Wolf, K., Vanderheyden, A., Deblauwe, I., Smitz, N., Gombeer, S., Vanslembrouck, A., Meganck, K., Dekoninck, W., De Meyer, M., Backeljau, T., Müller, R. & Van Bortel, W. 2021. First record of the West Nile virus bridge vector Culex modestus Ficalbi (Diptera: Culicidae) in Belgium, validated by DNA barcoding. Zootaxa 4920 (1): 131-139. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4920.1.7
  • Hupało, K., Majaneva, M., Czachur, M.V., Sire, L., Marquina, D., Lijtmaer, D.A., Ivanov, V., Leidenberger, S., Čiampor, F. Jr, Čiamporová-Zaťovičová, Z., Mendes, I.S., Desiderato, A., Topstad, L., Meganck, K., Hariz, D.Z.A., Kjærstad, G., Lin, X.L., Price, B., Stevens, M., Ekrem, T. & Deiner, K. 2021. A rapid urban biodiversity blitz using aquatic environmental DNA. Environmental DNA 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1002/edn3.152

2020

  • Gombeer, S., Nebesse, C., Musaba, P.,  Ngoy, S., Peeters, M., Vanderheyden, A., Meganck, K., Smitz, N., Geers, F., Van Den Heuvel, S., Backeljau, T., De Meyer, M. & Verheyen, E. 2020. Exploring the bushmeat market in Brussels, Belgium: a clandestine luxury business. Biodiversity and Conservation 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-020-02074-7
  • Ibáñez-Justicia, A., Smitz, N., den Hartog, W., van de Vossenberg, B., De Wolf, K., Deblauwe, I., Van Bortel, W., Jacobs, F., Vaux, A.G., Medlock, J.M. & Stroo, A. 2020. Detection of Exotic Mosquito Species (Diptera: Culicidae) at International Airports in Europe. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 17(10), 3450. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17103450
  • Dimzas, D., Morelli, S., Traversa, D., Di Cesare, A., Van Bourgonie, Y. R., Breugelmans, K., Backeljau, T., di Regalbono, A.F. & Diakou, A., 2020. Intermediate gastropod hosts of major feline cardiopulmonary nematodes in an area of wildcat and domestic cat sympatry in Greece. Parasites & Vectors 13(1), 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-020-04213-z

2019

  • Pigneur, L.‑M., Caublot, G., Fournier‑Chambrillon, C., Fournier, P., Giralda‑Carrera, G., Grémillet, X., Le Roux, B., Marc, D., Simonnet, F., Smitz, N., Sourp, E., Steinmetz, J.,Urra‑Maya, F., Michaux, J., 2019. Current genetic admixture between relictual populations might enhance the recovery of an elusive carnivore. Conservation Genetics 20, 1133–1148. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10592-019-01199-9

2018

  • Lange, M.K., Penagos-Tabares, F., Hirzmann, J., Failing, K., Schaper, R., Van Bourgonie, Y.R., Backeljau, T., Hermosilla, C. & Taubert, A. 2018. Prevalence of Angiostrongylus vasorum, Aelurostrongylus abstrusus and Crenosoma vulpis larvae in native slug populations in Germany. Veterinary Parasitology 254, 120-130. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vetpar.2018.03.011
  • Virgilio, M.,  Daneel, JH.,  Manrakhan, A.,  Delatte, H.,  Meganck, K. & De Meyer, M. 2018. An integrated diagnostic setup for the morphological and molecular identification of the Ceratitis FAR complex (C. anonae, C. fasciventris, C. rosa, C. quilicii, Diptera, Tephritidae). Bulletin of Entomological Research 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007485318000615

2017

  • Daneel, J.H., Beck, R., Virgilio, M., Meganck, K. & Manrakhan, A. 2017. Efficacy of trapping systems for monitoring of Afrotropical fruit flies. Journal of Applied Entomology 141(10), 825-840. https://doi.org/10.1111/jen.12373
  • Virgilio, M.,  Manrakhan, A.,  Delatte, H.,  Daneel, J.H.,  Mwatawala, M.,  Meganck, K.,  Barr, N. & De Meyer, M. 2017. The complex case of Ceratitis cosyra (Diptera, Tephritidae) and relatives. A DNA barcoding perspective. Journal of Applied Entomology 141(10), 788-797. https://doi.org/10.1111/jen.12379