Thomas Vanwolleghem (MD, PhD) graduated from medical school at Ghent University, Belgium (2002, magna cum laude) and the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, Belgium (2003, magna cum laude). He finished his clinical residency in Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology & Hepatology at the Ghent University Hospital (Belgium) and is a board certified hepato-gastroenterologist since 2011.
During his PhD studies at Ghent University he optimised a chimeric mouse model for Hepatitis C Virus infection (PhD defense 2011; Promotor: Prof.G Leroux-Roels, Belgium). For these studies, he was awarded the 3-yearly Belgian-Luxemburg “Academy of Immunology for Clinicians” price in 2009 and twice received the “Belgian Association for the Study of the Liver” prize for best basic science paper of 2008 and 2010. In 2011 he moved to the Erasmus MC Hepatology unit (Head: Prof. Harry Janssen) in Rotterdam, for a clinician-scientist position, to set up an animal model research-line in the Viral Hepatitis Immunology group of the laboratory of Gastroenterology and Hepatology (Group Leader: Dr. A. Boonstra). In state-of-the-art  BSL-II and BSL-III core animal facilities, he is currently conducting translational virus-host interaction studies on several mouse models for chronic viral hepatitis, including human liver-chimeric mice and the LCMV immunocompetent infection model. His focus is on the innate intrahepatic immune response and its therapeutic modulation, with an emphasis on clinical applicability by comparing preclinical findings with immunological and virological studies on patient material.

Selected references

  • Vanwolleghem T, Hou J, van Oord G, Andeweg AC, Osterhaus AD, Pas SD, Janssen HL, Boonstra A.
    Re-evaluation of hepatitis B virus clinical phases by systems biology identifies unappreciated roles for the innate immune response and B cells.
    Hepatology. 2015 Jul;62(1):87-100.
  • Movita D, van de Garde MD, Biesta P, Kreefft K, Haagmans B, Zuniga E, Herschke F, De Jonghe S, Janssen HL, Gama L, Boonstra A, Vanwolleghem T.
    Inflammatory monocytes recruited to the liver within 24 hours after virus-induced inflammation resemble Kupffer cells but are functionally distinct.
    J Virol. 2015 May;89(9):4809-17.
  • Boonstra A, van der Laan LJ, Vanwolleghem T, Janssen HL.
    Experimental models for hepatitis C viral infection.
    Hepatology. 2009 Nov;50(5):1646-55.
  • van de Garde M.D.B, Pas S.D., van Oord G.W., Gama L., Choi Y, de Man R.A., Boonstra A., Vanwolleghem T. 
    Interferon-alpha treatment rapidly clears Hepatitis E virus infection in humanized mice. 
    Scientific Reports 2017 in press.
  • Vanwolleghem T, Boonstra A.
    Focus on the liver: Host-virus interactions in HBV.
    J Hepatol. 2017 May;66(5):884-885.
  • Chi H, Wong D, Peng J, Cao J, Van Hees S, Vanwolleghem T, Qi X, Chen L, Feld JJ, de Knegt RJ, Hansen BE, Janssen HLA.
    Durability of Response After Hepatitis B Surface Antigen Seroclearance During Nucleos(t)ide Analogue Treatment in a Multiethnic Cohort of Chronic Hepatitis B Patients: Results After Treatment Cessation.
    Clin Infect Dis. 2017 Jun 1. doi: 10.1093/cid/cix353.
  • van de Garde MD, Pas SD, van der Net G, de Man RA, Osterhaus AD, Haagmans BL, Boonstra A, Vanwolleghem T.
    Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) Genotype 3 Infection of Human Liver Chimeric Mice as a Model for Chronic HEV Infection.
    J Virol. 2016 Apr 14;90(9):4394-401.

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