UCL-CTMA (Centre for Applied Molecular Technologies) is a mixed academic-clinical-military biotechnological platform consisting of three distinct pillars which mutualizes resources from the following partners: (1) Institut de Recherche Expérimentale et Clinique (IREC/UCL) which is the civilian academic pillar; (2) CBRN-Defence Laboratories Department for the BE-Defence (DLD/BE-MOD) which is the military CBRN research and CBRN operational pillar; (3) St Luc academic hospital (Cliniques Universitaires St Luc, CUSL) for which clinical development and testing in molecular genetics is provided. Accordingly, UCL-CTMA hosts, at this single location, a joint civilian-military clinical and research staff of ~34 people with multidisciplinary expertise and acts as reference biotechnological platform specialized in genetics and molecular genetics for IREC/UCL as well as a reference CBRN-biological platform for the BE-Armed Forces. UCL-CTMA is a technological transfer-applied science research unit specifically acting as “Biothreat control unit of Defence Laboratory Department (DLD-Bio)” for the BE-MOD, as well as for the CUSL. Consequently, one of the main tasks of UCL-CTMA is to develop clinical and emerging DNA- and protein-based methods for a rapid diagnosis of genetic disorders and for rapid, specific, sensitive detection, identification and monitoring (DIM) of infectious agents. The latter includes DNA-based identification of pathogens, virulence and antibiotic resistance genotyping, and clonal microbiological forensics analysis. New emerging technologies such as nanotechnologies and high throughput sequencing are used to produce innovative methods for better detection and protection against known and unknown threatening infectious agents while contributing to patient care improvement.

Website: http://www.uclouvain.be/ctma.html