The Center for Microbial Ecology and Technology (CMET) is a part of the Faculty of Bioscience Engineering at Ghent University. CMET is specialized in the study and application of mixed microbial cultures or communities. A microbial community consists of several populations, which each represent a functional biological entity and thus a diverse metabolic capacity. The assemblage of these biological entities represents -when properly organized- a powerful resource. CMET researchers focus on the optimal management of these microbial resources. We define it as Microbial Resource Management (MRM), enabling us to develop novel products and (technological) processes to improve our environment or human health in the most sustainable way.
Research domains
CMET focuses on areas like disease prevention, applied microbial ecology, host-microbe interactions, life support in space, microbial electrocatalysis, resource recovery, and water treatment.
Spread of resistance to quorum sensing inhibition
Antibiotic resistance is one of the major societal challenges of this moment. When targeting viability (e.g. with antibiotics), resistant cells have a very high fitness advantage over susceptible cells and as a consequence, resistance is spreading rapidly. Because of that, the BAM group at CMET (prof. Tom Defoirdt) is investigating another approach: targeting activity. One […]
The gut community of copepods: you are what you eat
Copepods are small crustaceans of about 1 millimeter in size. Although small, they are abundant and omnipresent: in freshwater, salt water and ground water. Different groups of copepods are specialised to live in open ocean, rock pools or sediments. They are the connection in the food web between primary production and larger consumers such as […]