Author

H. Leirs

Listed by name: these papers carry no ORCID for this author, so different people with the same name may be mixed together.

Biology Disciplines

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Ecology· 5 Microbiology· 3 Animal Behavior & Cognition· 1 Evolutionary Biology· 1 Zoology· 1

Signature Assays, Organisms & Methods

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Organism:mouse· 8 Approach:experimental assay· 7 Research Focus:host-pathogen & immune response· 7 Assay:DNA methylation· 3 Assay:proteomics· 3 Approach:statistical model· 3 Organism:human· 2 Organism:rat· 2

Frequent Co-Authors

S. Gryseels· 4 shared B. Vanden Broecke· 3 shared J. Marien· 3 shared L. Kirkpatrick· 3 shared N. Van Houtte· 3 shared V. Sluydts· 3 shared A. Laudisoit· 2 shared A. Massawe· 2 shared

Activity by Year

2017-2026 · peak 3/yr

Co-Author Collaboration Network

10 top collaborators · 21 mutual co-author links

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Curved chords = mutual co-authorship

4 shared papersMicrobiology

S. Gryseels

Mutual co-authors in cluster

Author profile →

11 papers

Recent·Most cited

Disease dynamics during ecosystem restoration and faunal reassembly

Marina Voinson, D. Erazo, C. Faust, N. Bunnefeld, A. A. Rija, H. Leirs, L. Paez-Triana, V. Sluydts, J. Marien, L. Kirkpatrick

This study uses a model to show that disease dynamics during ecosystem restoration depend on pathogen transmissibility, timing of slow life history species establishment, and community assembly, not just biodiversity.

bioRxiv · Nov 9, 2026 · PreprintEcology

The evolutionary history of hepaciviruses

Y. Li, M. Ghafari, A. J. Holbrook, I. Boonen, N. M. S. Amor, S. Catalano, J. P. Webster, Y. Li, H. Li, V. Vergote, P. Maes, Y. L. Chong, A. Laudisoit, P. Baelo, S. Ngoy, , P. Lemey

This study identifies novel rodent hosts of hepaciviruses, documents their diversity, and estimates the origin of the genus to be about 22 million years ago.

bioRxiv · Jun 30, 2023 · PreprintMicrobiology

Incorporating space in hierarchical capture mark recapture models: can we better capture variance?

A.-M. R. Van der Drift, H. Leirs, J. Mariën, C. Sabuni, L. Mulungu, L. Kirkpatrick

This study compares non-spatial, partially spatial, and fully spatial capture mark recapture models to assess their impact on survival and detection probability estimates in multimammate mice.

bioRxiv · Nov 1, 2022 · PreprintEcology

Serological surveillance for wild rodent infection with SARS-CoV-2 in Europe

V. Bourret, L. Dutra, H. Alburkat, S. Maki, E. Lintunen, M. Wasniewski, R. Kant, M. Grzybek, V. Venkat, H. Asad, J. Pradel, M. Bouilloud, H. Leirs, V. C. Colombo, V. Sluydts, , T. Sironen

The paper reports serological testing of 1,237 wild rodents and other small mammals across Europe for SARS-CoV-2 exposure, finding all samples negative except one.

bioRxiv · Aug 2, 2022 · PreprintMicrobiology

Host related factors determine co-occurrence patterns between pathogenic bacteria, protozoa, and helminths in populations of the multimammate mouse, Mastomys natalensis

j. Marien, B. Vanden Broecke, P. J. Tafompa, L. Bernaerts, A. R. Salvador, L. L. Mnyone, L. Mulungu, H. Leirs

The paper examines co-infection patterns between bacteria, protozoa, and helminths in multimammate mice, finding host-related factors influence infection probabilities and limited within-host interactions.

bioRxiv · Jan 14, 2022 · PreprintEcology

SARS-CoV-2 surveillance in Norway rats (Rattus norvergicus) from Antwerp sewer system, Belgium

V. C. Colombo, V. Sluydts, J. Marien, B. Vanden Broecke, N. Van Houtte, W. Leirs, L. Jacobs, A. Iserbyt, M. Hubert, L. Heyndrickx, H. Goris, P. Delputte, N. De Roeck, J. Elst, R. Boudewijns, , S. Gryseels

The paper tests Norway rats for SARS-CoV-2 infection and finds no evidence of infection, but highlights issues with serological testing in non-human samples.

bioRxiv · Mar 6, 2021Ecology

ProxLogs: Miniaturised proximity loggers for monitoring association behaviour in small mammals

L. Kirkpatrick, I. Hererra-Olivares, C. Sabuni, A. Massawe, H. Leirs, R. Berkvens, M. Weyn

This paper introduces miniaturized proximity loggers for monitoring associations in small mammals using Bluetooth Low Energy, demonstrating their effectiveness in field conditions and potential for integration with other sensors.

bioRxiv · Feb 28, 2021 · PreprintAnimal Behavior & Cognition

Unravelling the evolutionary relationships of hepaciviruses within and across rodent hosts

M. Bletsa, B. Vrancken, S. Gryseels, I. Boonen, A. Fikatas, Y. Li, A. Laudisoit, S. Lequime, J. Bryja, R. Makundi, Y. Meheretu, B. D. Akaibe, S. G. Mbalitini, F. Van de Perre, N. Van Houtte, , P. Lemey

This study identifies novel hepacivirus genomes in rodents from sub-Saharan Africa, revealing co-infections and expanding the known diversity of hepaciviruses in rodent hosts.

bioRxiv · Oct 9, 2020Evolutionary Biology

Evaluation of a pan-Leishmania SL-RNA qPCR assay for parasite detection in laboratory-reared and field-collected sand flies and reservoir hosts.

M. Pareyn, R. Hendrickx, N. Girma, S. Hendrickx, L. Van Bockstal, N. Van Houtte, S. Shibru, L. Maes, H. Leirs, G. Caljon

This study evaluates a pan-Leishmania SL-RNA qPCR assay for detecting Leishmania in sand flies and hyrax tissue samples, showing it is as effective as kDNA assays and can detect low parasite equivalents.

bioRxiv · Jan 8, 2020Microbiology

Feeding behavior and activity of Phlebotomus pedifer and potential reservoir hosts of Leishmania aethiopica in southwestern Ethiopia.

M. Pareyn, A. Kochora, L. Van Rooy, N. Eligo, B. Vanden Broecke, N. Girma, B. Merdekios, T. Wegayehu, L. Maes, G. Caljon, B. Lindtjorn, H. Leirs, F. Massebo

This study investigates the feeding behavior and activity of Phlebotomus pedifer sand flies and their role in Leishmania aethiopica transmission in Ethiopia, finding humans are the main blood source and livestock likely do not contribute to transmission.

bioRxiv · Nov 26, 2019Ecology

No evidence for avoidance of black rat scent by the presumably less competitive Natal multimammate mouse in a choice experiment

L. N. Cuypers, W. L. Cuypers, A. Gildemyn-Blomme, L. Abraham, S. Aertbelien, A. Massawe, B. Borremans, S. Gryseels, H. Leirs

A choice experiment found that Natal multimammate mice do not avoid black rat scent, suggesting scent-based avoidance is not the mechanism for their absence from areas with black rats.

bioRxiv · Jan 28, 2017Zoology