It is a well-kept secret in Flanders, but on the third floor of the Faculty of Science a unique department has for 20 years been providing the world with rare knowledge about roundworms, the world’s most abundant multi-cellular animals. These worms are about one millimetre long and include approximately 28,000 described species. Some scientists believe the total number of species could go up to one million. “Nematodes are everywhere,” says Nic Smol, course coordinator of the nematology department, “from the ice at the poles to the soil of the tropics. They’re even in our tap water.”
Most international students come to learn how to defend their country’s plants against parasitic nematodes, which destroy about 10% of crops worldwide. In particular, Africa and Asia have a tough time fighting the parasites. The Belgian Public Service of Development Cooperation awards scholarships to study nematology in Ghent, half of which go to students from Sub-Saharan Africa. UGent has also established a European programme in which students spend a semester at another European partner university. In the future, UGent hopes to provide internships in countries such as Kenya and South Africa.
Christopher Oche Eche is a postgraduate student from Nigeria, who is studying parasites responsible for the destruction of approximately 12% of banana crops in his country. “Farmers are often unaware that roundworms are the primary cause of plant diseases and subsequently cannot fight this ‘invisible enemy’,” the 28-year-old explains. After graduating, Oche Eche plans to return to Nigeria to carry out more research on techniques to defend crops against parasitic nematodes.
Cai Huaihan, 26, from China was raised in a family of farmers and feels his country needs to step up its efforts to battle the nematodes, which cause huge damage to the Chinese crops of rice, soy beans and tobacco. “The importance of nematology research is increasingly recognised by the Chinese government, but the new techniques have not yet reached the majority of the farmers,” he says. He hopes to do a PhD in Ghent but is already planning to build a modern greenhouse in China with his cousin. “I hope to help farmers such as my father with the expertise I have gained here.”
But not all roundworms are villains. About 12,000 of the known species are harmless and are in fact “ideal tools to assess pollution in soil and water,” says Spaniard Patricia Gilarte, 25, who is interested in the bio-monitoring qualities of nematodes.
Roundworms are also useful when it comes to developing eco-friendly alternatives for pesticides and make perfect test animals to research the aging process. “They are almost identical to humans on the cellular level and also have bowels, muscles and a nerve system in common with us, “ explains Wim Bert, head of UGent’s nematology research group. “Because it takes them only three days to reproduce, we can very quickly assess the effects of genetic and physiological changes.”
In the past 10 years, three research projects based on the roundworm C elegans have won a Nobel Prize, and the UGent grants attract people from all over the world. Still, no Flemish student has enrolled in the Master’s course this year. The only Fleming in the second year, Matthew Vangheel, thinks the reason is not just that nematodes are little-known animals. “Many students are afraid to specialise too soon in their study career and have the misconception that it is a narrow field, but in fact the training we get is varied and multidisciplinary.”
Professor Bert understands that nematology is not an obvious study choice: “Most biology students start with the thought of working with popular animals such as dolphins, not invisible worms.” He himself became involved with the study on the order of his professor in aquatic ecology, who was also unfamiliar with roundworms and unaware that a specialised department existed at the same university. “But, as most students experience, nematology became a passion once I discovered the diversity of this hidden world,” he says.
Coordinator Smol acknowledges that the course needs to be better promoted. “Flemish students should be made aware of the future possibilities the course offers. Graduating here opens doors in education, research and also at ministries, where they can improve agricultural policy, for example. Not just in Flanders and the West, but all over the world.”
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