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                           FOCUSED INNOVATION AT NUI GALWAY

research                               matters
                                                   08

INTERVIEW WITH Pól Ó Dochartaigh
visicort’s new €6M corneal transplant project
HEALTH BEHAVIOUR OF SCHOOL-AGED CHILDREN SURVEY
Microwave Imaging Technology Development

                                           ISSUE 08 summer 2014
Research matters - NUI Galway
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  NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS                                                                                                                                                                            NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08
  NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS

  02
  ISSUE 08                                                                                                                                                                                                                        1
  SUMMER 2014
                                Welcome from the Vice                                                                        From                                 Contents
  Editorial Board               President for Research                                                                       The                                                    Interview with

                                                                                                                                                                                                                           02
                                                                                                                                                                                    Pól Ó Dochartaigh
                                                                                                                             Editor
  Editor
  John Holden
                                                                               demonstrated through the spectrum of                                                                 Newly appointed Registrar and
  Deputy Editor                                                                articles presented in this issue.                                                                    Deputy President of NUI Galway
  Natalie Walsh
                                                                               Each issue of Research Matters will           Welcome to the all-new Research
                                                                               focus on showcasing research highlights       Matters. Issue 8 includes not just

                                                                                                                                                                                                                           14
                                                                                                                             a new look for the publication but
  Editorial Board                                                              underpinned by our research agenda.
                                                                                                                             also the inclusion of additional
                                                                                                                                                                                    REMEDI Visicort
                                                                               Throughout the pages of this issue we
  Eithne O’ Connell
                                                                               have focused on the key interactions          multimedia material accessible                         New €6 million EU project tackling
  Sarah Knight
                                                                               that academia has with industry and how       through the online PDF version.                        corneal transplantation failure
  Sharon Coyle
                                                                               our research is translating in terms of
  Declan Devane                                                                                                              This time round our focus turns
                                                                               economic and societal impact.
  Ekaterina Yahyaouikrivenko                                                                                                 to industry and academia. NUI                          The Health Behaviour of

                                                                                                                                                                                                                           15
  Alexander Rahm
  Angela Sice
                                Welcome to a new era of Research               Research at NUI Galway is exciting,           Galway has numerous links with                         School-Aged Children
                                Publications at NUI Galway. The                ambitious and engaging. We look forward       organisations and enterprises,
  Dagmar Stengel                                                                                                                                                                    Exploring the social determinants
                                focus of Research Matters is to share          to sharing our research journey with you.     both large and small, through
                                                                                                                                                                                    of health
                                highlights of our research excellence                                                        the Ignite Technology Transfer
                                and experiences with you. NUI Galway                                                         Office, as well as programmes
                                is a thriving research driven University                                                     like BioInnovate Ireland, and the

                                                                                                                                                                                                                           28
                                with highly relevant and impactful                                                           many other individual projects
                                                                                                                                                                                    Microwave Imaging
                                research priorities and themes,                Lokesh Joshi                                  and research areas being driven
                                                                               Vice President for Research                   by enthusiastic researchers and                        Technology Development
                                                                                                                             academics across campus.                               NUI Galway at the forefront

                                Guest Letter
                                                                                                                             Industry and academia share
                                                                                                                             many common goals and one            Also In This Issue...
                                                                                                                             frequently provides inspiration
                                                                                                                                                                  Leading research with EVolving Open Software
                                                                               “The skills gap can be closed by increased
                                                                                                                             and focus to the other. That is
                                                                                                                             what we hope to look at here.
                                                                                                                                                                  Systems (EVOSS) Research Group                                 04
                                                                               emphasis on STEM (Science, Technology,                                             Industry-academia collaboration with
                                                                               Engineering & Mathematics) education.
                                                                                                                             We thank the President of the
                                                                                                                             Galway Chamber of Commerce,
                                                                                                                                                                  FBM Ltd’s Smart Battery Analyser                               09
                                                                               Further, it can ensure that creativity,
                                                                                                                             Frank Greene, for being our
                                                                               entrepreneurship and innovation skills are
                                                                               nurtured and embedded in enterprise for
                                                                                                                             first Guest Letter writer. In
                                                                                                                             addition, we are also excited by
                                                                                                                                                                  Fulbright Scholarships                                         13
                                                                               value-added products and services. It is      the inclusion of a fascinating       A busy year and growing recognition for the
                                                                               crucial that we have enough qualified STEM    interview with newly appointed       Irish Centre for Social Gerontology (ICSG)                     22
                                                                               graduates entering the work force to meet     Registrar and Deputy President
                                                                                                                                                                  Collaboration through research with UNESCO Child and Family
                                “The emphasis on aligning third level
                                                                               the demands of our growing technology-
                                                                               based and biomedical firms – an important
                                                                                                                             Pól Ó Docharthaigh. Those who
                                                                                                                             would like to see more of that       Research Centre (CFRC)                                         24
                                education and training with the skills needs                                                 interview can do so through the
                                                                               industry cluster for the West.
                                                                                                                                                                  Neanderthal Man
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 29
                                of employers is crucial and can only be                                                      online version where we have
                                achieved when both third level institutions                                                                                       from Galway
                                                                               “We believe Galway Chamber of Commerce,       added additional video footage.
                                and employers, particularly SMEs, work
                                                                               industry and NUI Galway enjoy a unique
                                closely together. As we look to the future                                                   This is just the beginning of a
                                                                               partnership which can help bring educators,
                                such collaboration is necessary to ensure                                                    new, more open approach to
                                                                               entrepreneurs and business leaders closer
                                the Greater Galway area’s continued                                                          Research Matters and we hope           Regular Features...
                                recovery and growth as an entrepreneurial      together and give Galway the competitive
                                                                                                                             that its reach will extend well
                                                                               edge in delivering a highly educated and                                             RESEARCH PROFILES                                            07
                                and knowledge hub for the whole country.                                                     beyond the NUI Galway campus
  Cover Image                                                                                                                                                       Research in Focus                                            10
                                International evidence suggests that           skilled workforce.”                           into the future. As always, enjoy.
  Photo Credit: Shutterstock                                                                                                                                        Research BYTES                                               16
                                improvements in intermediate and higher-
                                end skills can increase GDP by up to one       Frank Greene                                  John Holden                            Research PUBLICATIONS                                        20
  DESIGN
                                percent through improved productivity.         President, Galway Chamber of Commerce         Editor                                 Research Intersection                                        26
  PROVIZ Ltd.
Research matters - NUI Galway
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                                             NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08                                                                                                                                                                                                        NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08

                                             2                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             3

                                              OPINIONS
                                              & PERSPECTIVES
                                             The appointment of Pól Ó Dochartaigh as the new Registrar and
                                             Deputy President signifies a welcome return to greater balance
                                             between the Arts and Sciences, writes John Holden.

                                             A
                                                              Any Arts, Humanities       Cardiff, Ó Dochartaigh went onto do a         Modern Languages until his appointment
                                                              or Social Science          PhD in German Literature at Nottingham        in Galway. He was elected a Member of
                                                              researchers out there      University, a Postgraduate Certificate in     the Royal Irish Academy in 2010.
                                                              might be forgiven for      University Teaching at the University of
                                                              wanting to stick their     Ulster (UU) and a BA in Irish Language and
                                                              heads in the sand in the   Literature, also at UU.                       The Importance of
                                             current economic and political climate.                                                   Multi-Lingualism                                Pól Ó Dochartaigh, newly-appointed Registrar and Deputy President, NUI Galway.
                                             Science, Technology, Engineering and        “My PhD was the first study of
                                                                                                                                       With degrees in German and Irish Ó
                                             Maths (STEM) are the country’s pets right   representations of Jews in East German
                                                                                                                                       Dochartaigh is a language enthusiast, to      Not everything that is                          “To paraphrase Einstein: ‘Not everything      to look at how we cultivate that. The
                                             now as government focuses much of its       fiction during the Communist era,” he
                                                                                                                                       put it lightly. “During my time as Chair of   countable counts, and not                       that is countable counts, and not             traditional academic way has been to
                                             attention (and resources) on the premise    says. “It showed how monolithic politics
                                                                                                                                       the Committee for Modern Languages                                                            everything that counts is countable.’         leave academics to sort out their own
                                             that a STEM-based knowledge economy         could give way to greater diversity in                                                      everything that counts is
                                                                                                                                       at the Royal Irish Academy [2004-2008],                                                       This country has a tremendous cultural        career themselves. But I think we have
                                             will be the foundation of economic          culture, specifically on the subject of the                                                 countable
                                                                                                                                       I tried to inform policy around modern                                                        heritage that is of interest worldwide.       to actively cultivate success and mentor
                                             recovery.                                   legacy of Nazism and the Holocaust.”
                                                                                                                                       languages, something I’m passionate           While no one would dispute that being           Some of our writers are on curricula all      youngsters. Give them pointers to help
                                                                                         In all, Ó Dochartaigh spent six years         about,” he says.                              bi- or multi-lingual is a tremendous                                                          develop their own research profile so they
                                             They may well be, but as newly appointed                                                                                                                                                over the world, their writings educating
                                             NUI Galway Registrar and Deputy             in Germany in the 1980s and 1990s.                                                          advantage in work and life generally,                                                         know the best journals to target and the
                                                                                                                                       “The Anglophone World needs to move                                                           students as they develop as individuals.
                                             President, Pól Ó Dochartaigh, suggests,     Interestingly, he spent the first two                                                       languages are categorised within the                                                          best international collaborators to work
                                                                                                                                       away from this idea that because                                                              We have to put that at the centre
                                             such a policy emphasis creates a            years in West Germany, then two in East                                                     Arts & Humanities, which do not receive                                                       with. This can happen if our senior people
                                                                                                                                       everybody supposedly speaks English                                                           of what we do, too. So STEM could
                                             discourse hierarchy that subordinates the   Germany and the final two years in the                                                      the same amount of attention as other                                                         actively mentor the next generation.”
                                                                                                                                       we don’t need to bother about other                                                           become STEAM – Science, Technology,
                                             Arts & Humanities.                          united Berlin.
                                                                                                                                       languages. We absolutely do need to                                                                                                         This practice is increasingly the norm
                                             Ach a Mhalairt says the Belfast native,     In 1994, he got a job in UU as a lecturer     bother. If you don’t understand other                                                                                                       elsewhere and it has forced people to
                                             who believes Ireland’s rich cultural and    in German where he resided for the last       languages, you can never fully understand             The Anglophone World needs to move away from                                          think about how to up their game.
                                                                                                                                       other cultures. It broadens the mind.”
                                             artistic heritage provides a wealth         20 years.                                                                                   this idea that because everybody supposedly speaks                                            “Secondly, it is no longer acceptable
                                             of benefits that extend far beyond                                                        Being from Belfast, he has tried to develop
                                             simple distractions from more “serious”     Over his two-decade tenure, he was            an understanding of difference.               English we don’t need to bother about other languages.                                        for researchers to only publish in local
                                                                                         key to a number of innovations at the                                                       We absolutely do need to bother.                                                              or national journals. For some niche
                                             matters. Originally a German Literature
                                                                                         institution. He was part of the team          There’s an economic dimension to his                                                                                                        subjects this may be entirely appropriate,
                                             BA graduate from University College
                                                                                         that introduced Film Studies to the           argument too. “English is now spoken by                                                                                                     but for those which it is not, we should
Opinions & Perspectives: Pól Ó Dochartaigh

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Opinions & Perspectives: Pól Ó Dochartaigh
                                                                                         university, was central to the creation       more non-native speakers than native,”        disciplines, namely STEM subjects. Ó                                                          be encouraging researchers to think big.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Engineering, Arts and Maths. It’s the
                                              WATCH CLIP                                 of the Humanities Research Institute          he says. “So now and into the future it       Dochartaigh would question the wisdom                                                         It’s not good enough for our ambition to
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
                                                                                         (and became its founding director),           will increasingly become redefined by         of this approach.                                                                             be one of the best universities in Ireland.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     that give science and business a context
                                                                                         and in 2008 was appointed Dean of the         non-native speakers. But these non-                                                                                                         We have to think globally if we want to
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     in civilisation.”
                                                                                         Faculty of Arts, during which time he led a   native speakers are also comfortable          “Every country has to recognise that                                                          be competitive in terms of unlocking
                                                                                         successful bid for the establishment of a     with other languages.                         the strongest economies have a strong           Does he have plans to make changes while      European research grants but also
                                                                                         Confucius Institute at UU in 2011.                                                          production side, and that’s predominantly       in Galway? “Change is coming, regardless      having a global reputation for strong
                                                                                                                                       “Language at the executive level may be       the realm of STEM subjects,” he says. “No                                                     scholarship. It’s not all about money.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     of my appointment,” he says. “Some of it
                                                                                         Alongside his lectureship he also             English but if a company wants to break       one is denying the absolute necessity                                                         It’s also about reputation, international
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     will be imposed from outside, but I believe
                                                                                         held a senior administrative post in          into a market where English is not the        to foster innovation in these areas. My                                                       engagement and attracting and keeping
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     there is an appetite for change inside too.
                                                Click to watch the video of Research     student admissions and organised ten          mother tongue, you still need people          concern with the STEM agenda, however,                                                        the best staff.”
                                                Matters Editor, John Holden interview    conferences over a ten-year period. He        who can understand the local language         is that it has created a discourse which        “I believe we need to address two things.
                                                NUI Galway’s New Registrar and Deputy
                                                President Pól Ó Dochartaigh or visit:
                                                                                         served on the UK’s RAE Panel for German       and customs. So many of the top jobs          suggests the arts are somehow an                Firstly, we have tremendous young             By John Holden
                                                http://youtu.be/3ez2YtTTu30              in 2008 and the REF 2014 Panel for            will go to multi-linguists.”                  indulgence. They aren’t.                        talent coming through and we need             Editor, Research Matters
Research matters - NUI Galway
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                                       4                   evaluate
                                       NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS SUMMER 2014

                                                                                                            collaborate
                                                                                                                                                                                    NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08

                                                                                                                                                                                                                          5
                                           Delivering Leading                                                                                                                        WATCH CLIP

                                           Research in Evolving
                                           Open Software Systems                                                                                                                       Click to watch this informative video

                                                                                                      develop
                                                                                                                                                                                       from the EVOSS team or visit:
                                                                                                                                                                                       http://youtu.be/KFpYzBWiHe8

                                           The EVolving Open Software Systems (EVOSS) research group is at
                                           the forefront of software management. With over €4 million worth

                                                                                                                                       A
                                           of funding from Science Foundation Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, THE
                                           Irish Research Council, THE EU and industry this dynamic group offer                                                                     development teams to large portfolios is
                                                                                                                                                       As organisations face
                                           unparalleled expertise to academia, industry and policy makers.                                             increasing global            a challenge faced by many organisations.
                                                                                                                                                       competition, rapidly
                                                                                                                                                                                    Such portfolios contain numerous
                                                                                                                                                       developing technologies

                                                                                                                   implement
                                                                                                                                                                                    projects with each one comprising
                                                                                                                                                       and dwindling resources,
                                                                                                                                                                                    multiple teams. Dr Orla O’Dwyer and
                                                                                                                                                       being able to implement
                                                                                                                                                                                    doctoral researcher Roger Sweetman are

                                     world-class
                                                                                                                                       dynamic practices and processes
                                                                                                                                                                                    developing evidence-based mechanisms
                                                                                                                                       becomes increasingly vital. EVOSS at
                                                                                                                                                                                    to assist with the deployment of
                                                                                                                                       NUI Galway work at the cutting edge
                                                                                                                                                                                    effective agile project management
                                                                                                                                       of software creation and management,
                                                                                                                                                                                    techniques to large complex portfolios. Dr
                                                                                                                                       giving unique insights into how software
                                                                                                                                                                                    Lorraine Morgan and doctoral researcher

                                                                                                                  management
                                                                                                                                       can benefit organisations and policy
                                                                                                                                                                                    Eoin Cullina are devising ways in which
                                                                                                                                       makers, whilst setting the research
                                                                                                                                                                                    crowd sourcing can be best adapted,
                                                                                                                                       agenda for academia.
                                                                                                                           practices   Research conducted by the team
                                                                                                                                                                                    applied and validated in environments
                                                                                                                                                                                    traditionally unsuited to its use.
                                                                                                                                       helps organisations evaluate existing
                                                                                                                                       practices and provides best practice
                                                                                                                                       solutions, which immediately create          Research-Led Teaching
                                                                                                                                       organisational efficiencies. It focuses on   EVOSS take an integrated approach
                                                                                                                                       two key overarching themes: - (i) evolving   to teaching and research. The team
                                                                                                                                       software that examines contemporary          contribute directly to a number of
                                                                                                                                       (agile and lean) software management,        undergraduate and postgraduate
                                                                                                                                       portfolio management and decision            programmes and modules within the
                                                                                                                                       making and (ii) open innovation practices    School of Business & Economics. The MSc

                                                                                                              leading-edge             and frameworks, which include research
                                                                                                                                       on software ecosystems, crowd sourcing,
                                                                                                                                                                                    in Cloud Computing, introduced in 2012,
                                                                                                                                                                                    is a specific example of a programme

                                                                                 software                                              cloud technologies and design thinking.

                                                                                                                                       EVOSS offer unparalleled expertise in
                                                                                                                                       a broad spectrum of research areas
                                                                                                                                                                                    which draws heavily from research led
                                                                                                                                                                                    by Dr Tom Acton and doctoral researcher
                                                                                                                                                                                    Trevor Clohessy. This programme was
                                                                                                                                                                                    recently shortlisted in three categories
                                                                                                                                       related to software management
                                                                                                                                                                                    in the GradIreland Graduate Recruitment

                                                                                                                       research
                                                                                                                                       and implementation. For example,
EVOSS: Delivering Leading Research

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 EVOSS: Delivering Leading Research
                                                                                                                                                                                    Awards 2014.
                                                                                                                                       the tangible value of agile and lean
                                                                                                                                       practices in organisations has not been
                                                                                                                                       quantified to date. Dr Kieran Conboy, PI     Industry Engagement
                                                                                                                                       and research group leader along with         and Impact
                                                                                                                                       Ken Power, doctoral researcher and
                                                                                                                                       Lean and Agile Consultant at CISCO, are      Underpinning the work of EVOSS is the
                                                                                                                                       addressing this by developing a metric-      ability to combine research expertise

                                                                                                           evidence-based
                                                                                                                                       based assessment of the true agility         with applied industry experiences, which
                                                                                                                                       and leanness of organisations. Further,      maximises impact on research, policy
                                                                                                                                       scaling agile project management             and practice. A core activity of the group
                                                                                                                                       principles from small co-located software    is researcher-industry knowledge
Research matters - NUI Galway
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                                     NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08

                                     6                                                                                                                                             PROFILES                                                                                      meet the people
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             behind the research
                                                                                                                                     including gender and ethnicity, industry
                                                                                                                                     sector and location diversity. In addition
                                                                                                                                                                                   Dr Mark Bruzzi
                                                                                                                                     to collaborating and shaping the funding      Programme Director BioInnovate Ireland
                                                                                                                                     structures of Irish funding agencies, such
                                                                                                                                     as the Irish Research Council, Enterprise
                                                                                                                                     Ireland and SFI, the team will collaborate
                                                                                                                                     with the Open Innovation Group at the
                                                                                                                                     University of California, Berkeley.

                                                                                                                                     Cross Cutting Research

                                                                                                                                     ‘Information Systems’ is still a relatively
                                                                                                                                     young field with research examining
                                                                                                                                     the application of technology and its
                                                                                                                                     impact across a broad spectrum of
                                                                                                                                     social and business values. This means
                                                                                                                                     that rich collaborations are possible

                                                                                                                                                                                   I
                                                                                                                                     within medicine, science, engineering
                                                                                                                                     as well as mainstream management.
                                                                                                                                     Leveraging the success of an SFI Award
                                                                                                                                                                                                I finished my PhD studies in    I joined their BioDesign programme for       Affiliates Programme, which will lead
                                                                                                                                     in 2011 - the first such award to a
                                                                                                                                                                                                Mechanical Engineering here     six months. This programme was already       to more fluid connectivity between
                                                                                                                                     Business School in Ireland - Dr Conboy
                                                                                                                                                                                                at NUI Galway – specifically    ten years in existence at that point,        Silicon Valley and Ireland. We recently
                                                                                                                                     commented that: “Traditionally, SFI                                                        and focused on developing early stage
                                                                                                                                                                                                on the mechanical behaviour
                                                                                                                                     grants have almost exclusively been                                                                                                     organised the first European meeting
                                                                                                                                                                                                of metal alloys - in 2000,      medical technologies through embedding
                                                                                                                                     awarded to researchers within Science                                                                                                   for programmes of this kind where we
                                                                                                                                                                                                and started lecturing in the    engineers, medical doctors, and business
                                                                                                                                     and Engineering. The recognition by                                                                                                     hosted 18 universities from 11 different
                                        Top: Research Team (L-R): Eoin Cullina, Dr Kieran Conboy (PI), Dr Lorraine Morgan, Dr Orla                                                 University immediately after that. Much of   people within the hospital environment
                                        O’Dwyer, Roger Sweetman, Dr Tom Acton, Dr Sharon Coyle, Brendan O’Malley (Lero), Trevor      SFI of the strategic importance of            my early research activities were centred    who could then identify unmet clinical       countries who participate. These
                                        Clohessy. Absent: Dr Niamh O’Riordan, Dr Eoin Whelan, Dr Garry Lohan, Ken Power.             our research demonstrates the value           around the medical device industry, which    needs and develop solutions.                 included: Northwestern University
                                        Bottom: Representatives from IBM, Lumension, Ericsson, Aró, Fidelity, CSGI, SourceDogg
                                        and NUI Galway.                                                                              of business research.” The team               is obviously strong here in Galway.                                                       Illinois, John Hopkins University
                                                                                                                                     hopes to diversify their expertise by                                                      During my time in Stanford, I
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Maryland, Imperial College London,
                                                                                                                                     working in collaboration with other           Then I did some work with a medical          simultaneously helped launch the
                                        exchanges which take place every              the optimisation of data presentation                                                                                                                                                  Karolinska Instituet Sweden, Stanford
                                                                                                                                     disciplines and areas where value can         device start-up called Brivant Medical.      BioInnovate programme here in August
                                     three months. The aim of these is to             for effective decision-making. Detailed,                                                                                                                                               University California, and Biocat
                                                                                                                                     be added. As funding agencies look            That company started to grow and an          2011, lead by Dr Pat Morgan, and working
                                     share experiences, participate in hands-         tailored feedback has been provided                                                          opportunity for me to leave the University   with a team that included Sandra Ganly,      Institute Barcelona, etc.
                                                                                                                                     increasingly towards collaborative
                                     on activities, and work together towards         to industry participants in the study to                                                     and join that team on a full-time basis      Dr Faisal Sharif, Dr Fabio Quondametteo
                                                                                                                                     funding programmes with tangible
                                     creating practical and immediately               show how they can improve decision-                                                                                                                                                    In terms of my own career, I get more
                                                                                                                                     commercialisation outputs, EvoSS is           arose so I took it. We specialised in the    and Dr Kathryn Cormican.
                                     applicable solutions to real industry            making. This has resulted in better quality                                                  development and manufacture of cardio                                                     excited by the growth and possibilities of
                                                                                                                                     uniquely positioned given their size,
                                     problems.                                        decisions and greater efficiencies during                                                    vascular guide wires. This company grew      It was clear to us that there was a need     BioInnovate each year I’m involved. The
                                                                                                                                     scale and complimentary skillsets
                                                                                      the decision-making process.                                                                 to over 60 people in the subsequent years.   here for something similar to BioDesign.     programme gives me the opportunity to
                                     This engagement provides evidence-                                                              to work together in meaningful
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                This was all in the context of economic
                                     based insight on key issues in software                                                         collaboration with University partners,                                                                                                 help create real impact by translating
                                                                                                                                                                                   In 2005, I decided to return to NUI          doom and gloom but the University were
                                     implementation and management,                                                                  industry and funding agencies.                                                                                                          technologies that meet medical needs,
                                                                                      EVOSS – Informing Funding                                                                    Galway but continue doing research           quick to commit to a programme and
                                     which enables EVOSS to create tangible                                                                                                                                                                                                  and which provide economic value as well
                                                                                      Strategies and Structures                      EVOSS is part of the Lero national            projects with the likes of Brivant           fund its initial development phase. In
                                     research outcomes that are immediately                                                                                                                                                                                                  as more traditional academic metrics.
                                                                                                                                     software research centre, the Enterprise      Medical and others. At this time, much       addition, Enterprise Ireland gave pilot
                                     applicable to organisational settings. The       Dr Kieran Conboy and Dr Lorraine Morgan                                                      of my research focused on process            funding to fellows that would undertake

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Profiles: Dr Mark Bruzzi, Bioinnovate Ireland
                                     team work with SMEs - such as Lumension,                                                        Agility Cluster within the Whitaker
                                                                                      were recently awarded an Irish Research                                                                                                                                                I’m very happy with our progress. After
                                                                                                                                     Institute for Innovation and Societal         development for medical technologies         the programme, and medical technology
                                     SourceDogg and Information Mosaic, along                                                                                                                                                                                                three years, we’ve had seven new
                                                                                      Council grant to evaluate the impact of                                                      but soon led into product development.       provider, Medtronic, also supported us
                                                                                                                                     Change, and the JE Cairnes School of
EVOSS: Delivering Leading Research

                                     with multi-national industry partners like
                                                                                      national funding agencies and identify                                                                                                    from the start.                              technologies developed, and created
                                     Cisco, HP and Intel - to deliver solutions                                                      Business & Economics. The research team
                                                                                      and validate new and improved funding                                                        Because of this existing collaborative                                                    several external linkages, including the
                                     to varying software agility issues. For                                                         consists of five academics, five doctoral
                                                                                      mechanisms and strategies. This award is                                                     activity within the University, I was        Now in our third year we’ve expanded to
                                     example, in Cisco Ken Power has applied                                                         and three post-doctoral researchers.                                                                                                    recent $16 million agreement between
                                                                                      one of three grants bestowed nationally                                                      frequently approached by medical             three teams and have groups in University
                                     modern lean approaches and metrics with                                                                                                                                                                                                 Enterprise Ireland and the Mayo Clinic
                                                                                      and is part of a long-term SFI strategy to                                                   doctors who had ideas for novel medical      College Cork (UCC), University of Limerick
                                     teams from around the world, uncovering                                                         For further information you can contact:                                                                                                in Rochester, Minnesota, which we are
                                                                                      improve funding structures. The project                                                      technologies but realised there was a gap    (UL) and here in Galway. [See Galway
                                     inefficiencies and improving overall team                                                       sharon.coyle@nuigalway.ie
                                                                                                                                                                                   for engineers to interact with clinicians.   team’s profiles on following page]           facilitating.
                                     and organisational effectiveness. Further, in    will identify ways that national agencies      Orla.odwyer@nuigalway.ie
                                     an effort to help industry partners improve      can optimise the inputs, processes,            www.twitter.com/EVOSwSs                                                                                                                 By JOHN HOLDEN
                                                                                                                                                                                   In 2011 the chance to do a sabbatical        Since then Stanford have invited us to
                                     decision-making, research conducted by Dr        outputs and outcomes of crowd sourcing         evoss.lero.ie                                 at Stanford University came up and so        be formally affiliated under their Global    Editor, Research Matters
                                     Sharon Coyle and Dr Garry Lohan examines         efforts and maximise participation             www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=
                                     the use of decision quality indicators and       of individuals and firms with themes           7499533&trk=anet_ug_hm
Research matters - NUI Galway
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                                    NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08

                                    8
                                     PROFILES
                                                                                                                                                                        FBM Ltd.
                                                                                                                                                                        Electronic Design Expertise

                                                                                                                                                                        T
                                                                                                                                                                                         FBM Ltd is based in NUI Galway’s Business           Short-Term Investigative License
                                                                                                                                                                                         Innovation Centre, centrally located on the
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             During the lifetime of the Innovation Voucher, the TTO work

                                    The Galway BioInnovate Team
                                                                                                                                                                                         thriving third level campus. The company offers
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             with FBM on a fixed term license which gives them access
                                                                                                                                                                                         a range of services related to the electronic
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             and permission to use the IP which had been developed
                                                                                                                                                                                         side of product development. This could be
                                    www.bioinnovate.ie                                                                                                                  anything from a short investigation to define a specification,
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             by Prof Hurley’s team. The purpose of this agreement was
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             simply to allow the company to examine the practicalities of
                                                                                                                                                                        the design of a prototype for “proof of concept,” or a complete
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             developing a device which could be used to implement the
                                                                                                                                                                        design to production readiness.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             IP. The project was a success and they have now developed
                                                                                                                                                                        Clients range from very early start-ups to large multinationals      a platform on which further product development and
                                                                                                                                                                        in various sectors: basically anyone who needs electronic            customisation can take place.
                                    Eoin Bambury                                 Dr Kyle Halligan                            Ms Michelle Tsai                           design expertise.
                                    Eoin has over 12 years experience in         Kyle has experience in both frontline       Michelle graduated from UC Berkeley with
                                    R&D roles of medical device new product      and clinical medicine, bench to             a degree in Bioengineering, and pursued                                                                         Full Commercialisation License
                                    development. Having graduated from           bedside clinical research, and product      a Masters Degree in Bioengineering at
                                    Dublin City University in 2000 with          development. He graduated in 2003           Stanford University. Michelle has always   The Smart Battery Analyser                                           Leading on from the success of the investigative phase of
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             the project, NUI Galway and FBM have agreed terms and put
                                    a BEng in Mechatronics engineering           from the University of Connecticut (CT,     been passionate about healthcare and
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             in place a comprehensive license to commercialise the IP. This
                                    he joined Caradyne Ltd in Galway as          USA) with a BSc in both Molecular Cell      really enjoys working on engineering
                                    systems engineer, working on design          Biology & Physiology and Neurobiology. He   design projects. Her goal is to get more                                                                        will result in the spinning out of a new company (Pulse Battery
                                    and development of non-invasive              worked as a Chemist in the Research and     involved in medical technology and help                                                                         Management) dedicated to the development of a range of
                                    continuous positive airway pressure          Development lab of Spartech Polycast (CT,   design/develop new technology that                                                                              products to be brought to the market.
                                    (CPAP) respiratory equipment. In 2004 he     USA) which included original patentable     will help improve the health of people
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             The FBM Smart Battery Analyser evaluates the State Of
                                    was awarded an MSc in Bioengineering         ideas and medically implantable plastics.   around the world.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Health (SOH) of a battery in less than a minute. SOH testing is
                                    from the University of Limerick having
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             the only true measure of a battery’s worth.
                                    completed his studies on a part-time         He furthered his science background with
                                    basis. He transferred to Respironics Inc     an MSc in 2006 in Cellular and Molecular    Mr Moshe Zilversmit
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Built on patented technology which was developed from
                                    California, USA after Respironics acquired   Biology from the University of New Haven    Moshe has been developing medical
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             years of intensive research carried out at NUI Galway, the
                                    Caradyne in 2004. At Respironics, he         (CT, USA). He continued the work of his     devices for eight years. He was one
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             FBM Smart Battery Analyser is the result of a true symbiosis
                                    worked as senior engineer in the R&D         novel research proposal at Yale Medical     of the founding members of Chest           FBM was successfully awarded an Innovation Voucher from              between NUI Galway and private enterprise.
                                    team developing non-invasive multi-          Center (CT, USA) in the Breast Cancer       Innovations where he led the company       Enterprise Ireland and engaged with NUI Galway’s Ignite
                                    therapy respiratory equipment. In 2006       Research Unit. His lab work included        in the development of thoracic surgical    Technology Transfer Office (TTO) in relation to the inspection of    This has been a very successful collaboration all round and
                                    he returned to Ireland to join Crospon Ltd   identifying genetic biomarkers of disease   devices for the treatment of lung          a block of IP that had been developed by Prof Ger Hurley and his     FBM and NUI Galway look forward to continued research
                                    working as principal engineer in the R&D     in preserved samples previously thought     cancer and emphysema. Prior to Chest       team at the Dept of Electrical and Electronic Engineering. The       and development together. The company is delighted to be
                                    group on gastro-intestinal hollow organ      to be unusable.                             Innovations he held R&D positions at       collaboration with Prof Hurley and his team, made possible by        housed in the NUI Galway Business Innovation Centre availing
                                    functional imaging and transdermal                                                       academic and early stage medical device    the use of the Innovation Voucher, meant that FBM were able to       of the super business supports offered by Ignite TTO.
                                    drug delivery applications. Eoin has         A UCD medical graduate, his                 companies where he was responsible         avail of expertise, facilities and equipment as well as gaining an
                                    contributed to the development of five       undergraduate training took place           for the development of innovative          understanding of the technology.                                     For more info go to:
                                    electronic medical devices currently on      in numerous US hospitals as a               medical technologies in the urology,                                                                            www.fbm.ie
Profiles: Galway Bioinnovate Team

                                    the market and is a named author on six      visiting medical student including          anaesthesia, orthopaedic, gynaecology      The IP relates specifically to the area of battery analysis. Prof

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 FBM Ltd. Smart Battery Analyser
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Tel: +353 91 86 29 17
                                    patent filings. In 2012 he was named         Massachusetts General Hospital,             and cardiovascular arenas.                 Hurley’s team have developed and successfully patented
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             info@fbm.ie
                                    “Chartered Engineer of the Year” by          Shriners Hospital for Children in                                                      a process whereby the state of health of a battery can be
                                    Engineers Ireland.                           Boston, Thomas Jefferson University         Upon returning from a trip to Tanzania     determined very quickly. Up to now, to accurately measure            Or you can contact Fiona Neary
                                                                                 in Philadelphia and the Yale-affiliated     along with his passion to bring            this figure relating to the battery’s actual performance ability     NUI Galway Business Development Manager
                                                                                 Bridgeport Hospital in Connecticut.         healthcare to those residing at the        required the battery to be disconnected and put through              Ignite Technology Transfer Office
                                                                                 He aims to utilize the BioInnovate          bottom of the pyramid, Moshe cofounded     a range of time-consuming tests – such as a complete                 Tel: +353 (0)91 492147
                                                                                 programme to develop exciting tools         Evolving Technologies, which develops      discharge/charge cycle.                                              Fiona.neary@nuigalway.ie
                                                                                 to aid the clinical fields of Emergency,    medical devices to meet the needs of
                                                                                 Medicine and beyond. He enjoys the          patients and physicians practicing in
                                                                                 outdoors and travelling to new places.      emerging markets.
Research matters - NUI Galway
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                    NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08                                                                                                                                                             NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08

                    10                                                                                                                                                                                                                  11

                      RESEARCH
                      IN FOCUS                                                                                                                                                                  A CLOSER LOOK AT RESEARCH ACTIVITY
                                                                                                                                                                                                        PARAGRAPH
                                                                                                                                                                                                                ON ABOUT SECTION....
                                                                                                                                                                                                                   AND OFF CAMPUS

                    Minister for Education visits NUI Galway                                                                Cell EXPLORERS – a model for
                                                                                                                            sustainable public engagement
                                                                                                                            by third level institutions
                                                                                                                            Cell EXPLORERS is a science outreach programme based in
                                                                                                                            the School of Natural Sciences that promotes biological and
                                                                                                                            biomedical sciences. With its sister programme, Eco-EXPLORERS,
                                                                                                                            it is at the heart of the SNS EXPLORERS initiative.

                                                                                                                            Since its inception, Cell EXPLORERS has leveraged funds of
                                                                                                                            over €84,000 from national and international funding bodies,
                                                                                                                            recruited over 130 volunteer students and staff, visited 69
                                                                                                                            schools, hosted 12 workshops and has directly engaged 3,800
                                                                                                                            children, parents, teachers and the general public.

                                                                                                                            In the last year Cell EXPLORERS has received funding from
                                                                                                                            the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) Discover Science and
                                                                                                                            Engineering Award, which allowed it to expand its activities and
                                                                                                                            to visit schools outside of Galway City, and from the Wellcome
                                                                                                                            Trust People Award, which permitted the pilot integration of
                                                                                                                            outreach projects into the undergraduate curriculum. Programme
                                                     Minister for Education Ruairí Quinn TD officially opened two           director, Dr Muriel Grenon, was also honoured with the SFI
                                                     new buildings at NUI Galway on the 1st of May 2014; the                ‘Outstanding Contribution to STEM’ award and Cell EXPLORERS
                                                     Hardiman Research Building for research in the humanities and          represented Ireland Outreach at the 2014 Malta Science EXPO.
                                                     social sciences, and a new home for the University’s School of         Cell EXPLORERS is working towards impacting science education
                                                     Psychology. With a combined investment of €23 million, the             nationally by developing a Continuous Professional Development
                                                     new buildings offer world-class teaching, learning and research        module in collaboration with the NUI Galway School of Education
                                                     facilities for staff, students and the public. The Hardiman Research   and the Galway Education Centre.
                                                     Building will house NUI Galway’s unique collection of more than
                                                     350 literary, theatrical, political and historical archives from the   The Cell EXPLORERS model represents a unique, sustainable
                                                     digitised Abbey Theatre Archive, the world’s largest digital theatre   method of performing outreach activities, while simultaneously
                                                     archive, which has been in development since 2012. The €15             promoting NUI Galway research. A high demonstrator to pupil
                                                     million Hardiman Research Building project was partially funded        ratio, interactive hands-on activities and a core of enthusiastic
                                                     under the Programme for Research in Third-Level Institutions           volunteer students underpin the success of the programme.
                                                     (PRTLI) and co-funded under the European Regional Development          Integration of outreach into the curriculum contributes to
                                                     Fund. €10 million of funding was provided by the Dept of Jobs,         sustainability by ensuring novel activities are created and by
                                                     Enterprise and Innovation through PTRLI Cycle 5 and the balance        training the next generation of science communicators.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Top: 1st class students
                                                     from private sources through the Galway University Foundation.                                                                                                          learn about the cells
                                                                                                                            The Cell EXPLORERS model can be piloted within the School                                        in our bodies with Cell
                                                                                                                                                                                                                             EXPLORERS. Middle: Cell
                                                        TOP: NUI Galway Librarian John Cox shows Minister Ruairí Quinn      of Natural Sciences and has the potential for growth within                                      EXPLORERS volunteers
Research In Focus

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Research In Focus
                                                        and NUI Galway President Dr Jim Browne some photographs             the College of Science and the University at large, allowing                                     are awarded their
                                                        of 19th century Connemara from the Arthur J Balfour Album,                                                                                                           ALIVE certificates with
                                                        a volume in the James Hardiman Library’s special collections,       NUI Galway to be at the forefront of science outreach both
                                                                                                                                                                                                                             programme director Dr
                                                        housed in the new Hardiman Research Building. The Balfour           nationally and internationally.                                                                  Muriel Grenon at centre.
                                                        Album of photographs was originally created in 1893-1895 by                                                                                                          Bottom: Cell EXPLORERS
                                                        the Belfast photographer, Robert John Welch.                                                                                                                         activities include visits
                                                        LEFT: The ‘Performing Ireland 1904-2014’ exhibition currently on    You can follow Cell EXPLORERS on Facebook: www.facebook.                                         to science festivals,
                                                        show at NUI Galway.                                                 com/Cellexplorers, and Twitter: @cellexplorers                                                   open days, and schools.
Research matters - NUI Galway
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                    NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08

                    12                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      13
                     RESEARCH IN FOCUS

                    Youth Academy
                    In 2012, NUI Galway established the Youth Academy. Its goal
                    is to inspire entry to the university by introducing children and
                    their families to university life. The Youth Academy works with
                    high ability 4th, 5th and 6th class primary school students to
                    support their learning and academic development and works
                    in partnership with primary schools across the Western region.
                    Since 2012 almost 800 students have graduated from a range
                    of specially designed courses, in a variety of subjects, across
                    numerous disciplines. Courses range from “Idea Detectives:
                    Exploring the World with Philosophy” to “Map Adventures and the
                    World in 3D”. The Youth Academy runs for a seven-week period
                    on Saturday mornings from 10am-12.30pm. On the final day of
                    the Youth Academy a graduation ceremony takes place where
                    students receive certificates of participation, from the President
                    of NUI Galway, and their families and friends are invited on
                    campus to share in the celebrations.

                    For further information you can contact Geraldine Marley, the
                    Youth Academy Coordinator at: youthacademy@nuigalway.ie
                    or www.nuigalway.ie/youthacademy

                                                                                                                                                                           	NUI Galway Fulbright Awardees (back row l-r) Dr Emer Mulligan and Prof Fidelma Dunne. Front row (l-r) Dr Gavin Collins, Alena Yuryna Connolly, Julanne
                                                                                                                                                                            Murphy and Colm Mac Fhionnghaile.

                                                                                                                                                                          Fulbright Scholarships Galore!
                                                                                                                                                                          A total of 40 new Irish Fulbright Awardees were announced this year at                  Dr Emer Mulligan is Head of the School of Business and
                                                                                                                                                                          the U.S. Ambassador’s Residence. For over 50 years, The Fulbright Awards                Economics at NUI Galway. As a Fulbright-CRH Scholar at the
                                                                                                                                                                          have been given annually by the Irish and U.S. governments to provide Irish             Harvard Kennedy School of Government, Dr Mulligan’s research
                                                                                                                                                                          students, scholars, and professionals with the opportunity to study, lecture,           activities will focus on taxation in practice in US multinational
                                                                                                                                                                          and research at top universities and institutions throughout the United                 corporations and US tax policy and administration.
                                                                                                                                                                          States. In 2014, a staggering six out of 40 were awarded to NUI Galway
                                                                                                                                                                          academics and researchers:                                                              Julanne Murphy completed a Professional Diploma in Education
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  at NUI Galway in 2012 and is currently a secondary school
                                                                                                                                                                          Dr Gavin Collins is a lecturer in microbiology and European Research Council            teacher at Ardscoil Rís, Limerick. Julanne will be a Fulbright
                                                                                                                                                                          Fellow at NUI Galway, and a British Science Association Media Fellow at The             Foreign Language Teaching Assistant at the Catholic University
                                                                                                                                                                          Irish Times. As a Fulbright Scholar at the University of California Berkeley,           of America, Washington D.C.
                                                                                                                                                                          Dr Collins will investigate microbial genomics in bioenergy production and
                                                                                                                                                                          enhanced oil-recovery processes.                                                        Alena Yuryna Connolly is currently undertaking a PhD in
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Information Systems Security at NUI Galway. While at the
                                                                                                                                                                          Prof Fidelma Dunne is the Head of the School of Medicine at NUI Galway.                 University of California Berkeley, Alena will research socio-
                                                                                                                                                                          Prof Dunne will research alongside Prof Mary D’Alton at Columbia University             cultural measures that promote security-cautious behaviour of

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Fulbright Scholarships
                                                                                                                                                                          in New York. She will compare and contrast the screening and clinical                   employees in organisational settings.
Research In Focus

                                                                                                                                                                          outcomes for women with Gestational Diabetes in both states to include a
                                                                                                                                                                          cost benefit analysis.

                                                                                                                                                                          Colm Mac Fhionnghaile is an MA candidate in Modern Irish at NUI Galway.
                                                                                                                                                                          Colm will be a Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant in the
                       Over 200 students are presented with certificates of participation from the President of NUI Galway at the graduation ceremony in February 2014.
                                                                                                                                                                          University of Connecticut.
Research matters - NUI Galway
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             NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08                                                                                                                                                                                           NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08

             14                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     15
                                                             C                  Corneal transplantation is the most common
                                                                                transplant carried out worldwide with over 100,000
                                                                                procedures each year. It is often the only treatment
                                                                                available to restore sight to people who have lost
                                                                                vision due to diseases of the cornea. Unfortunately,
                                                             due to immunological and other biological reasons, a large proportion
                                                             of corneal transplants fail.

             VISICORT
             NUI Galway to Lead New €6 million EU Project
             Tackling Corneal Transplantation Failure                                                                                   From childhood to adolescence, exploring
                                                                                                                                        the social determinants of health
                                                             Researchers at the Regenerative Medicine Institute (REMEDI)

                                                                                                                                        The Health Behaviour
                                                             have come together with NUI Galway spin-out company Orbsen
                                                             Therapeutics, and the Centre for Cell Manufacturing Ireland (CCMI), to
                                                             lead a €6 million EU Framework Programme 7-funded project aimed

                                                                                                                                        of School-aged Children
                                                             at better understanding the adverse immune responses to corneal
                                                             transplants. The researchers also aim to improve corneal transplant
                                                             outcomes using a stem cell therapy to modify the immune response in

                                                                                                                                        (HBSC) Survey
                                                             high-risk corneal transplant recipients.

                                                             Known as “VISICORT” (Adverse Immune Responses and their
                                                             Prevention in Corneal Transplantation), the five-year project is being

                                                                                                                                        A
                                                             jointly coordinated by Prof Matthew Griffin and Dr Thomas Ritter in
                                                             partnership with 11 other academic and industry-based partners
                                                             from France, Germany, Denmark and the UK.
                                                                                                                                                        A pioneering cross-national study on young           perspectives strengthens the study and ensures that adolescent
                                                             Speaking at the launch of the project, Prof Griffin said, “It is                           people’s health and health behaviour is underway     health is considered holistically.
                                                             extremely exciting to have the opportunity to collaborate with                             within the Health Promotion Research Centre
                                                                                                                                                        (HPRC) at NUI Galway. Drs Saoirse Nic Gabhainn,      The HBSC Ireland team collect data from children and young
                                                             such an outstanding group of researchers from different parts of
                                                                                                                                                        Michal Molcho and Collette Kelly were successful     people aged 9-18 years every four years. Internationally, data
                                                             Europe. Our common goal of further improving the results of corneal
                                                                                                                                        in securing funding from the Dept of Health to collect and analyse   is collected and compared for adolescents aged 11, 13 and 15
                                                             transplantation through a better understanding of the immune
                                                                                                                                        data on health and health behaviours from representative             years. These years mark a period of increased autonomy that can
                                                             response can only be achieved by combining the skills and resources
                                                                                                                                        samples of school children in Ireland.                               influence how their health and health-related behaviours develop.
                                                             of all the partners.”

                                                                                                                                        This research collaboration with the WHO Regional Office for         Data collected from children in schools this academic year
                                                             Dr Thomas Ritter added, “In recent years, our Immunology research
                                                                                                                                        Europe is conducted every four years in 43 countries and regions
                                                             programme at REMEDI has focused at a basic level on understanding                                                                               will be analysed, interpreted and disseminated widely, with
                                                                                                                                        across Europe and North America. With child and adolescent
                                                             the immune response to transplanted tissues such as the cornea as                                                                               consultation from the Dept of Health on what the data show for
                                                                                                                                        health a key priority in Ireland and globally, the HPRC uses its
                                                             well as on the immune altering effects of stem cells. VISICORT now                                                                              young people living in Ireland today. Cross-national comparisons
                                                                                                                                        findings to inform policy and practice to improve the lives of
                                                             gives us the chance to apply this research to people with severe eye                                                                            will also enable us to compare policies and practices in other
                                                                                                                                        young people.
                                                             disease who can benefit from new tests and cellular therapies.”                                                                                 countries and how these may apply or inform our work in
                                                                                                                                                                                                             Ireland. HBSC member countries and stakeholders at national
                                                                                                                                        The Health Behaviour of School-aged Children (HBSC) Survey is
                                                             The Galway teams will be building on an existing model system which                                                                             and international levels can also use our data to monitor young
                                                                                                                                        not only about health behaviours such as tobacco and alcohol
                                                             shows that stem cells can have a positive effect on the immune                                                                                  people’s health, understand the social determinants of health,
                                                                                                                                        use. Its remit is wide and aims to explore the social determinants
                                                             system during transplantation leading to an improvement in the overall                                                                          and determine effective health-improvement interventions.
                                                                                                                                        of health, with emphasis on family, friends, school and community
                                                             success of corneal transplantation. The final year of the project will
                                                                                                                                        networks and how they may influence health and wellbeing. The
                                                             involve a clinical trial testing the usefulness of stem cells in corneal   HBSC study dates back to 1982 when only a handful of countries       For more info go to: www.nuigalway.ie/hbsc, www.hbsc.org
                                                             transplant, using cells manufactured at NUI Galway in the CCMI.            were involved, with Ireland joining in 1994. Today, the research     Colette.kelly@nuigalway.ie
                                                                                                                                        collaboration across 43 regions brings together individuals with     www.nuigalway.ie/hprc

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 HBSC Survey
                                                             By DR KIERAN RYAN
                                                                                                                                        a wide range of expertise in areas such as clinical medicine,
VISICORT

                                                             www.remedi.ie
                                                                                                                                        epidemiology, human biology, paediatrics, pedagogy, psychology,      HPRC is a designated WHO (World Health Organisation)
                Prof Matthew Griffin and Dr Thomas Ritter.   Kieran.a.ryan@nuigalway.ie                                                                                                                      Collaborating Centre for Health Promotion Research
                                                                                                                                        public health, public policy, and sociology. This diverse range of
Research matters - NUI Galway
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                                NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08                                                                                                                                                                                             NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08

                                16                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      17

                                 RESEARCH                                                                                                                                                                                                                A round up of some of

                                 BYTES                                                                                                                                                                                                                  the other big research
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            news at NUI Galway

                                Dr Conor O’Byrne travels to Umeå, Sweden, for cutting edge research                                                              School of Nursing & Midwifery research paper wins at
                                                                                                                                                                 Royal Academy of Medicine in Ireland
                                Located on the Baltic coast some 600km
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 (Lto R) Dr Dympna
                                north of Stockholm, and at a latitude of                                                                                         A paper published by the Pulmonary                                                                              Casey, Prof
                                64 degrees North, the University of Umeå,                                                                                        Rehabilitation in Nurse-led Community                                                                           Andrew W Murphy
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 and Prof Kathy
                                Sweden is one of the most northerly                                                                                              Environment (PRINCE) research team
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Murphy.
                                universities in Europe. NUI Galway                                                                                               won the General Practice category
                                microbiologist Dr Conor O’Byrne recently                                                                                         at the Royal Academy of Medicine
                                worked in the lab of Prof Jörgen Johansson                                                                                       in Ireland (RAMI) Doctor Awards on
                                in the Dept of Molecular Biology, which                                                                                          24th April 2014. The winning paper
                                is an exciting environment with a                                                                                                examined, “The effectiveness of a
                                strong reputation in Infectious Disease                                                                                          structured education pulmonary
                                Microbiology. Prof Johansson’s group                                                                                             rehabilitation programme for
                                focuses on understanding the molecular                                                                                           improving the health status of people
                                mechanisms that determine virulence                                                                                              with moderate and severe chronic             attended the structured programme           Kathy Murphy, Declan Devane, Adeline
                                gene expression in the bacterial food-                                                                                           obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)         were significantly better able to           Cooney, Bernard McCarthy, Lorraine Mee,
                                borne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes.                                                                                           in primary care.” The study was funded       manage their breathing difficulties than    John Newell, Eamon O’ Shea, Carl Scarrott,
                                                                                                                                                                 by the Health Research Board, and            those who did not attend.                   Paddy Gillespie, Collette Kirwan and
                                While there O’Byrne worked with his                                                                                              consisted of a two-armed randomised                                                      Andrew W Murphy.
                                team to develop new approaches aimed            Dr Conor O’Byrne visiting Lappland.                                              cluster trial. In one arm (intervention      The study was led by Prof Kathy Murphy
                                at understanding how this pathogen                                                                                               group), persons with COPD received           and Dr Dympna Casey, from the School        The winning paper is available from the
                                senses and protects itself from the harsh    at NUI Galway - the Bacterial Stress     to some exciting new results which         a structured education pulmonary             of Nursing & Midwifery NUI Galway, but      following link:
                                conditions encountered when it enters        Response Group - has been studying       demonstrate a strong link between stress   rehabilitation programme, while the          also involved collaboration with other      http://thorax.bmj.com/
                                the human host, something his own group      for many years. This collaboration led   sensing and virulence in this bacterium.   other arm (control group) received usual     researchers from NUI Galway, the HSE and    content/early/2013/06/09/
                                                                                                                                                                 care. The study found that people who        the UK. The authors were Dympna Casey,      thoraxjnl-2012-203103.long#aff-5

                                  NUI Galway Pain Researchers Win Prize for
                                  Best Research Paper                                                                                                            Irish Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting at NUI Galway

                                  For the second year running, Prof          The first author of the winning paper    An increased understanding of the          The annual meeting of the Irish              prominent national and international        the 10 available prizes. Also of note
                                  David Finn of NUI Galway has been          was Dr Kieran Rea, a postdoctoral        biological mechanisms involved in          Association for Cancer Research (IACR)       scientists.                                 was that the former NUI Galway PhD
                                  awarded the Royal Academy of               researcher in Prof Finn’s laboratory.    fear-induced analgesia is important        was recently held in Galway. This is                                                     graduate, Tríona Ní Chonghaile, was
                                  Medicine in Ireland’s (RAMI) Doctor        RAMI’s Doctor Awards are presented       from a fundamental physiological           the primary scientific meeting for           This year over 260 attendees were           conferred with the prestigious EACR
                                                                             each year to Irish or Irish-based        perspective and may also advance           cancer research in Ireland and attracts      present and 148 submitted abstracts.        Young Scientist Award (senior category).
                                  Award for best paper published in an
                                                                             researchers who are judged to have       the search for new therapeutic
Research Bytes: News In Brief

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       Research Bytes: News In Brief
                                                                                                                                                                 individuals from all disciplines including   The best of those were selected to
                                  indexed journal in 2013 in the Pain/
                                                                             published the best research papers in    approaches to the treatment of pain.       Basic Science, Translational Science,        give oral presentations and NUI Galway      The contributions of new IACR council
                                  Anaesthesia category. Prof Finn,
                                                                             international, peer-reviewed journals.                                              Oncology, Haematology and Surgery.           came home with one of the major             members, Prof Afshin Samali and Dr
                                  Lecturer in Pharmacology, Co-Director
                                                                                                                      This research was funded by grants                                                      honours by winning the best oral poster     Emer Bourke, to the organisation of the
                                  of the Centre for Pain Research and        The winning paper confirmed the          from Science Foundation Ireland, the       The goal of this meeting is to bring         presentation.                               event must be recognised, as well as
                                  Leader of the Galway Neuroscience          key role of a brain region called        Health Research Board and the Irish        excellent international speakers to the                                                  the NUI Galway Foundation, the College
                                  Centre, received the award at a            the basolateral amygdala in the          Research Council.                          country in order to give our scientists-     All the posters were judged by the          of Science, the School of Medicine and
                                  ceremony held in the Royal College of      suppression of pain behaviour by fear                                               in-training the opportunity to hear          IACR council members and NUI Galway         the Research Office for supporting the
                                  Surgeons in Dublin.                        (so-called fear-induced analgesia).                                                 from experts in cancer research and to       came out well on top of all other Irish     meeting and the participation of NUI
                                                                                                                                                                 allow them to present their science to       institutions by securing five out of        Galway researchers.
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                                NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08                                                                                                                                                                                                      NUI GALWAY RESEARCH MATTERS 08

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                                 RESEARCH BYTES                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              News In Brief

                                                                          COST Actions at the Whitaker Institute                                                     Happy Birthday! 20th Anniversary of the Ryan Institute’s
                                                                                                                                                                     Irish Seaweed Research Group
                                                                          COST is one of the longest-running              meeting of the COST Action - People
                                                                          European frameworks supporting                  Friendly Cities in a Data Rich World.                                                                                                     Researchers at the Ryan Institute’s
                                                                          cooperation among scientists and                                                                                                                                                          Irish Seaweed Research Group. Back
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    L-R: Maeve Edwards, Aimée Walls,
                                                                          researchers across Europe. It is an             Dr Gerard Turley is a member of the
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    Benoît Quéguineur, Svenja Heesch,
                                                                          intergovernmental framework allowing            management committee of the COST                                                                                                          Néstor Robinson (visiting student;
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    Mexico). Front L-R: Jessica Ratcliff,
                                                                          the coordination of nationally-funded           Action - Local Public Sector Reforms: An
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    Alex Wan, Jyotsna Mishra, Anna Soler-
                                                                          research on a European level. COST              International Comparison.                                                                                                                 Vila, Anne-Sophie de Crane (visiting
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    student; France), Richard Walsh, Jazmin
                                                                          enables breakthrough scientific                                                                                                                                                           Hernández-Kantún (recently appointed
                                                                                                                          Dr Srinivas Raghavendra recently hosted
                                                                          developments leading to new concepts                                                                                                                                                      to the Smithsonian Institution in
                                                                                                                          a workshop on Data Visualisation                                                                                                          Washington,DC).
                                                                          and products and thereby contributes
                                                                                                                          and Analytics as part of the COST
                                                                          to strengthening Europe’s research and
                                                                                                                          Action - Analysing the Dynamics of
                                                                          innovation capacities.
                                 PhD student wins                                                                         Information and Knowledge Landscapes
                                                                                                                          - KNOWeSCAPE.
                                                                          Researchers at the Whitaker Institute                                                                                                      the Irish Seaweed Industry Organisation
                                 CN Davies Award                          for Innovation and Societal Change are
                                                                                                                                                                     The year 2014 marks not only the return
                                                                                                                                                                     of the British Phycological Society (BPS) to    (ISIO), then became the Irish Seaweed
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    applied research on these fascinating
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    organisms.
                                                                                                                          Drs James Cunningham and Garry Lohan
                                                                          currently involved in four diverse COST                                                    NUI Galway for its 62nd Annual Meeting,         Centre in 1998, and was rebranded as
                                 Áine Broderick, PhD student in the                                                       are part of the COST Action – Expert                                                                                                       Based at the Ryan Institute under the
                                                                          (European Cooperation in Science and                                                       but also the 20th anniversary of the Irish      the ISRG in 2010. As Ireland’s seaweed
                                 School of Physics at NUI Galway, has                                                     Judgment Network: Bridging the Gap                                                                                                        leadership of Prof Mark Johnson, the ISRG
                                                                          Technology) Actions.                                                                       Seaweed Research Group (ISRG), which            and biotechnology sector is currently
                                 recently won the CN Davies Award,                                                        Between Scientific Uncertainty and                                                                                                        comprises five postdoctoral researchers,
                                 a scholarship allocated annually                                                                                                    is hosting the conference. This research        worth over €20 million per year, industry-
                                                                          Prof Kevin Leyden recently hosted a             Evidence-Based Decision Making.                                                                                                           four PhD and MSc students and continues
                                 by the Aerosol Society to a PhD                                                                                                     group was founded in 1994 by Prof               appropriate research is more important
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    to host a number of visiting researchers,
                                 student studying in a British or Irish                                                                                              Michael Guiry to promote the development        than ever before. With around 570
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    interns and students from all over the
                                 University. The Aerosol Society is                                                                                                  of Ireland’s seaweed sector, including          recorded species of red, green and brown
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    world.
                                 a UK-based scientific organisation
                                 that promotes the science of
                                                                          BOC Postgraduate Award                                                                     scientific research on Irish seaweeds.          seaweeds, the coastlines of Ireland
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     harbour a high seaweed biodiversity,           For further information on the group, visit:
                                 airborne particles by organising                                                                                                    The group first operated under the name,        offering huge potential for basic and          www.irishseaweed.com
                                 conferences, educational training
                                 and student awards. Áine competed
                                 for the CN Davies Award, which
                                 has a monetary value of €2000, by                                                                                                   ‘Bug Run School Days’ - an ‘Antibiotic Awareness’ iPad App
                                 writing an essay on the subject of
                                 her PhD project, which was reviewed                                                                                                 In May, the Discipline of General Practice      Vellinga from the Discipline of General
                                 by leading aerosol experts in the UK.                                                                                               at NUI Galway launched Bug Run, a free          Practice, School of Medicine, and her team
                                 Aine’s PhD research is supervised                                                                                                   iPad app that combines a game and an            have integrated prescribing guidelines
                                 by Dr Miriam Byrne and Dr Marie                                                                                                     educational video to educate children and       with the generic software package a GP
                                 Coggins in the School of Physics,                                                                                                   adults on the issue of antibiotic resistance.   uses on a daily basis when diagnosing
                                 and is funded by the Environmental                                                                                                                                                  patients and prescribing medicines.
                                 Protection Agency. The work is                                                                                                      Funded by the Health Research Board
                                 focused on assessing indoor air                                                                                                     (HRB), the game teaches children between        Bug Run recently received the 2014
                                 quality in homes that are retrofitted                                                                                               4-10 years about the importance of staying      Crystal Clear MSD Health Literacy Award,
                                 for improved energy efficiency.                                                                                                     healthy and that taking antibiotics comes       which recognises and rewards excellence
                                                                            	Eamonn Glynn (BOC), Mark Farrell, Shane Gough (BOC) and Peter Ó Conghaile.              at a price. The accompanying short video        in health literacy in the healthcare sector.
                                 This is highly topical research:
Research Bytes: News In Brief

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Research Bytes: News In Brief
                                                                                                                                                                     developed for adults highlights the issue       The research and concept for the app
                                 the adverse effects of indoor air        The BOC Award is supported by                   the BOC Postgraduate Award for his         of antibiotic resistance and provides           were led by Dr Vellinga, along with Prof
                                 pollution on human respiratory           BOC gases and recognises research               work on: tailoring surfaces and supports   suggestions on how to discuss this with         Andrew Murphy and Post Doctorate
                                 health are well documented, but          achievements, in terms of published             for enzyme electrodes with application     their General Practitioner.                     Fellows, Sinead Duane, Sandra Galvin and
                                 little is known about the influence      work and impact as well as outreach,            to biopower device development.                                                            Aoife Callan.
                                 on indoor air pollution levels                                                                                                      The development of Bug Run is part of                                                             The ‘BugRun School Days’ iPad app Team,
                                                                          and contributions to the School and                                                                                                                                                          from the Discipline of General Practice,
                                 of reduced building ventilation                                                          Likewise, congratulations to Mark          a bigger research project, the SIMPle           Bug Run is free and can be downloaded             School of Medicine at NUI Galway,
                                                                          University, of PhD candidates.
                                 rates that are dictated by energy                                                        Farrell who was also awarded for his       study: Supporting the Improvement and           from the App store to any iPad:                   (clockwise from left) Post Doctorate
                                                                                                                                                                     Management of Prescribing for urinary           https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/bug-              Fellows Sinead Duane, Sandra Galvin and
                                 conservation directives.                 Congratulations to Peter Ó Conghaile            research into the anomerisation of                                                                                                           Aoife Callan, and the project leader Dr
                                                                          from the School of Chemistry for winning        glycosidic linkages.                       tract infection. In this study, Dr Akke         run-school-days/id860440510?mt=8                  Akke Vellinga.
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