Health Research Board

I am a Research Scientist in the School of Biochemistry and Immunology, Trinity College Dublin (TCD). My research focus is the Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) and our immune system response to this infection.  At the minute there is no vaccination or cure for HCV. In fact, the only available treatment is a drug called Interferon-alpha (IFN-α). Unfortunately, this drug doesn’t always work and it has some horrible side effects. The aim of my research is to be able to identify in advance those people for whom interferon-alpha won’t work so that they can avoid unnecessary treatment and the side effects.  

My working day

Our group at TCD is led by Prof. Cliona O’Farrelly, and has a strong collaboration with Prof. John Hegarty of the National Liver Transplant Unit at St Vincent’s Hospital, Dublin. Many of the HCV infected patients that attend these clinics very kindly donate blood samples for our research.After hurtling into work on my bike, Prof. Cliona O’Farrelly and I meet with two eager PhD students, whom we co-supervise. Along with another research immunologist, 2 research assistants and 2 medical researchers, our team investigates many different aspects of the body’s immune response, which generates masses of information essential in piecing together the puzzle. In our meetings, we discuss results generated from our work and ideas for future experiments. We also have regular “Journal Clubs” in which we discuss findings that other scientists who study the immune system have reported in scientific journals, such as “Nature”, “Science” and “Hepatology”. These publications are key to our own research, as they provide us with a greater understanding and help us identify key scientists to discuss our ideas with and exchange materials.  This cross communication is vital and it continually raises the standard of research and increases the effectiveness of our work. My experiments use immune cells that I either grow in the lab or take from HCV infected blood.  During the week I carry out a number of experiments in which I try to mimic what occurs in the human body, by treating the cells with IFN-α or exposing them to HCV. Then using a number of scientific techniques, I analyse the genes and proteins that are altered in response to the drug and virus. Also, I analyse changes within immune cells by staining proteins with fluorescent tags and taking digital photos using a confocal microscope.  Results from these experiments form a clearer picture of what is occurring in human immune cells, allowing me to propose logical explanations, which I compile as scientific publications for other scientists to assess and relate to their own findings. This network of worldwide publications is the backbone of scientific discoveries and hopefully results in findings being eventually used in our hospitals and GP surgeries.

I do research because...

HCV is a big problem, with over 170 million people infected. Worldwide, HCV infection is a major cause of liver failure and the main reason for liver transplants, as well as a leading cause of cancer. Research into HCV is particularly important to Ireland, where a group of women were infected by a contaminated blood product in 1977. Ireland also has an increasing number of HCV infected individuals due to shared needles during drug abuse. Over 80% of people who get infected with HCV do not clear the virus and become chronically infected. Since the leading cause of death and suffering worldwide is infection and our body’s response is extremely complex, I see it as a privilege to be investigating and discovering new things about it everyday. I do my research because it provides me with great satisfaction, feeding my passion for knowledge and new discoveries.  It also has fantastically rewarding aspects when we reveal facts that may have a direct impact on patient care and treatment.

How did I end up here?

Throughout school I had a real interest in Science, (it probably helped that my Dad was a Chemistry and Physics teacher). However, I was strongly attracted into the World of Biology and always wanted to find out how the body worked. I studied Biomedical Science at Queen’s University of Belfast. Throughout my University years I learnt a great deal about what goes on within the body in response to infection and how even the smallest proteins within each cell play a critical role in fighting back against viruses and bacteria. This growing interest prompted me to study for a PhD in Immunology, under the supervision of Prof. Jim Johnston. During my PhD, I heard Prof. Cliona O’Farrelly giving an inspiring talk on the importance of the liver during infection. This was an angle of Immunology that I felt I could bring my experience to, and Cliona’s great enthusiasm for science lead me to seek a position within her lab in 2007. Cliona’s lab at TCD is an exciting place to be, with cutting-edge research on HCV being approached from many different angles and I feel that it will produce many discoveries that will directly impact HCV patients who desperately need to eliminate this virus.

What subjects did I do at secondary school and college?

Aged 14, I was not sure what I wanted to be “when I grew up”, but numerous people advised me to choose Higher Level Science for GCSE (Junior Cert), which they said would keep my options open later in life. This proved to be great advice, since I ended up studying Chemistry, Physics and Biology for A-Level (Leaving Cert). These subjects were perfect for pursuing a career in any medical or scientific discipline.