Funding Awarded

Cystic Fibrosis Liver Disease (CFLD); predicting and prescribing in the era of CFTR modulators

Life expectancy for people with Cystic Fibrosis (PWCF) has improved dramatically over the last 2 decades. This improved survival has not been observed in those with CF liver disease (CFLD). In the Irish Longitudinal Study of CFLD (ILSCFLD), we found that those with CFLD had a mortality rate difference of 6.6 versus those with no liver...

Developing an innovative patient-centred xenograft model of multiple myeloma and its use in testing novel antagonists of JAM-A signalling

Multiple myeloma (MM) is an incurable cancer in which uncontrolled plasma cell proliferation disrupts the bone marrow environment and impairs immune function. With poor 5-year patient survival (<50%), better clinical models and pipelines for targeted therapies are urgently required. This proposal will focus on both. Firstly, an MSc...

Development of mRNA Vaccines for Children with High-Risk Neuroblastoma

Neuroblastoma is one of the most aggressive childhood cancers contributing to 15% of cancer related childhood deaths. At diagnosis half of the patients have a metastatic tumour and recurrence is very common. Despite advances in available therapies, children with drug-resistant and relapsed neuroblastoma have a dismal outlook with...

A pain and wound management approach for RDEB patients via a functionalized collagen-based hydrogel dressing with controlled release of painkillers

Patients with Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB) have a broad spectrum of need for pain and wound treatment, varying with the type of EB, the severity within that type, and the particular physical, emotional, and psychological milieu of each individual. EB research has advanced considerably in the past decade and wound and pain management have...

Towards Personalised Clinical Management of Suicide Risk through Data-Driven Clinical Decision Support using Transnational Electronic Registry Data "PERMANENS"

Two longstanding limitations hamper effective suicide risk management in clinical practice. First, unassisted clinical judgement is not sufficient to accurately assess suicide risk, leading to ineffective clinical decision-making and poor patient experience; and second, the need for adequate mental health treatment is often unmet among...

PersonAlisation of RelApse risk in autoimmune DISEase "PARADISE"

Autoimmune disease affects 10% of adults, most of whom are women, and two of the top five medications with the highest cost globally are used to maintain these recurring conditions in remission. These medications act by suppressing the immune system, leaving the patient exposed to severe infection and at risk of cancer. Affected...

Prevention in prediabetic patients of infection’s morbidity following a high fibre and vegetal protein diet "PreVegDiet"

Obesity is a risk factor for both susceptibility to infections including postoperative infections and other nosocomial infections and the occurrence of a more severe disease course. The main cause of obesity is energetic imbalance due to increased caloric intake and little expenditure. This induces metabolic and hormonal changes that...

Multi-markers risk assessment of kidney sensitivity to injury to personalize prevention of acute kidney injury "SpareKid"

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a life-threatening disease with high mortality characterized by an abrupt decrease of the kidney glomerular filtration rate, extra-kidney consequences (cardiovascular diseases, lung injury, neurological impairment) and high risk of secondary chronic kidney disease (CKD). The cost of AKI is very high and...

Early Detection and Intervention for Cerebral Palsy (EDI4CP).

Public and Patient Involvement (PPI) in research is a key focus of our active award, the HRB Irish Network for Children’s Clinical Trials (In4kids). We are now seeking KTA funding for a 0.6FTE PPI coordinator dedicated to our Cerebral Palsy (CP) Research programme in the network. This is a new national programme that will be rolled out...

Co-creation of a cookery book - pathways to making changes in diet

Personalized nutrition is based on the idea that individualizing nutritional advice will be more effective than more generic approaches. Studies are showing successful outcomes by applying such methods. Our group has been involved in several human intervention studies where dietary advice is given to participants based on their...

Medication without harm: Building a network and knowledge exchange programme.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has a Global Patient Safety Challenge: ‘Medication Without Harm’ which aims to reduce worldwide harm associated with medications by half over 5 years. Medication-related harm includes medication incidents, errors, adverse drug reactions (ADRs; harmful responses to medicine) and adverse drug events...

PARKIE: Parkinson's community Awareness of Research; emphasis on Knowledge and Information Exchange.

Our lab is studying the role of our immune system in the development of Parkinson's. Our immune system protects the body against attacks from viruses and bacteria but, when we look at blood samples of people with Parkinson's, we can see they have an increased amount of one immune cell type, namely a type of T-cell called Th17 cells. In...

Art4Knowledge – Art Therapy for Knowledge Exchange between UCC CTG patients with cancer, their families, and clinical trials teams.

Art4Knowledge expands on efforts of the HRB-funded UCC Cancer Trials Group (UCC CTG), which provides access via clinical trials to cutting edge treatments and supportive care for patients with cancer in the South of Ireland. UCC CTG connects UCC research teams with clinical trials units in Cork University Hospital, University Hospital...

Psychosis in the Theatre

This project is about enhancing our public patient involvement (PPI) activities within our Clinical Doctoral Award (CDA) programme by using the Arts to give voice to and tell the story of the collective of people who are affected by psychosis. Our CDA, PSI-STAR (Psychosis Ireland Structured Training and Research Programme) includes...

Taking a World Cafe approach to improving understanding of psychosis and establishing a psychosis research PPI network

The primary aim of this project is to establish a psychosis research PPI network in Ireland. This will be done via a process of meaningful engagement and dialogue with people with lived experience of psychosis and other individuals and organisations with an interest in psychosis.

Specifically, we propose to host a series of...

Clinical trials: what are they and why are they important.

Randomised trials are an important research design and can provide reliable and robust evidence on the benefits, harms and costs of health care. Substantial public and charitable funding is allocated to clinical trials every year. However, there are concerns that much of this is wasted.1 The reasons for such waste include inadequate...

National Patient Education and Research Engagement Programme.

Inflammation is a critical process in fighting infection. However, if uncontrolled, it can contribute to the development of autoimmune disease, including inflammatory forms of arthritis, which cause joint destruction and disability. Medicines available for patients with RA have improved a lot over the last 15-years, however a...

Better Osteoarthritis Care: Delivering education and training for primary care health professionals in Ireland.

Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis in Ireland. It is a condition of the joints that can cause pain, reduce mobility and result in poorer quality of life. It is more common in people over the age of 50 and often affects the knee and hip joints. To ensure that people with osteoarthritis receive ideal care, it is...

Developing an online platform to promote oral health among the Cystic Fibrosis community.

This KTA will be used in order to disseminate findings from our research into the oral health of people with Cystic Fibrosis (PWCF). We seek to provide information and education to two groups of people: 1. PWCF and parents/guardians of PWCF, and 2. Oral Healthcare Professionals. 

We will engage with patient advocates from...

Integrated Knowledge Translation for Advanced Therapies: From Bench to Bedside.

The value of clinical research is to improve treatment outcomes for patients and to inform health policy.  However, the knowledge gained from research only translates into impact for patients when new therapies become used as part of routine practice. 

Advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs) are...

HD-knowhow.

A rare disease is a health condition that affects a small number of people compared with other prevalent diseases in the general population. Empirical research shows that patients with severe illnesses prefer the physician to dominate decision processes and provide the information needed. However, in rare diseases, due to the low...

Translating knowledge into care to enhance sensory-cognitive health of people in longterm care in Ireland

This Knowledge Translation (KT) project will convert our research into practice to improve sensory-cognitive health in residents with dementia (RwD) in nursing homes in Ireland.  We are currently conducting a pilot clinical trial (‘SENSE-Cog Residential Care’) to evaluate whether enhancing sensory health (i.e. hearing/vision) in...

FUTURE-VASC

This project, FUTURE-VASC, aims to share knowledge from a research study called FAIRVASC, so that more people can benefit beyond the life of the original award. FAIRVASC has united scientists, clinicians and patients across Europe in a common goal of linking together data from several vasculitis registries (databases) to create one...

Building Circles of Support for people with intellectual disabilities.

The overall aim of the project is to use research information to develop resources to enhance the Circles of Support (COS) for adults with intellectual disabilities that can be used in person-centred planning processes. Person-centred planning puts the individual with intellectual disability at the centre of the process, and builds...

Translating the tailoring process to improve the implementation of diabetes care.

Our application supports the CUSTOMISE project funded by a HRB Research Leader Award. Our project which is looking at how to implement effective programmes in the health service in a way that is acceptable and practical for health professionals and service users. One such programme is the DAFNE self-management programme for adults with...

Educating the Irish Public on Genomics

The exploration of the human genome is one of the defining medical ethical issues of our time. It has both the potential to improve and save countless human lives, but doesn’t come without risk.  As genomics enters the Irish public's eye, there is a recognised need for efforts to educate the public here in Ireland about the...

Pandemic Resilience- translating knowledge for improved future pandemic preparedness.

Since 2015, the HRB-Irish Critical Care-Clinical Trials Network has established a research program in preparation for pandemics. As part of this, we assessed the barriers and developed solutions to conducting research during a future global pandemic. This work led to a coordinated Irish and global response to COVID-19 with a programme...

TAME-Translation: Translating the TAME cardiac arrest trial results to public, policy, clinicians and researchers.

People who survive sudden out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) usually require intensive care unit (ICU) treatment. The ‘TAME’ cardiac arrest trial, co-led by the Irish Critical Care-Clinical Trials Network (ICC-CTN), has just completed, including 1700 ICU patients from Ireland and 17 countries worldwide. TAME looked at a novel...

CURRENT-KTA | Recurrent Miscarriage: evaluating CURRENT services-Knowledge Translation Acceleration.

Through this RE:CURRENT-KTA application we aim to work with knowledge users to raise awareness, share knowledge, and facilitate practice change to maximise the impact of the RE:CURRENT (Recurrent miscarriage: evaluating CURRENT services) Project and provide more effective healthcare services for people with recurrent miscarriage. We...

Tip of the iceberg: highlighting the long term health consequences of polycystic ovary syndrome.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a chronic health condition that affects up to 15% of all women. It is characterised by increased blood levels of hormones called androgens (such as testosterone), alongside irregular periods and multiple follicles on the ovaries on ultrasound. PCOS has traditionally been perceived as a purely...

The Ignition study: Sharing stories to improve the experience of transition for young people with cerebral palsy

Cerebral palsy (CP) is a common cause of disability among children. All people with CP have a physical impairment. About 30% use a wheelchair and some children also have difficulties hearing, seeing and speaking. Children with CP are transferred from children’s health services to adult services at age 18. This can be challenging as...

Enhancing Testicular Awareness and Self-Examination Among Gay Men: Campaign Co-Design and Delivery Using the World Café Methodology.

Purpose 

To design and deliver a community-based campaign to promote testicular awareness and self-examination among gay men.

Importance 

In comparison to straight men, gay men are more likely to report a cancer diagnosis including testicular cancer, the most common...

Co-design and co-adaptation of a trustworthy online resource for healthcare professionals and people with chronic hip and knee pain in Ireland

Long-term, painful conditions of the hip and knee joint are common in Ireland. Yet, many patients sit on waiting lists for months or years, even when specialist opinions are not needed. In the meantime, pain gets worse, affecting ability to live, work and be fully active. Expert knowledge on how to exercise with these conditions and...

Teaching & Learning Trauma Informed Care for Health Settings.

While most people have experienced some form of psychological trauma at some point in their life, severe psychological trauma is particularly common in people who are socially excluded (i.e., through homelessness, addiction, poverty, incarceration and/or belonging to minority ethnic groups). Accessing healthcare in hospitals for those...

Ex vivo autologous stem cell gene therapy for Multiple Sulfatase Deficiency

Multiple Sulfatase Deficiency (MSD) is an inherited lysosomal storage disorder (LSD) that predominately involves the brain, bones, and skin. The disease is due to mutations in SUMF1, a gene that provides the instructions for making an important enzyme called formylglycine generating enzyme (FGE). The FGE enzyme activates all the...

Defining how innate immune function is impacted long term in people who have had active Tuberculosis

The Problem:

Tuberculosis (TB) is a complex disease caused by a bacteria called Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) and claims the lives of 1.4 million people annually. When a person is exposed to Mtb, their immune response may clear the infection asymptomatically, contain it in a dormant state (called latent TB)...

Surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, but now what? Exploring the rehabilitation needs of people with brain tumours in Ireland

In Ireland, about 480 people are diagnosed with primary brain tumours every year. Many more people develop secondary brain tumours arising from other cancers. Brain tumours can shorten life span and cause many problems including muscle weakness, speech difficulties, loss of mobility and independence, difficulties thinking and...

Retinal Dystrophy in Ciliopathies (RDCilia): modelling patient mutations to decipher disease mechanisms, interpret Variants of Uncertain Significance, and uncover therapeutics

Retinal dystrophies (RD) are inherited disorders characterised by degeneration of light sensing retinal cells (photoreceptors). Affecting approximately 2 million people worldwide, RD causes chronic and gradual sight loss. A major research issue is that RD is rarely investigated in the context of the gene mutations found in patients....

Long non-coding RNAs: regulators of epileptogenesis and potential targets for therapy

Temporal lobe epilepsy is the most common type of epilepsy in adults, with seizures being the major symptom although individuals with this disease may also have anxiety, depression and/or memory disturbances as a result of their condition. Temporal lobe epilepsy is very difficult to treat and about 30% of individuals with this type of...

Developing the IL-36 receptor antagonist as a therapy for colon cancer

The immune system is rapidly emerging as a key player in the development and progression of cancer. Whilst the body’s immune system is designed to detect and destroy cancer cells, tumours are known to produce proteins that suppress the immune response. A better understanding of the relationship between tumours and the immune system...

Interrogation of novel Glioblastoma Subtypes towards an improved Precision Medicine Approach for Brain Tumour Patients

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most frequent and aggressive adult brain tumour. Sadly, 85% of patients die within two years, despite surgery and chemo/radiotherapy. Treatment resistance is related to cell types that make up the tumour (“tumour microenvironment” or “TME”). Specifically, the behaviour of TME cells such as blood vessel and...

Ongoing examination of the PD-1:PD-L1 pathway throughout the evolution of Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune disease which causes joint destruction, disability, and increased mortality. While treatment has improved, only 1:4 patients achieve full remission and predicting who will develop severe disease or who will respond to treatment is difficult. This research will examine an immune pathway...

Exploring the risk factors and consequences of cannabis use in adolescence using population-based data: the "CANNARISK" study

Over the past decade there has been an increase in the number of adolescents using cannabis worldwide. This is concerning because cannabis is increasing in strength with more serious long term effects on health such as psychosis and depression. The adverse effects of using cannabis are particularly pronounced in those who start to use...

‘Investigating the relationship between the Complement Pathway and outcomes in Psychosis; from Clinical High Risk to First Episode Psychosis’

Schizophrenia is amongst the most expensive disorders in terms of quality of life and societal cost. Based on current treatments more than 30% of schizophrenia subjects do not respond to treatments, including antipsychotic medications. While early intervention is known to be associated with improved outcome, we cannot tell in advance...

Study of rolE of PlateletS In Sepsis (SEPSIS)

Sepsis is a severe illness caused by a bloodstream infection and is the primary cause of death in-hospital. While antibiotics are the primary treatment for sepsis the emergence of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria along with the inability to culture bacteria from blood in many cases makes treating sepsis challenging. The...

A probiotic strategy for antipsychotic-induced metabolic dysfunction

Schizophrenia is a mental illness associated with psychosis and is treated with antipsychotic medication. These medications are very effective; however, they cause side-effects that impact people’s physical health. Substantial body weight gain occurs in up to half of people during long-term antipsychotic treatment. Antipsychotics can...

ExamIning the diagnostic and functional role of a novel DNA meThylation signaturE in predicting ColoRectAl Cancer meTastasis - “INTERACT”

Ongoing scientific/clinical efforts have drastically improved survival rates (60-80%) of patients with early stage bowel (Colorectal) cancer. However, only 14% of advanced (stage 4) bowel cancer patients survive post-5 years of diagnosis. Currently, there are no effective approaches that can predict if a patient’s bowel cancer will...

Predicting and monitoring outcomes in Autoimmune Encephalitis (POTA)

Epilepsy is a disorder of the brain in which people have repeated seizures. 

Autoimmune encephalitis (AE) is a rare cause of epilepsy. It is an inflammatory disease of the brain. This means that the body’s own immune system attacks healthy brain tissue, just like it would if it were infected by a virus or a bacteria, by...

Combining HDAC6 inhibitors with KRAS inhibitors for the treatment of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC)

In Europe lung cancer is the second most common cancer in men and the third most common cancer in women. Globally, lung cancer contributes to more cancer deaths than any other type of cancer. While we have witnessed some improvements for lung cancer patients, the outcomes and treatment options for the majority remains poor. One...

Stromal cell subtypes define distinct pathogenesis in RA and PsA

Arthritis is a leading cause of disability affecting up to 15% of the Irish population. 2% suffer from inflammatory arthritis (IA) such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA). The cost of treating patients with IA in Ireland is ~€20,000/patient/year.

Activation of our immune cells is a key mechanism by which...

Polyfunctional-T – stromal cell crosstalk in the joint of patients with inflammatory arthritis

Over a million people in Ireland alone, with inflammatory arthritis and other autoimmune diseases know only too well the frustration of the trial-and-error approach in finding the right treatment. In many cases this entails enduring chronic pain over several years, before a successful drug is stumbled upon. Therefore, there are areas...

Altered histone protein acetylation is associated with dysregulated NK cell metabolism in different cancer types

Fixing broken immune cells in a range of cancers.

Finding a way to stop cancer spreading (known as metastasis) remains a holy grail of scientific research. We know that we can use the immune system in anti-cancer therapies and this has opened up the possibility that patients can be cured using combinations of...

Pathways to Improving Transition to Adult Services & Enhancing Self-Management in Adolescents with Cystic Fibrosis: A New Era of Treatments

The teenage years are a time of change. Being an adolescent with Cystic Fibrosis (CF) can bring additional challenges due to complex and demanding treatments. A key task for teenagers with CF is to learn the skills to manage their health, as they prepare to transition into adult-based care. In Ireland, many adolescents transition to...

Development of a gene activated construct targeting proinflammatory signalling to promote zonal regeneration of osteoarthritic cartilage

Cartilage is a specialised, layered tissue that coats the end of bones, facilitating low friction movement of the joints and providing cushioning from impacts. When cartilage is injured or degenerates, due to diseases such as osteoarthritis, these functions are impaired, causing inflammation, pain and significantly impacting quality of...

Evaluation of a novel drug combination treatment for nephropathic cystinosis in a new cystinotic rat model.

Cystinosis is a rare disease that results in the build-up of cystine in all cells of the body. Cystine is a protein building block and normally the excess is moved out of cells. In cystinosis the transporter for cystine does not work and cystine builds up inside the cells and forms crystals which cause damage to all organs and...

Hepato-Flame: Studying the interaction of diet, obesity, microbial translocation and inflammatory pathways in hepatobiliary cancer development: A European prospective cohort study

In many world regions including Ireland, the incidence of liver cancer and nearby cancers of the biliary tract (together termed hepatobiliary cancers) is rising steadily, and these deadly cancers have limited available treatments. Increasing rates may be linked to obesity and other components of unhealthy lifestyles which cause...

Analyzing the therapeutic potential of anti-inflammatory drugs in brain development, neuronal activity and long-term outcomes after birth asphyxia

Birth asphyxia or neonatal hypoxia is a medical condition resulting from deprivation of oxygen to a newborn infant that lasts long enough to cause harm, usually to the brain. It remains a serious condition which causes significant mortality and morbidity. Neonatal hypoxia is a global insult, which can damage all organs, but the brain...

Neutrophil Plasticity in Infection and Inflammation

Neutrophils make up 40-60% of all white blood cells. They arrive as the first cell type wherever viral, bacterial, or fungal infections occur, or when tissue damage and injury happen. In severe and longer lasting incidents neutrophil numbers go up due to increased release from the bone marrow. Neutrophils detect, swallow up and destroy...

Identifying gut microbiome-responsive brain biomarkers of cognitive impairments relevant to schizophrenia: A next-generation functional CNS circuit mapping approach

Ireland has among the highest rates of mental illness in Europe. Schizophrenia is the leading psychiatric diagnosis nationally. Schizophrenia patients have problems remembering their past, are unable for social interactions and cannot hold on to information long enough to use it. Scientists have found that gut microbes can affect our...

A translational investigation of the anti-inflammatory and antidepressant effects of Psychedelics in Depression

There has been a renewed interest in the therapeutic potential of psychedelics. These substances (e.g. psilocybin, D-lysergic acid diethylamide, dimethyltryptamine) when given under psychiatric supervision and with psychological support have been shown to have therapeutic benefits for a range of disorders with restricted or maladaptive...

Addressing the economic and human cost of hospital acquired and nurse-sensitive adverse events in older patients through optimal use of routine discharge data and measurement of missed nursing care

Older patients make up the largest patient group in acute hospitals in Ireland. Common hospital acquired complications in this group contribute to higher healthcare costs, lower quality care, and less satisfactory patient experiences overall. Pneumonia, delirium, urinary tract infections and pressure injuries are four commonly acquired...

Investigating the potential of CTNS-mRNA loaded nanoparticles as a new therapeutic strategy for nephropathic cystinosis.

Cystinosis is a rare disease that results in the build-up of cystine in all cells of the body. Cystine is a building block of proteins and normally the excess is moved out of cells. In cystinosis, the transporter for cystine is deficient and cystine builds up inside cells. It forms crystals which cause damage and eventually...

Participation in physical activity: what really matters to adolescents with physical disability?

Being physically active is hugely important for health. It improves physical and mental wellbeing and reduces the risk of health problems in adulthood. Young people with physical disability, especially adolescents, do less physical activity than their peers. We want to learn more about how we can support adolescents with physical...

Interrogating Steroid Non-responsiveness in the Irish Eosinophilic Oesophagitis Population

Eosinophilic oesophagitis (EoE) is a rare, increasingly recognised disease where an immune cell (eosinophil) builds up in the oesophagus in response to allergens including foods. This damage can lead to vomiting, abdominal pain, difficulty swallowing, blockage, and with time scaring which may need surgery. EoE is a serious affliction...

A Standardised Approach to Measuring Infant Feeding Outcomes to Prevent Childhood Obesity

Approximately one in five children currently experience obesity worldwide, making it a major public health challenge. What, how and when children are fed in the first year of life (“infant-feeding”) contributes to childhood obesity risk. However, strategies, including interventions to prevent childhood obesity by targeting...

Sustaining activity with arthritis (SAWA) following an Arthritis Ireland Be active with arthritis (BAWA) exercise programme

Best practice guidelines across the world always recommend those living with arthritis to be physically active. Research shows that being active can help people living with arthritis to do the things that they want to do for longer, reduce pain, improve quality of life and protect against getting other health conditions such as heart...

Counting the cost: The contribution of older carers in Ireland and impact of caring on mental health and wellbeing of carers

Family caring plays an essential role in Ireland’s health system, but it does place social, financial, physical, and emotional demands on carers. Caring by older people has been shown to have benefits for health and longevity when providing lower numbers of hours of care. Less is known about why some carers seem to manage better than...

IMPRINT: Defining pathogen-specific IMmune PRedictors of bloodstream INfecTion outcomes

The past 20 months has provided a front row seat to the ravaging effects of a virus on the global population. During this time, scientists have responded with a momentous research effort, which has yielded unprecedented levels of understanding of how SARS-CoV-2 causes COVID-19 disease and importantly how our immune system responds to...

Cortical and Spinal Connectivity of Motor Units as a novel biomarker of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis pathology

One in every 400 in Ireland is at risk of developing Motor Neurone Disease during their lifetime, with Ireland having the highest overall incidence of Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in Europe. ALS is a nervous system disease that causes a gradual loss of muscle control. It is characterised by the death of motor neurons, which are...

STARFISH: Sustained inflammaTion in preterm infAnts and multioRgan dysFunctIon correlateS witH long term outcomes

Preterm birth describes babies born before 37 weeks an is the world's leading cause of death in children less than 5 years old. Babies born before 32 weeks have higher risks of injury to their brain, kidneys, lungs, heart and more infections. Although clinical care of these issues in the neonatal period is well defined there are few...

Co-producing actionable knowledge to strengthen cultural humility in Irish mental health services

Research tells us that ethnic minority populations experience mental health difficulties at an unequal rate compared to the general population and experience great difficulties getting their mental healthcare needs met. Human rights law and mental health policy state that everyone must get their mental healthcare needs met. People have...

Effective Subsets of Fine-Grained Network-based Neurophysiological Biomarkers for Early Stratification in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

Motor Neurone Disease (MND)/Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a terminal neurological condition in which the neurons (neural cells) that control movement degenerate. The exiting drugs have very limited effects on the disease progression and those affected only survive for about 3-4 years after the symptoms begin.

More than...

Mental Health and Wellbeing during the Transition from Childhood to Young Adulthood

While positive mental health and wellbeing is important for children and young people in its own right, mental ill-health in early life can also have lasting impacts on later-life outcomes. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the prevalence of mental health difficulties was increasing among children and young people in Ireland, and there...

Identifying and Addressing the Barriers to Home Haemodialysis (DREAM)

Kidney disease is becoming more common. This means that more people require kidney transplants and haemodialysis. Haemodialysis is a way of replacing the functions of failing kidneys by using an external machine to clean the blood. Haemodialysis is usually carried out in a hospital. However, after training, many patients and their...

A realist process evaluation of an intervention to promote competencies in interprofessional collaboration among interdisciplinary integrated care teams for older people

Government policy in Ireland recognises the importance for older people to live well in their homes and their communities. This means that the right healthcare is available for older people and their family carers in their communities as and when they need it. The government have a plan to develop healthcare teams called Integrated...

SocialPaths: Sex-specific socioeconomic pathways to cardiovascular disease risk across the life course

Heart disease is the leading cause of death globally in both females and males. After decades of research, we know what causes heart disease but prevention remains challenging. Much of what we know about heart disease and how we go about preventing it today is based on research in males. Future prevention strategies require research...

Development of a Health Impact Assessment (HIA) Implementation Model: Enhancing Intersectoral Approaches in Tackling Health Inequalities

Public health research has shown that our health and wellbeing are affected by the circumstances into which we are born, grow, live, work and age. These circumstances are generally described as the social determinants of health. We know that incorporating a health focus drawing on the social determinants of health across all publicly...

Planning and design for quality of life and resilience in residential long-term care settings for older people in Ireland: Research and Universal Design Guidelines for new-build, adaption and retrofit

In Ireland, the provision of Residential Care Settings (RCS) for Older People is currently inadequate; putting pressure on the health system and undermining the care of many older people. As the population increases and ages, the number of people requiring RCS will increase. This is recognised by the Irish government in health...

The design and psychometric evaluation of a health-related quality-of-life outcome measure (QoLTEN) for adults with Stevens-Johnson syndrome/toxic epidermal necrolysis (SJS/TEN)

Stevens-Johnson syndrome/toxic epidermal necrolysis (SJS/TEN) are devastating conditions with a sudden onset. Patients are catapulted into a rapid and unexpected form of acute skin failure with a significant risk to their life. They become critically ill within a short period of time and are treated as a medical emergency with the...

Patient-led development of a “Patient Reported Outcomes” instrument to improve health-related quality of life in patients with Glomerular Disease – PRO-GD

Glomerular diseases (GDs) are rare kidney diseases that damage kidney filters (glomeruli) and can result in kidney failure, hospitalisation, and death. Glomerular diseases also affect health-related quality of life (HRQOL), including reduced ability to participate in normal life, fear or anxiety about the future, low mood, or eroded...

Interrogating the role of miRNA in predicting responses to novel modulator therapies in children with Cystic Fibrosis

Cystic Fibrosis (CF) is a hereditary condition effecting over 80.000 people worldwide with the highest incidence occurring amongst the Irish population. There is no cure for CF however the arrival of a new era of medication that can correct Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator gene (CFTR) mutations, the basic defect that...

Increased Thrombotic Risk in Patients with Myeloproliferative Neoplasms: Linking Inflammation, Metabolism and Hypercoagulability - the CLIMB study

Blood clotting is an important defence mechanism that prevents blood loss after injury, but when this process is not controlled, it can block blood vessels and cause life-threatening thrombosis. Individuals with myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) generate excessive numbers of all blood cells, including white cells, which predisposes...

Development of a Core Outcome Set for research studies with older adults in the Emergency Department

The number of people over the age of 65 is increasing. This change in the population will continue to put pressure on healthcare services including Emergency Services into the coming decades as older adults are most frequent Emergency Department (ED) attendees.

Older adults are at risk of health decline and functional decline...

The development of an intervention to improve the use of point-of-care diagnostics in the management of respiratory tract infections in primary care: a mixed methods study

Using antimicrobial medicines (e.g. antibiotics) too often, especially when they are not needed, is associated with increased antimicrobial resistance (AmR). AmR can weaken the effects of antimicrobials, which threatens our already vulnerable health systems. Sometimes, antibiotics (which kill bacteria) are used to treat viral...

An investigation into the prevalence and experience of psychopathology and mental disorders among children and adolescents with cerebral palsy

Cerebral palsy (CP) is the most common cause of physical disability in childhood. Most people with CP live well into adulthood. Although CP primarily affects a person’s ability to sit or move, many people with CP report experiencing mental health problems. Children and adolescents with CP who experience mental health problems are more...

Advanced, automated compound screening for the identification of therapeutic agents in Multiple Sulfatase Deficiency.

Multiple Sulfatase Deficiency (MSD) is an extremely rare, fatal, yet untreatable condition. It is caused by the inherited deficiency of an enzyme (called FGE) that activates a whole family of 17 other cellular enzymes named sulfatases. Sulfatases are indispensable for the degradation of a subset of intracellular molecules. Thus,...

Development, validation and dissemination of the PRECIS-3 tool to support the design of pragmatic randomised controlled trials: Towards making clinical trials part of routine clinical care

Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) have been proven to be the best means of acquiring clinical data for the provision of a wide variety of healthcare solutions. Conventional (explanatory) RCTs, however, are normally performed under ideal conditions in a scenario that is divorced from the clinical care of the participants. They are...

Comprehensive characterisation of resistance mechanisms for the accurate detection of Helicobacter pylori antimicrobial resistance

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection is a public health issue. It remains one of the most common infections in adults in Ireland and is associated with significant disease as the main cause of stomach ulcers and stomach cancers. Despite significant work resulting in a better understanding of this bacterium (germ) and how it...

PRedicting Onset, Variation and Effect of treatment in Rheumatoid Arthritis (PROVE-RA)

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a common, autoimmune disease affecting synovial joints that may result in cartilage damage, joint destruction, and disability. Treatments available for patients with RA have improved a lot over the last two decades with the result that many patients will go into remission. However, a significant number of...

Investigation of hospital sanitary ware as reservoirs of persistent antimicrobial resistant pathogens and links to bloodstream infections: Implications for infection prevention and control

Infections caused by bacteria lengthen patient stays in hospital and increase the complexity of treating the patient. These bacteria are frequently antibiotic resistant superbugs, like MRSA or CPE. Once the bacteria is in a patient it is a danger to the patients' health. These bacteria can survive and live outside the human body in...

Discovering and modulating mechanisms by which Peptidylglycine alpha-Amidating Monooxygenase (PAM) influences the risk of genetically inherited tissue damage in Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a disease in which the immune system attacks the body and affects around 50,000 people in Ireland. This results in swollen and painful joints, which can be severely debilitating. The underlying cause is a mixture of nature (genetics) and nurture (environment). The genetic site rs26232 has been found to be...

The Inaugural Irish Research Radiation Oncology Group (IRROG) National Conference 2023

The Irish Research Radiation Oncology Group (IRROG) is a newly established collaborative group which aims to unite the five HSE radiotherapy centres under a common research function.

IRROG was initiated in January 2022 from a Health Research Board grant and co-investment from a number of collaborators.

IRROG comprises...

Stakeholder coalitions to guide future research directions for stuttering treatment: Shaping healthcare delivery and policy

This conference aims to provide current and innovative research and clinical practices in stuttering treatment, thus improving therapy services for those who stutter, informing health policies, and improving the quality of life for the international stuttering community. Stuttering treatment continues to be represented by a range of...

The Past, Present and Future of our Emergency Medical Services: Consultation on the Implementation of a National Research Strategy for Paramedicine in Ireland

Context:

Pre-hospital care traditionally refers to emergency medical care administered to ill or injured patients by paramedics, prior to transportation by ambulance to a medical facility. Internationally, Emergency Medical Services (EMS) have evolved to treat and referral models and paramedicine is moving towards a future of...

The Next Generation' Diabetes Self-Management Alliance Conference

The Diabetes-Self-Management Alliance (DSMA) conference aims to share the most up-to date research evidence on how best to support people with diabetes to manage their condition on a day to day basis and to explore ways to improve diabetes self-management education and support in the future in partnership with people living with...

UCC Symposium on Cutting Edge Computed Tomography (CT)

Computed tomography, commonly known as a CT scan, is a diagnostic test that combines X-rays with computer technology to produce detailed images of the inside of the body. Unlike standard X-rays, CT scans can create 3D images demonstrating almost all organs and tissues. CT scans have become an essential element of modern medicine for...

HRB NCTO International Clinical Trials Day Conference 2023 - "Clinical Research in Ireland 2023"

The NCTO International Clinical Trials Day (ICTD) event on May 11th 2023 will be a one day conference, celebrating International Clinical Trials Day, launching the calendar of ICTD events which will take place in the CRF/Cs across the network over subsequent weeks and showcase clinical research activities across the HRB funded...

Best practice for Caring for Patients with Cystic Fibrosis in Primary Dental Care

Ireland has the highest global incidence of Cystic Fibrosis and future trends predict that the adult Cystic Fibrosis population in Europe will increase by 75% by 2025, therefore it is timely and necessary to equip dental professionals with the most current information and guidance surrounding the management of Cystic...

Enhancing existing formal home support to improve and maintain functional status in older adults.

Ireland has an increasing ageing population and this has created the need for better and more integrated health and social care services. The benefits of physical activity for all ages are widely known. Physical activity programmes have been shown to improve older adults’ health and well-being and reduce falls, enabling the older adult...

Early Pregnancy Information Day 2022

The first trimester of pregnancy is a particularly important time not only for baby’s development, but also for the family that is adjusting to this big change. The woman is usually first seen by her GP to confirm the pregnancy, and discuss the options available to her for antenatal or maternity care. Often the mum-to-be will engage...

Migrant health research networking and knowledge exchange seminar: An arts based event

People have always migrated for a variety of reasons, to seek work, education and to seek protection from conflict, natural disasters and persecution. While Ireland has a long history of emigration, since the early 2000s the trend has changed and there are more migrants coming into Ireland than before. Therefore gaining greater...

Dementia Research: Bridging the gap between Research, Policy and Practice

This half day event is a knowledge exchange seminar focused on designing and using research results for real-life impact. It will be hosted by The Alzheimer Society of Ireland and Dementia Research Network Ireland.

Why we want to do it:

Research indicates that up to 85% of health research funding is potentially wasted...

"Euro Public Health + Consortium: reaching the future through research partnerships"

"Dublin 2023: First joint Euro Public Health + Consortium research seminar: reaching the future through research partnerships": 

The European Public Health Plus program is an intercultural, multidisciplinary master's degree in public health delivered by eight European universities (EHESP School of Public Health, Andalusian...

7th Annual Public & Patient Involvement Summer School

Enhancing Public, Patient and Carer involvement (PPI) in health research was identified as a priority area within the HRB's Strategy 2016-2020 and reiterated in the Strategy 2021-2025. This includes a defined commitment to develop and promote PPI within the HRB and HRB-supported projects and programmes, as well as within the community...

BlooDHIT | Blood Donation Haematology Infection & Transfusion Conference 2022

The Irish Blood Transfusion Service (IBTS) is responsible for the national blood supply of Ireland. The rapidly evolving fields of transfusion and haematology mean it's imperative that upcoming advancements to clinical practice, donation, testing and production, are prepared for. Therefore the IBTS must provide a platform to bring...

Moving policy evaluation forward: A workshop on how to identify the ‘best buys’ in public policy for the promotion of physical activity and healthy nutrition.

Over the last 3 years, researchers and policy-makers in food and physical activity have been working together to establish the Policy Evaluation Network (PEN). PEN aims to evaluate policy measures to promote a healthy diet and physical activity of the population in terms of their content, implementation and effectiveness.

By...

Irish Clinical Academic Training: An All-Ireland Integrated Training Programme for Clinical Academics

The Irish Clinical Academic Training Programme (ICAT-1) was established with the vision of changing the training landscape for clinician scientists on the island of Ireland. The proposed ICAT-2 will advance the achievements of ICAT-1 and is the next step in developing clinical academics of the future across the spectrums of...

Structured Population Health, Policy and Health Services Research Education

The SPHeRE programme is the leading doctoral programme in Ireland for training the next generation of research leaders in Population Health and Health Services Research. Since 2007, the programme has provided a comprehensive integrated training model that produces graduates with a common understanding of population health and health...

Neurodevelopmental ciliopathies: a multimodel approach from molecular mechanisms to patients variant interpretation and treatment strategies "NDCil"

Nervous system malformation and neurodevelopmental defects (ND) are common hallmark features of genetically inherited diseases called ciliopathies. All ciliopathies are caused by abnormalities in tiny hair-like extensions called primary cilia (Cil), which are found on the surface of most cell types, including neuronal and glial cells....

Dietary Assessment & Further Development of Biomarkers for All "DIETARY DEAL"

There is a need for advancement in harmonised dietary assessment technologies supported by objective biomarker measurements for food and nutrient intakes. While many tools have been developed with specific purposes, a tool which encompasses the requirements of the EU research community to allow for harmonisation of data collection,...

Evidence for Policies to Prevent Chronic Conditions (EPICC)

Chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes are the most common causes of death in Ireland and Europe. These diseases are becoming more common and they are extremely costly for governments. The costs will continue to increase unless governments can find better way to prevent and treat these diseases.

Moreover, these chronic...

TeenPath: Social Environment, Health and Well-Being Among Adolescents in Ireland

A person's physical growth, psychological development and personal behaviours in adolescence are the foundation upon which the life course is built. Health behaviours established in adolescence will likely continue into adulthood with long-term implications for health and life-expectancy. For example, 80% of teenagers measured as obese...

Development and validation of a risk stratification tool for assessment of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality using data from the National Maternal and Newborn Clinical Management System

Many women and their unborn babies experience problems during pregnancy. Occasionally mothers or babies die. These outcomes vary across hospitals. Currently, there is no accepted method of comparing outcomes between hospitals. Therefore, we do not know if all hospitals are performing to standard, or whether there are worse or better...

Using lessons learned from statutory notifications to improve quality and safety in social care settings

In Ireland, providers of designated centres for older people and people with disabilities are required to inform the Chief Inspector of Social Services in the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) about certain events that occur. For example: serious injuries to residents and allegations of abuse. These are known as statutory...

Disparities in Heath Outcomes of Chronic Kidney Disease between Men and Women in the Irish Health System

It is increasingly recognised that there are differences between men and women in regard to chronic kidney disease (CKD). It appears to be more common in women and they have a shorter survival compared to women in the general population. It is unclear 1) whether these differences are due to biological factors like hormones or due to...

Exploring clinical learning environments for postgraduate medical education and training

After graduation from medical school, doctors continue to train under the supervision, for several years, until they are ready to practice independently. These trainee doctors learn while they work, providing care to patients. Their working environments, therefore, need to support learning. It is difficult for those charged with the...

Neuroexercise: The effects of an extensive exercise program on the progression of mild cognitive impairment (MCI)

Joint Programme on Neurodegenerative Disease (JPND)

A lack of physical exercise plays a major role in the pathophysiology of vascular, metabolic, and metastatic diseases. Regular physical exercise has been successfully proven to counteract this deconditioning. Human and animal studies have demonstrated that regular...

Neuroexercise: The effects of an extensive exercise program on the progression of mild cognitive impairment (MCI)

Joint Programme on Neurodegenerative Disease (JPND)

A lack of physical exercise plays a major role in the pathophysiology of vascular, metabolic, and metastatic diseases. Regular physical exercise has been successfully proven to counteract this deconditioning. Human and animal studies have demonstrated that...

Imbuing Medical Professionalism (IMP)

This project aims to encourage and support medical graduates to become good doctors. Medical professionalism is essentially a set of values, enacted through behaviours and relationships, which underpin the public's trust in doctors. Employers and healthcare organisations govern the settings where doctors train and work and they have a...

Can implementation of an emergency department monitoring and escalation protocol of adult patients in a large teaching hospital reduce the number of critical incidents and improve timely intervention in patients requiring a high level of care and improve

The HIQA Report on the investigation into the quality, safety and governance of the care provided by Tallaght Hospital for patients requiring acute admission has recommended that an Emergency Department-specific system of physiological monitoring and triggered responses comparable to the National Early Warning Score (NEWS) should be...

Supporting work participation through early intervention in patients with regional MSK pain

Background: Patients with regional musculoskeletal pain (RMSKP) are at risk for work disability and instability and associated social and financial deprivation. Early intervention targeting prevention of work disability has potential to enhance patient outcomes and the effectiveness of care, with positive spill over effects for...

Irish cancer survivors' knowledge and perceptions of their lifestyle risk factors for cancer

The cancer landscape is changing and the picture emerging is a complex one that recognizes that some types of cancer are preventable. Empiric research has identified a number of lifestyle risk factors for cancer. Previous international and Irish research has explored the public's knowledge of cancer lifestyle risk, but to our knowledge...

The cognitive thalamus: more than a relay.

WT Scheme: Investigator Award in Science.

How do brain circuits support different but complementary aspects of event memory? The answer lies in distributed networks across the medial temporal lobe, prefrontal cortex and parietal cortex. Via their widespread connectivity, nuclei within the rostral thalamus support these memory...

The impact of genetic heterogeneity on synthetic lethality in cancer

WT Scheme: Sir Henry Wellcome Postdoctoral Fellowship

Synthetic lethal interaction occurs when the function of one gene only becomes essential for viability in the presence of a mutation in another gene. In cancer treatment this phenomenon can be exploited to selectively kill tumour cells that have specific genetic mutations....

Inequalities in access to GP care in Ireland: An analysis using longitudinal data

The principle of equal treatment for equal need is a key component of health policy. However, Irish and international evidence shows that factors other than health need are important in determining healthcare use. For example, there is extensive evidence that those who must pay for general practitioner (GP) care have fewer visits than...

Genetic basis of reflux nephropathy-related hypertension and renal failure in children

Vesicoureteric reflux (VUR) is the backflow of urine from the bladder towards the kidneys. It is a common disorder in children, but is often not diagnosed because it may have no symptoms. In some children, it stops happening as they grow, and they suffer no ill effects. However, it can be associated with kidney damage, and is a major...

The CHARMS Intervention to improve sexual assessment and counselling in hospital cardiac rehabilitation: A pilot study

Sexual problems are particularly common among people with cardiovascular disease, and have been shown to negatively impact quality of life, psychological wellbeing (anxiety and depression) and relationship satisfaction.

A prospective assessment of the biological burden of stress in caregivers: Impact on cognitive performance, mood and the benefits of mindfulness

The age structure of the population in Ireland is changing rapidly and the HSE predicts that the 65+ year old age group will contribute 20% of the population by the year 2036. Already, nearly 5% of the population are engaged as caregivers for ill elderly relatives and this is particularly stressful for those whose spouses or parents...

INCA SUn: A prospective randomised multicentre study to optimise the management of symptomatically uncontrolled asthma.

Inhalers are used in the treatment of patients with severe asthma. About 10% of people with asthma fail to achieve control of their asthma symptoms with inhalers. These patients with severe asthma, are often treated with extra medications or have severe attacks. One reason why these patients may not achieve control of their asthma is...

Examining the effects of S1P receptor drugs in Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimers disease (AD) represents one of the major brain illnesses that we now face. Treatments against this disease are limited and offer little in terms of cure. With the global population age now rising, AD is suggested to affect 1 in every 3 people. If left untreated, AD has potential to bring about collapse in healthcare,...

The heme oxygenase system as a therapeutic intervention for psoriasis

Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease that causes cells to build up rapidly on the surface of the skin, forming thick silvery scales that become itchy, dry and sometimes painful. Current treatments for psoriasis depend on disease severity and include topical ointments, light therapy and systemic medications which are...

HRB Centre for Primary Care Research

The HRB Centre for Primary Care Research (CPCR- www.hrbcentreprimarycare.ie) is focussing on improving the quality and safety of medicines to vulnerable patient groups in Ireland, building upon observational epidemiology completed and published during the first phase of funding. Information and Communication Technology (ICT)...

Single blind randomised trial of supportive text messages for patients with alcohol use disorder and a comorbid depression

Most patients who present with problem drinking also present with mood problems. Problem drinking and mood problems co-occurring together in individuals lead them to have more severe symptoms, greater disability and poorer quality of life than individuals with only problem drinking, and they pose a greater economic burden to society...

Functional as well as structural brain connectivity and epigenetic changes in major depressive disorder associated with remission and persistence of symptoms over a 5 year course

Still less than one third of patients with MDD achieve remission with an adequate trial of a standard antidepressant after 10 - 14 weeks of treatment. This project will provide a crucial part of the research required for the development of more effective therapy strategies and for understanding the backgrounds for achieving remission...

Unlocking HIV-1 latency with metabolic cues

With 35 million people currently leaving with HIV and 1.6 million people worldwide who died from HIV in 2012, the AIDS pandemic is a major health crisis. In Ireland, the HSE and the HSPC have made HIV/AIDS a notifiable disease and a major public health importance. 30 years of intense HIV/AIDS research have provided efficient...

A multi-pronged translational approach towards testing a novel JAM-A inhibitor to reduce aggressive HER2-dependent breast cancer progression

Although breast cancer surgery and treatment have greatly improved in recent years, certain types of tumours are much more aggressive than others and therefore represent a greater risk to the patient. One such type of breast tumour is identified by the fact that it has high levels of a specific tumour marker called HER2. Therapies...

Rehabilitation following oesophageal cancer: Idenfitying rehabilitative needs and strategies

The treatments used to cure cancer of the oesophagus (food pipe) are usually twofold. Patients may first receive chemotherapy (drug treatment) to shrink the cancer followed by surgery to remove the oesophagus from the body. Patients who undergo this treatment for oesophageal cancer experience a number of weakening side-effects which...

The STRIDER Trial: A randomised controlled trial of sildenafil therapy In dismal prognosis early-onset intrauterine growth restriction

Severe early-onset in utero growth restriction (IUGR) affects babies in womb and is caused by reduced blood flow through the placenta. There is no treatment or cure for IUGR and the current clinical management involves intensive fetal surveillance with elective delivery performed when there is evidence of fetal distress and before the...

Hypotension, vasoreactivity and white matter intensities in the ageing brain: The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA).

High blood pressure (hypertension) is known to cause brain ageing, from memory problems through to frank dementia, and is common in older age, affecting 70% of people over 70 years of age. Low blood pressure (hypotension) may be an even greater risk factor for cognitive decline and dementia; as it is an easily treatable condition this...

Proof of concept studies to validate clinical microsensors for the real-time detection of oxygen and pH

Currently there is no efficient method of continuously measuring oxygen or pH in real-time in hospitals. Existing techniques suffer from slow, indirect recordings and require the undesirable removal of a blood sample from patients. Doctors are extremely interested in measuring both of these parameters since they provide important...

Alendronate for Prevention of AntiRetroviral Therapy-associated bone loss (APART study)

Over six thousand people have been diagnosed with HIV infection in Ireland. People living with HIV are now living longer because of effective therapy. However, therapy is life-long and is associated with significant side effects. In addition, immune damage induced by HIV persists even with effective therapy. As a result, people with...

Investigate the impact of bile aspiration on chronic respiratory infection - bile paradigm

This study proposes to investigate the unexplained link between gastro-oesophageal reflux (GOR) and severe respiratory disease. During GOR, bile, normally found in the duodenum and stomach, is refluxed to the throat and subsequently aspirated into the airways and lungs of patients. A high prevalence of this phenomenon is seen in...

Ketamine for depression relapse prevention following electroconvulsive therapy: A randomised pilot trial with blood neuroplasticity biomarker evaluation

Depression affects up to 20% of people in their lifetime and can be a severe debilitating illness. Indeed, the World Health Organisation has estimated that depression will soon be the second leading contributor to the burden of disease worldwide. One of the big problems for patients and doctors is that currently available...

An antimicrobial susceptibility testing-based approach for Helicobacter pylori eradication: will tailored therapy overcome the increasing failure of standard empirical therapy?

Helicobacter pylori infection is a public health issue. It remains one of the most common infections in adults in Ireland (22%) and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality as the primary cause of stomach ulcers and stomach cancers. Infection is more common in lower socioeconomic groups and increases with age. Despite...

Identification of drugs that can safely and effectively maintain visual function in models of inherited retinal degeneration

Inherited Retinal Degenerations (IRD) are a diverse group of conditions resulting in blindness. This is often traumatic to the affected patient and families, and can cause significant socio-economic impact. Gene or stem-cell therapy show promise as treatments for IRD. However, these approaches are hampered by high costs and treatment...

Inherited retinal degenerations: All Ireland Retinal Degenerations Partnership (AIRDP)

Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) is the most common inherited disorder of the retina affecting approximately one in 4000 people. The symptoms of RP are night blindness, tunnel vision and reduction of central vision. Although the symptoms of RP are broadly similar in most people, the genetic causes are complex with over 50 genes being...

Evaluating the impact of the systematic implementation of advance care directives and palliative care education on quality of care at end of life in long term care settings

It is essential that nursing home staff are equipped to provide high-quality end-of-life care, while it is also essential that the wishes of the older person about their care are taken into account. Many nursing home residents develop dementia, which can interfere with their ability to make healthcare decisions and to communicate...

Disease modification in rheumatoid arthritis using AMPK directed therapies: Resoring metabolic balance to innate immune pathways

Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease affecting 1-2% of the population. Over time, RA causes joint destruction, chronic pain and lifelong disability. In addition to these effects, increased resistance to the effects of insulin and alterations in glucose handling mimicking effects seen in type II diabetes occur in...

Resistant hypertension in general practice: prevalence, prognosis, description and development of platform cohort for future research

High blood pressure causes, or helps to cause, almost two-thirds of all strokes and half of all heart attacks. Most people with high blood pressure can be treated by changing what they eat, doing more exercise or taking medications. However, among people with high blood pressure are some whose blood pressure remains too high despite...

Preventing chemotherapy resistance in triple negative breast cancer

Background: Breast cancers that lack the three molecules used to classify breast cancers; the oestrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), are described as triple negative breast cancers. Approximately 15 per cent of all breast cancers are triple negative. Triple negative...

STandaRd Issue TrANsfusion versuS Fresher red blood cell Use in intenSive carE (TRANSFUSE) - a randomised controlled trial.

Red blood cell (RBC) transfusion is required to treat a number of life threatening conditions within the general hospital setting and Intensive Care Units (ICU). Red blood cell units represent a very limited but essential resource. Given the value and relative scarcity of RBC, it is important to ensure its use in the optimal way. A...

Development of bioactive therapeutics harnessing stem cell mechanobiology

Tissue engineering is an emerging field of medicine that aims to treat diseased or damaged tissue through regeneration, rather than replacement. In order to achieve this, implantable scaffolds, that act as templates for tissue formation, are designed so that they not only provide structural support but also provide signals to cells...

Splintcost - Sensor providing longitudinal information on nocturnal toothgrinding and compliance of splint therapy

Many people grind their teeth at night, and may not be aware of it. Tooth grinding can cause headaches, facial pain or severe damage to the teeth. To prevent these problems, dentists often prescribe a mouthguard to use at night. Mouthguards are effective but few patients use them enough. Patients often wrongly believe that their...

Altered lipid raft cholesterol content contributes to the dysregulated activity of neutrophils in alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency

Alpha-1-antitrypsin (AAT) deficiency (AATD) is largely unrecognized and under diagnosed. This hereditary disorder results in the rapid progression of lung disease, especially in smokers. Specific treatment for this disorder is available in the form of weekly intravenous injections of AAT. This is referred to as augmentation therapy...

Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency: Which is important phenotype, level, activity or all three?

Alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT) deficiency (AATD) is generally regarded as a rare condition but more recently, evidence points towards it being a condition that is relatively common but rarely diagnosed. The most severe form of this genetic disorder, where people carry two bad AAT genes (Z) is known as ZZ-AATD and this affects around 2000...

The Low Von Willebrand factor Ireland Cohort (LoVIC) study.

Von Willebrand factor (VWF) is a large plasma protein that plays an essential role in normal blood coagulation. Inherited VWF deficiency is responsible for the commonest inherited bleeding disorder (von Willebrand disease or VWD) that affects up to 1% of the general population. Although substantial progress has been achieved in...

Sodium inTake In Chronic Kidney disease (STICK): A randomised controlled trial

Chronic kidney disease, which affects an estimated 300,000 people in Ireland and over 50 million people in the developed world, is responsible for a considerable burden of premature mortality and morbidity. All patients with chronic kidney disease are recommended low salt diets, i.e. less than a teaspoon of salt per day (which is 5-6g...

Modelling cystinosis with human stem cells and the therapeutic potential of aspartate

Cystinosis is a rare genetic disease that causes the amino acid cystine to accumulate in the body due to mutations in the CTNS gene. In its severest form, cystinosis causes kidney failure before the age of 10. Treatment is limited to cysteamine, a cystine-depleting drug, but this only slows the progression of the disease. The toxic...

Drug eluting contact lenses for cystinosis therapy

Cystinosis is a metabolic disease characterized by accumulation of cysteine crystals in various tissues including cornea. Cystinosis patients begin showing ocular symptoms at the age of 16 months and without appropriate treatment, the entire peripheral stroma and endothelium can be packed with crystals. Eventually complications such...

Effect of glucagon like peptide-1 therapy on obesity driven inflammation and co-morbid inflammatory conditions.

Obesity has been shown to cause and worsen diseases such as diabetes, psoriasis, arthritis, asthma and cancer. Increased inflammation is the basic process, which causes obesity related diseases. Inflammation is the body's normal way of dealing with an infection or injury, but is usually specific and short lived. However, in obese...

HRB Centre for Health and Diet Research

The vision for the Centre for the next five years:
The overall vision for the CHDR over the next five years is to contribute to the promotion of the health and wellbeing of the population through the development of a sustainable and internationally competitive National Research Centre for Public Health Nutrition which will:
...

A systems-based patient stratification tool of Bcl-2 family protein interactions to evaluate acute treatment responses in rectal cancer patients

Cancers of the rectum (the lower part of the large intestine where the body stores stool) are a common cause of cancer-related death in Ireland and cause a significant burden to the quality of life of affected patients. Surgery is the mainstay for the treatment of rectal cancer, but surgeons often prefer to 'downstage' or 'shrink' the...

Enhancing the antimicrobial efficacy of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) for eliminating sepsis induced acute lung injury (ALI) using a novel combination of immune-stimulants

Despite advances in medicine, pneumonia is still a common disease accounting for 5% of deaths in Ireland and is the most common cause of acute lung injury and acute respiratory distress syndrome where there currently remains no specific therapy. Studies carried out by this and other research groups have recently shown that bone-marrow...

The natural history of cystic fibrosis liver disease - refining the phenotype

The incidence of Cystic Fibrosis (CF) is very high in Ireland. Survival has improved greatly over the past 30 years. However as longevity has increased so has the development of complications including liver disease. The diagnosis and treatment of liver disease in CF is particularly challenging. We do not understand the cause of liver...

Inhibiting XBP1s production as a novel therapeutic strategy in sepsis

Sepsis accounts for over 18 million deaths annually and is characterised by a severe/hyper activation of the immune system, also referred to as a cytokine storm, which is triggered by infection. In its most severe form sepsis manifests as septic shock and can lead to hypotension and multi-organ failure leading to death. The incidence...

An inter-sectoral analysis by geographic area of the need for and the supply and utilisation of health services in Ireland

The objective of this study is to provide an understanding of the supply of and interaction between health and social care services delivered in different sectors (acute hospitals: primary and community care; long-term care; informal care at home) in Ireland to inform the Governments policy of transferring activity and resources from...

Acute kidney injury (AKI) in the Irish health system; Incidence, severity and clinical consequences

Acute Kidney Injury (AKI), previously called acute renal failure, occurs when kidney function deteriorates rapidly over hours or days and elevated levels of waste products accumulate in the blood. AKI is most common in people who are hospitalized, particularly in critically ill people who need intensive care. AKI may occur in multiple...

Mapping the pathway to universal health care in Ireland

The current Irish Government has committed itself to achieving universal access to health care, free at the point of delivery, by 2016. Yet, at the moment, timely access to essential healthcare in Ireland is often determined by ability to pay, such as with private insurance. Further, those without medical cards or GP visit cards face...

Galactosaemia, translating novel monitoring approaches into improved clinical practice

Galactosaemia is an inherited condition caused by a lack of an enzyme (catalyst) which normally breaks down galactose (the sugar found in milk products). This affects on in 16,000 births annually in Ireland (the highest incidence worldwide), and is screened for by the National Newborn Screening Programme.
When an affected infant is...

Restoring immune balance in patients with patients with primary Sjogrens Syndrome (pSS) by modulating microRNA expression

Sjogren's Syndrome (SS) is an autoimmune disease which affects 0.3-0.5% of people in the developed world. SS can occur at any age but is most common between the ages of 40 and 60. Women are 9 times more likely to suffer from SS than men. Specialised secretory glands that produce saliva, tears, and bowel secretions are targeted for...

HRB Trials Methodology Research Network

These are exciting and challenging times for clinical trials. The number and variety of treatments continues to grow, increasing pressures on researchers to determine how these compare to current treatments, while rising costs and regulation can make trials expensive and complex. However, as pressure on resources grows, there is more...

The role of angiopoietins and their mediators in symptomatic gastrointestinal angiodyslasia; novel diagnostic and therapeutic targets in chronic anaemia and obscure gastrointestinal bleeding

Background: Approximately 5% of patients with gastrointestinal bleeding have no source identified on standard endoscopy and are classified as having obscure gastrointestinal bleeding, of which Small Bowel Angiodysplasia (SBA) accounts for more than 50% of cases. Due to limited understanding of the pathophysiology behind SBA no specific...

Overcoming mechanism of treatment resistance in castration-resistant prostate cancer: Defining a new treatment paradigm

Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of male cancer mortality in Ireland: in 2012, 533 men died from this disease.Prostate cancer growth is stimulated by male sex hormones (androgens) e.g. testosterone. The mainstay of initial treatment is to block gonadal production of these hormones. However, with time, cancers develop other...

An analysis of genetic and environmental modifiers of breast cancers risk

Breast Cancer Susceptibility Genes (BRCA) 1 and 2 are tumour suppressor genes that maintain genomic stability by repairing damaged DNA. Pathogenic mutations in these genes disrupt their role as tumour suppressors and can predispose to various malignancies, in particular those of the breast or ovary. Single gene mutations in BRCA 1 or...

Irish Platform for Patients' Organisations, Science and Industry

The purpose of this award is to enable IPPOSI to undertake a work programme providing a forum for patient organisations, scientists and industry to inform and support the advancement of health research for the development of therapies and cures for unmet medical needs specifically but not limited to:
- Providing information for...