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,...

Targeting autophagy in nephropathic cystinosis

Cystinosis is a genetic disorder due to a gene defect called cystinosin, where a toxic metabolite called cysteine collects in the cells due to a defect in lysosomes. This results in the kidneys become leaky to protein, water and salts, which results in growth failure, severe dehydration and developmental delay in children. A subtype of...

MRCG support award

The Medical Research Charities Group (MRCG) is the national organization of 35 patient groups and foundations which promote an improved environment for medical research in general and for charities in particular, obtain funding for research projects, bring together organizations working in the field and disseminate the outcomes. Its...

Building research capacity in the maternal health and maternal morbidity in Ireland study: Second baby follow-up, intervention development and testing, and measurement of costs (MAMMI-SIM)

The MAMMI study (Maternal health And Maternal Morbidity in Ireland), Phase 1, is in progress at present. It will identify how often physical/emotional problems occur in women having their first baby in Ireland, what factors cause problems and what treatments might help. Some conditions affect one-third of women just after having a...

Patients'satisfaction in a nurse-led oral chemotherapy clinic

No summary available

Novel immune targets in Multiple Sclerosis

In Multiple Sclerosis Interferonb has been used as a first line treatment regimen for the past 15 years and many patients have shown therapeutic benefit and continue to do so from this 'natural' immune modulator. However, for others interferonb shows no clear therapeutic benefit and we are looking into how to change these patients into...

Hedgehog control of resident vascular stem cell niches

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a major cause of death for Irish people killing 1 in 3 every year. Most of the problems associated with CVD are due to changes in the structural integrity of the blood vessel wall resulting in obstruction of blood flow that can lead to a heart attack or stroke. Key cells involved in this blockage are...

An investigation of the role of Staphylococcus aureus colonisation of healthcare workers in nosocomial transmission of S. aureus to patients in an MRSA-endemic setting using whole-genome sequencing

Staphylococcus aureus is a bacterium that frequently causes serious infections among hospitalised patients. This includes methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) that are readily treatable with antibiotics and the so-called antibiotic resistant "superbug"MRSA (methicillin-resistant S. aureus). MRSA have been widespread in Irish...

Symptom management through self-management: Improving the outcomes of patients with relapsed multiple myeloma

The main aim of this project is to develop a symptom management self care tool for patient with relapsed MM. MM is incurable and as a result of all novel treatments available patients live longer but not always with a exceptional QOL due to symptom burden. It is hoped that this project will result in the formation of a tool which...

Methadone substitution treatment: mortality and progression pathways

People who inject heroin have a risk of death six times higher than the general population. The most effective treatment for heroin injectors is the prescription of legal, substitution drugs, most commonly methadone. This is called opiate or methadone substitution treatment (MST). The majority (60%) of patients on MST in Ireland attend...

Development of a mult-faceted approach to reducing and mitigating the risk of foreign object retention (FOR)

Over 1,000 Irish FOR incidents between 2011 and 2015 represent unnecessary suffering patients, reputational cost/damage to the healthcare service, institution and clinician and financial cost in claims and rework.
FOR is an intractable human factors problem because removing materials after a task is not integrated into the natural...

Application of state of the art raman chemical imaging and chemometrics to accelerate and improve patient prostate biopsy assessment for cancer.

A pathologists' task in assessing a prostate biopsy for cancerous tissue is of prime importance since failure to correctly identify tissue can lead to a failure to accurately diagnose the patient and predict their likely prognosis. Histological staining assists in the assessment of prostate biopsies by making important features of the...

Reducing resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics: A new treatment strategy for MRSA infections

Approximately 5-10% of hospitalised patients acquire an infection in hospital. Serious infections are more likely in intensive care unit (ICU) or high dependency unit (HDU) patients, in whom implanted medical devices are required for life maintaining therapy. Unfortunately such devices also represent an opportunity for pathogens such...

Developing the oncology practice context for pain assessment and pain registration in Ireland: an action research project

Pain is one of the most prevalent symptoms of patients with cancer, which hampers daily activities and quality of life. Systematic pain assessment and documentation using a validated pain assessment tool at each visit in patients with cancer are key recommendations in the most recent clinical practice guidelines on cancer pain...

Supporting prescribing in Irish primary care: a non-randomised pilot study of a GP practice-based pharmacist medicines optimisation programme

Medication prescribing is one of the commonest medical interventions and there have been marked increases in patients taking multiple medicines with related adverse effects. We have developed an intervention involving practice based pharmacists working with GPs to optimise prescribing in Irish general practice settings.
Study...

To determine how the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines for tamoxifen and aromatase inhibitors (AIs) can be adapted to address the symptom burden for women with breast cancer in the follow up phase of treatment, who are receiving care in the North East of Ireland

No summary available

A comparison of emotion-focused therapy and cognitive-behavioural therapy in the treatment of generalised anxiety disorder.

Generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) is a chronic and debilitating anxiety disorder characterised by excessive worry, anxiety, and somatic symptoms such as tiredness. It is often found alongside other disorders such as depression. Its main features are also important for our understanding of the other anxiety disorders. Alongside...

Building a risk calculator to inform prostate cancer diagnosis

Patients and clinicians are faced with the dilemmas associated with the detection and treatment of Prostate cancer. One such dilemma is in the early stages of diagnosis when men are referred by their GP for suspicion of prostate cancer but it is not clear if they need a biopsy or not. This is because PSA in not specific for prostate...

Irish clinical academic training (ICAT) Programme

WT Scheme: PhD Programme for Clinicians

Ireland's ongoing economic recovery represents a unique opportunity to effect fundamental change in academic medicine that can have lasting societal benefits. We have designed a comprehensive National Programme for Clinician Scientists based at six major Irish universities. Our...

Institutional Strategic Support Fund (ISSF)

These funds will be used to grow and enhance a connected programme of health-related Research, Teaching and Public Engagement in Trinity College. Specific activities will include: (a) seed research support to early stage academics; (b) a programme to stimulate strategic international collaboration and: (c) the creation of a truly...

Institutional Strategic Support Fund (ISSF)

The Wellcome Trust ISSF scheme will help UCD's researchers to overcome systemic barriers to career and network development that will unlock future research potential within the University and beyond. The fund will support outstanding research in biomedical sciences, clinical sciences and the medical humanities that will enable UCD to...

SAFE: Systematic Approach to improving care for Frail Elderly patients

Much recent attention has focused on the problem of older people being treated in overcrowded emergency departments. Studies have clearly demonstrated an association between hospitalisation in older people and poorer outcomes, including loss of independence, admission to long-term care and mortality. Frailty, a state of increased...

Anti-inflammatory therapy for preventing stroke and other vascular events after ischaemic stroke or transient ischaemic attack

To systematically review the randomised clinical trials evaluating anti-inflammatory medications plus standard medical therapy for the prevention of recurrent vascular events after ischaemic stroke / transient ischaemic attack compared with standard medical therapy.

Hybrid repair versus conventional open repair for thoracic aortic arch aneurysms

To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of hybrid technique versus open arch repair in the management of thoracic aortic arch aneurysms.

Membrane sweeping for induction of labour

The objective of this review is to evaluate the effectiveness of amniotic membrane sweep for induction of labour in women at term gestation.

Neoadjuvant treatments for malignant and metastatic melanoma

The objective of this review is to assess the effects of neoadjuvant treatments for stage III and IV melanoma in adults. Historically stage III and IV melanoma have been associated with a very poor prognosis, and available treatments have had very little impact on the disease course.Various clinical options have been explored,...

Hospital design for supporting people with dementia and their carers

The relationship between health and wellbeing and the design of the built environment is becoming an important area of research that is bringing together the medical/clinical community with design professionals such as architects and urban planners. Evidence based medicine already underpins good healthcare, however, evidence based...

The Irish Longitudinal Study of Ageing Wave 5 and 6 (TILDA)

One of the greatest demographic and social transformations facing Ireland is aging of its population, increased life expectancy and related challenges. Whereas Ireland has one of the youngest populations in the European Union, by 2046 a quarter of our population will be over 65 and the greatest increase will be in those 85 and above...

Interventions for promoting participation in shared decision-making for children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis

To determine the effectiveness of interventions that promote shared-decision making (SDM) for children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis aged 4 to 18 years of age.Shared decision-making (SDM) is defined as a patient centered, collaborative process that enables individuals and their healthcare providers to make decisions together...

Risk prediction models for familial breast cancer: a systematic review

The majority of breast-cancers are sporadic, however, 20-30% are considered familial (occur in the context of a significant family-history of the disease). Women suspected of being at higher risk of breast-cancer than the general-population based on their family-history are frequently referred to a "family-risk" clinic for...

Interventions for improving medication adherence in solid organ transplant recipients

Organ transplantation is the removal of an organ from one individual and placement within another individual. Solid organ transplantation refers to transplantation of the heart, lungs, kidney, pancreas or liver, and successful transplantation involves collaboration across surgical, medical, legal, political and bioethical disciplines....

Interventions for supporting pregnant women's decisions about first caesarean delivery

This cochrane review will collate the best available evidence about interventions for supporting pregnant women's decision-making for first caesarean delivery thereby influencing current clinical practice, local and national guidelines. More evidence is needed to support the promotion of informed choice, involving the woman as a...

HRB Collaboration in Ireland for Clinical Effectiveness Reviews (HRB-CICER)

Through the National Clinical Effectiveness Committee (NCEC), the Minister for Health mandates clinical guidelines as National Clinical Guidelines for use in public healthcare in Ireland. The goal of the guidelines is to promote healthcare that is current, effective and consistent, ensuring best outcomes for patients and service users....

Oral hygiene programmes for people with intellectual disabilities

A systematic review will be undertaken of oral hygiene programmes aimed at training and supporting individuals with an intellectual disability and/or their carers about oral hygiene practices which are likely to improve the oral health of people with an intellectual disability in primary and secondary care settings. These programmes...

Uncovering the role of ER-shaping proteins in neurodegenerative disease

WT Scheme: Seed Award in Science

Hereditary spastic paraplegias (HSPs) are a group of neurodegenerative disorders characterised by degeneration of the longest motor neurons which leads to muscle weakness and spasticity in the lower limbs. There are currently no treatments to cure or even to slow the course ofthese diseases. In...

Identifying Interventions to prevent and manage chronic kidney disease

WT Scheme: Postdoctoral Training Fellowships for Clinicians

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects almost 500million people worldwide is increasingly prevalent,associated with morbidity and mortality, and interventions (dialysis or transplant) are expensive and unavailable in some regions. Developing programs to reduce CKD...

Role of TWEAK/Fn14 pathway in mediating muscle pathology in SMA

Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a devastating disease caused by loss of both nerve cells and muscle function. While the nerve is the major affected cell type, therapies specifically aimed at improving muscle function ameliorate survival and/or symptoms in SMA models. Thus,developing muscle-

Application of next generation sequencing for the genetic characterisation of Irish retinal degeneration patients

A key objective of the current study is to clinically and genetically characterise an extended group of 700-800 Irish patients with inherited retinal degenerations (IRD). The team have significant prior experience in the clinical and genetic evaluation of patients with inherited retinal degenerations. They believe it is timely to...

Resolution of inflammation by metabolic reprogramming in the inflamed joint

Arthritis is a leading cause of disability that affects up to 15% of the population and is the most common cause of pain in Irish society, including children. 2% suffer from inflammatory arthritis (IA) such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA). IA causes joint damage and disability and is associated with...

MicroRNAs in the mechanism of ketogenic diet therapies and as biomarkers in paediatric epilepsy

Epilepsy is a disease caused by imbalances in electrical activity in the brain. Anyone can have epilepsy but it is particular common in children. Patients experience seizures (fits), which disrupt their lives and can be directly harmful to the developing brain. Although we have a number of drugs to stop seizures, they fail to work in...

Peer-to-peer motivational interview intervention for smoking, alcohol and physical activity among at-risk adolescents in low SES communities: A feasibility trial

Unhealthy behaviours established during adolescence often persist into adulthood; we will examine the effects of training adolescents (13-18 years) in a proven method for behaviour change (motivational interviewing) for smoking cessation, alcohol consumption and exercise promotion among adolescents in low SES communities. Peer-led...

Towards host-directed therapies to overcome immune impairment in cigarette smokers during mycobacterial infection

Tuberculosis (TB) is a bacterial infection which causes approximately 1.5 million deaths worldwide each year and it is estimated that one third of the worlds'population is latently infected with TB. In this proposal we aim to investigate the role of alveolar acrophages in the immune response to TB infection. Alveolar macrophages are...

Unravelling the mechanisms of azoospermia and potential future treatments in male cystinosis patients

Cystinosis is a rare inheritable disorder in which cystine, a small protein, accumulates in all cells throughout the body. Patients suffer from progressive renal failure due to extensive proximal tubular and glomerular dysfunction, but also various endocrine organs become affected later in life. Patients can be treated with cysteamine,...

AVERT: Autoimmunity relapse prediction using multiple parallel data sources

In most causes of autoimmune disease, where the body's immune system attacks an individual's own body, the condition relapses and remits. This means that strong medications to suppress the immune system bring the patient into remission, but they remain at risk of suffering a flare of their disease. In the autoimmune kidney condition...

Pioneering advances for control of myopia in children - the SHIELD initiative

Short-sightedness (or myopia) is the commonest eye problem in Ireland and is growing all over the world. It now affects up to 90% of young adults in Asia and up to 50% in Western countries. As well as the costs and frustrations of not being able to see well without glasses, myopia is also bad for the health of our eyes. As we get older...

Ketamine for relapse prevention in recurrent depressive disorder: a randomised controlled pilot trial (The KINDRED Trial)

Depression is projected to become the second greatest cause of disability worldwide by 2020. It can be a chronic disorder, with 5-9 episodes of depression per lifetime. The first six months following successful antidepressant treatment represents the highest risk period for relapse, with 40-60% relapse rates in persons with...

Identifying the aetiology of diabetic progenitor cell dysfunction in osteoporosis

Diabetes changes how a person's body gets energy from the food they eat. When we digest food, sugar is released into the blood and is used by the body's cells for energy. People with type 1 diabetes (T1DM) do not produce insulin and are therefore not able to use the sugar in the blood for energy. Patients with T1DM have to inject...

Comparative mass spectrometric profiling of the dystrophin complexome in normal versus pathological muscles with differing degrees of fibre degeneration

Duchenne muscular dystrophy is the most commonly inherited neuromuscular disease of early childhood. The disorder affects almost exclusively boys due to the fact that the defective gene is located on the X-chromosome. The skeletal musculature, the respiratory system,the heart and the central nervous system are majorly affected in...

Bacteria in human tumours

It is becoming apparent that the relationship between humans and bacteria can influence various diseases. Deeper understanding of the bacteria that live in our body is enabling identification of i) potential causes of and ii) potential treatments for disease. The Tangney lab at the Cork Cancer Research Centre has recently discovered...

MRCG interim support award

The Medical Research Charities Group (MRCG) is the national organization of 35 medical research patient-led charities formed to promote dynamic medical research in Ireland. The MRCG works in partnership with key stakeholders, such as the Health Research Board (HRB), to bring added value to the health research landscape. The MRCG is...

An investigation of the mechanisms lining C5orf30 with tissue damage in RA

Around 40,000 Irish people have rheumatoid arthritis (RA), around half being adults of working age. Advances in our understanding of the how joint inflammation develops in RA have resulted in greatly improved treatments with improved outcomes for most patients, particular those with severe disease. Despite these remarkable achievements...

Evaluation of the 'pilot implementation of the framework for safe nurse staffing and skill-mix'

Earlier this year, the Department of Health published a document entitled Framework for Safe Nurse Staffing and Skill Mix in General and Specialist Medical and Surgical Care Settings in Adult Hospitals in Ireland. In this report the Department made a number of recommendations to ensure that the staffing of hospital wards was safe and...

Determining the mechanism of action of a novel histone deacetylase 6 specific inhibitor that kills chemoresistant breast cancer

WT Scheme: Seed Award in Science

The majority of cytotoxic agents used to treat patients kill tumour cells via the mitochondrial pathway of cell death. Previously, the applicant found that primary tumours that are chemoresistant in vivo usually contain mitochondria that are resistant to apoptotic signalling. Therefore, we...

Modelling of pharmacokinetics into ischemic heart tissue from an implantable, replenishable therapy reservoir

WT Scheme: Seed Award in Science

Precisely controlled delivery of drugs, bioagents and cells directly to the heart has the potential to dramatically improve regenerative cardiac therapy for ischemic heart failure. Likewise, localized therapy delivery to ischemic tissue can increase retention at the target site and reduce...

Perspectives of partners of women who experience mental health issues in the postnatal period

For most families having a baby is a happy occasion. A small number of women, however, suffer from mental health issues following the birth of their baby. Often the womans partner can play an important role in seeking help and supporting the woman and the baby. However, we have very little information on how the partners of women who...

The ExACT Trial

Exercise therapy is a well established, effective treatment for individuals with chronic pain and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a promising new approach in the management of chronic pain. ACT helps people with chronic pain to focus on awareness of personal values and promotes activity that will enhance their quality of...

SDHB and its role in epigenetic alteration in malignant phaeochromocytoma

A phaeochromocytoma (PC) refers to a tumour located on the adrenal gland, which releases adrenaline and similar hormones and causes high blood pressure (in severe cases this may be fatal). When a similar tumour occurs outside of the adrenal gland it is called a paraganglioma (PGL) and can be located anywhere from skull to pelvis....

The Irish kidney gene project - identification and characterisation of novel genetic causes of familial kidney disease

Certain kidney diseases tend to run in families, suggesting that particular genes are inherited from one generation to the next, causing kidney disease. By undertaking a joint training programme between with Trinity College Dublin and Harvard Medical School Boston, I plan to study these families and seek to identify specific genes that...

Use of software and computer technology in aphasia rehabilitation; investigating issues of efficacy, usability and cost effectiveness

Technology can provide an answer for over-stretched health care provision but will service users, particular older adults, actively engage with it? This research will investigate the benefits of a computer programme on language comprehension abilities (i.e. ability to understand spoken sentences) and explore the user experience of...

Development and validation of metric-based training to proficiency for dental implant placement

Common dental diseases such as dental decay (caries) and gum (periodontal) disease can lead to the loss of teeth, which has detrimental effects on patients chewing ability, speech and smile. While retaining teeth for patients is a primary goal for the dental profession, the replacement of teeth when they are lost is an important role...

Characterisation of polyclonal IgG and paraprotein glycosylation in multiple myeloma to investigate structural and functional insights into stage-specific pathologies

Multiple myeloma is a type of blood cancer characterized by abnormal antibody called paraprotein, produced by the cancerous plasma cells in the bone marrow. Patients develop anaemia (due to bone marrow infiltration by cancerous cells), high calcium, bone destruction, kidney failure and death. Survival has improved since the approval of...

Irish Platform for Patients Organisations Science and Industry

The Irish Platform for Patients' Organisations, Science and Industry (IPPOSI) is a unique organisation in Ireland and abroad. The platform brings together patient groups, scientists, clinicians, industry and other key decision makers to discuss and build consensus on issues relevant to all involved in delivering treatments to people...

Unwrapping the layers of complexity of clinical performance assessment of physiotherapy students and identifying key stakeholders' preferences towards enhancing the process

Clinical performance assessment of health professional students is imperative as it provides a measure of a students readiness to practice within their profession. However, it is widely acknowledged as being inherently problematic. Difficulties reported by clinicians in medicine, nursing, psychology and social work include the...

Caesarean section in nulliparous women: factors influencing decision-making process and outcomes for women- The MAMMI study caesarean section strand

This study will find out the factors, or combination of several factors, that influence the decision to perform a caesarean section (CS) in first-time mothers in Ireland, the health problems women experience in the first year after the birth and what women, midwives and obstetricians believe are the reasons behind the decision to...

Towards personalised therapy in stricturing crohn's disease- exploring and exploiting the role of NADPH oxidase in intestinal fibrosis

Crohn's disease, a member of the family of inflammatory bowel diseases, causes inflammation throughout the digestive tract and frequently results in fibrosis (scarring) of the intestine, which will cause narrowing and ultimately bowel obstruction. Available treatments can dampen the inflammation, but do not prevent fibrosis. It is...

Translational analyses of ingestive behavior after gastric bypass

Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) decreases appetite, caloric intake, glycemia, and body weight, all of which are maintained long-term. It is controversial whether, after RYGB, patients choose to eat less highfat and sugary foods in favor of lower energy dense alternatives. If true, this could conceivably contribute to improved glycemia...

An investigation into early adverse life events and psychotic-like experiences in Irish youth

At some time in their life, up to one in six adolescents is likely to have experienced some form of hallucinations or delusions, also known as psychotic-like experiences. These experiences include things like hearing voices, seeing things that are not there and having fixed false beliefs about yourself or the world around you. Most...

Attenuation of exaggerated post-prandial gut hormone response: A novel therapeutic strategy for the treatment of excessive weight loss among disease-free post-oesophagectomy patients

There is increasing incidence of cancer of the oesophagus (the gullet or swallowing tube). Improvements to treatment strategies for oesophageal cancer have produced an increasing population of patients who remain free from the disease recurrence in the long-term. Optimising long-term outcomes for these patients after treatment...

The clinical application of immunometabolism to the TB Patient

Recent studies have shown that cells of the immune system change the way that they break down sugars (their metabolism) after they are stimulated, and that this change in metabolism is needed in order to produce specific chemicals (cytokines) that fight infection.
We will study what metabolism changes happen in immune cells from...

Investigating the impact of body composition and nutritional intervention strategies in pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer is the 9th most common cancer in Ireland, and the 5th most common cause of cancer related death. Because of its location deep within the abdomen, patients often present with advanced cancer at the time of diagnosis. The options for treatment are limited as surgery is only suitable for patients who don't have spread of...

Overcoming survival signalling in Multiple Myeloma

Multiple Myeloma (MM) is a blood cancer affecting plasma cells, a type of white blood cell located in the bone marrow. It affects the bones, kidneys and causes patients to have frequent infections. There are approximately 250 new cases diagnosed in Ireland annually. MM is not curable and although the treatment for this condition...

Living with Motor Neurone Disease (MND) and Dysphagia -the personal experiences of individuals with MND and their caregivers

Motor Neurone Disease (MND) is one of the most progressive diseases of the nervous system, for which there is no cure. It often leads to weakness in the arms, hands and legs, posing difficulties with daily life activities. Throat muscles can also be affected leading to speech and swallowing problems (dysphagia). Dysphagia can be life...

Development of a core set of clinical care provision indicators for non-specialist palliative care in the acute care hospital setting

Palliative care encompasses the support structure around people facing problems associated with life-limiting illness and includes the support of their families, but this is more than end-of-life care, and is viewed as central component of care for people living with limiting illnesses. Palliative care policies in Ireland draw on these...

The OPTIMAL study: A randomized controlled trial and process evaluation of an OccuPaTIonal therapy led self MAnagement support programme for patients with muLtimorbidity in primary care

Many people with chronic disease tend to have more than one chronic condition, referred to as multimorbidity. It is predicted that the number of individuals with multimorbidity is set to increase substantially in the future due to the growing elderly population. Those with multimorbidity experience poor physical function and find it...

Artificial neural networks, genomic data and case-control classification

WT Scheme: Seed Award in Science

Genome wide association studies have now reached the scale where one can hope to extract information relevant to clinical applications and public health. The large and complex nature of current datasets will benefit from new and more powerful methods of analysis. We propose to investigate the...

Sound-based observation of neonatal brain growth and status

WT Scheme: Seed Award in Science

Neurological problems are more likely to happen in the early neonatal period than at any other time of life. 85% of neonatal deaths worldwide occurred in developing countries with neonatal encephalopathy due to the birth asphyxia being one of the major causes of high child mortality. The lack...

Malnutrition in the elderly joint action call

Joint Programming Initiative: Health Diet of a Health Life

The Joint Action "Malnutrition in the Elderly Knowledge Hub" is part of the Strategic Research Agenda of the Joint Programming Initiative "A Healthy Diet for a Healthy Life". The general objectives of the Malnutrition in the Elderly Knowledge Hub (MaNuEL) are to extend...

Metabolic reprogramming in innate immunity

WT Scheme: Investigator Award in Science.

Immune cells undergo metabolic reprogramming during activation which directly impacts on their phenotype (1,2). Glycolysis is a key feature of M1 macrophages and Th17 cells, whilst oxidative phosphorylation is more apparent in M2 macrophages and Treg cells. Signals regulated by the...

Integrative genomic, epigenetic and functional studies in diabetic kidney disease

Kidney disease is a common and devastating complication of diabetes, and represents a major public health problem worldwide. The inherited, genetic factors that play a role in determining who will get this complication are beginning to be discovered, creating opportunities to understand the underlying biological basis of diabetic...

Cancer Prevention Fellowship 2016

Research Programme for mid-career researchers working in Republic of Ireland (RoI) to become NCI Cancer Prevention Fellows at the prestigious National Cancer Institute (NCI) in the USA.

This programme provides training at post-doctorate level from the health professions, biomedical, and behavioural sciences to become...

ICORG Renewal 2016-2018

In Ireland there are 20,000 new cases of cancer and more than 7,500 cancer deaths each year. A quarter of our annual death toll is cancer related. The number of new cases in the system by 2020 will be 107% of the number in 2000. Since 2005, the HRB has invested in the development of a network of cancer clinical trials in 17 hospitals...

What is Alpha-1?

Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (Alpha-1) is a genetic disorder that affects the lungs. Typically people with Alpha-1 present with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or severe asthma. Ireland has one of the highest rates of AATD in the world. 1 in 25 Irish people are carriers for the condition and are at risk of lung disease,...

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...