Research Seminars
2024 Seminars
Speaker
Dr. Olga Bochkareva, The Centre for Microbiology and Environmental Systems Science (CeMESS), UniVienna, Austria
Title:
The Role of Structural Variants in Phenotypic Heterogeneity of Bacteria
Venue & Time
New Lecture Theatre, Thursday 28th November 2024
Speaker
Professor David Lynn, Head of Strategic Partnerships and Professor of Systems Immunology at Flinders University Health & Medical Research Institute (FHMRI)
Title:
The role of the microbiota in regulating responses to immunisation and cancer immunotherapy
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre, Monday 18th November 2024
Speaker
Dr. Tim Golden, Director of Aseptics at AbbVie Westport
Title:
Aseptic Processing and Contamination Control in the Manufacture of Bio-pharmaceuticals
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre, Thursday 7th November 2024
Speaker
Assoc. Prof. David Harrich, Queensland Institute of Medical Research, Australia
Bio: David is a graduate of the University of California San Diego in biochemistry and cell biology (B.Sc) and of the University of California Los Angeles in Experimental Pathology focusing on HIV-1. His post-doctoral studies were at the University of Texas Southwestern (Dallas, Tx) were he was awarded an NIH Infection and Immunity Fellowship. He accepted a Lab Head position in the Sir Albert Sakzewski Virus Research Centre in Brisbane, Queensland Australia and then relocated to QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute in Brisbane in 2002. He was appointed a Group Leader in 2009. His interests include regulation of HIV-1 gene expression by Tat and TAR RNA, the role played by cellular factors in regulating retrovirus and paramyxovirus replication, and more recently on the development of antiviral agents derived from viral RNAs.
Title:
Harnessing defective interfering particles and lipid nanoparticles for effective delivery of an anti-dengue virus RNA therapy
Talk Description: Presently, no approved antiviral drug targets dengue virus (DENV) infection. Treatment mainly relies on supportive measures, while the efficacy of DENV vaccines varies based on factors like vaccine type, circulating DENV serotypes, and the vaccinated population. This research explores using defective interfering particles (DIPs) and lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) to deliver an anti-DENV defective interfering RNA, known as DI290.
Results showed that both DENV DIPs and DI290-loaded LNPs (LNP-290) effectively suppressed DENV infection in human primary monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs), THP-1 macrophages, and human fibroblasts, which are cell types naturally targeted by DENV. In addition to inhibiting DENV, DENV DIPs and LNP-DI290 also inhibit zika virus (ZIKV), yellow fever virus (YFV), Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in vitro. Furthermore, LNP-290 demonstrated approximately 98% inhibition of DENV-2 viral loads in IFNAR-deficient mice, which lack functional type I interferon (IFN) receptors, compared to control-treated IFNAR-deficient mice. DI290-mediated inhibition was also effective in IFN regulatory factor 3 and 7 double knockout mice, where viral titers in serum and spleen were undetectable, and no viral RNA was detected in spleen samples from treated mice.
Although DENV inhibits IFN responses, the data suggests that DI290 can activate IFN responses in DENV-2 infected IFNAR-deficient mice, resulting in complete suppression of DENV-2 replication. RNA-Seq data from LNP-290-treated C57BL/6J mice and IFNAR-deficient mice, and human primary MDMs treated with LNP-DI290 or DENV DIPs illustrated that DI290 treatment heightened IFN responses, particularly IFNγ, as well as IFNα/β and IFNλ. DI290 thus induces a broad range of IFN responses, with IFNγ and IFNλ providing antiviral activity when IFNα/β responses are absent.
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre, Thursday 17th October at 1pm
Speaker
Dr. Andrew Mooney, Conservation and Research Officer at Dublin Zoo
Bio: Andrew is the Conservation and Research Officer at Dublin Zoo, where he is responsible for the management and strategic development of all conservation and research activities supported by Dublin Zoo. Andrew did his undergraduate in Zoology at TCD, which was followed by a PhD in Zoology, also at TCD, under the supervision of Prof. Yvonne Buckley. He is currently the Vice Chair of the BIAZA Research Committee, and is a member of the IUCN Animal Biobanking for Conservation Specialist Group.
Title
Genetic Rescue - Realising the Conservation Potential of Biobanking
Talk Description: Recent technological advancements, in conjunction with global biobanking efforts, mean that a suite of genetic tools can now be deployed to restore genetic diversity, reverse global biodiversity loss and even result in species de-extinctions. Using examples from San Diego Zoo to Dublin Zoo, this seminar will explore the emerging science of genetic rescue, highlighting conservation successes to date, current obstacles facing conservation practitioners, and the future conservation potential of biobanking.
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre Thursday 30th May at 1pm
Speaker
Professor Tadhg Ó Cróinín from the School of Biomolecular and Biomedical Science, UCD
Title
Unwinding Campylobacter Virulence, Survival and AMR
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre Thursday 25th April at 1pm
Speaker
Prof. Dr. Olga Kalinina, Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Centre for Infection Research, Saarland University
Title
Overcoming antibacterial drug resistance with the discovery of novel biologically active molecules from natural product
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre Thursday 4th April at 1pm
Speaker
Dr. Eleanor A. Harrison, University of Sheffield
Title
The role of mobile genetic elements and horizontal gene transfer in the rhizobia-legume symbiosis
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre Thursday 29th February at 1pm
Speaker
Dr. Michael Bottery, University of Manchester
Title
The global emergence of antifungal resistance; inevitable or avoidable?
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre Thursday 22nd February at 1pm
Speaker
Professor Charles Van der Henst, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium
Title
Regulation of the polysaccharide capsule in the WHO priority pathogen Acinetobacter baumannii
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre Thursday 15th February at 1pm
2023 Seminars
Speaker
Professor Beate Averhoff, University of Frankfurt
Title
Acinetobacter baumannii an emerging pathogen: Adaptation to the human host and survival in clinical habitats
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre Thursday 23rd November at 1pm
Speaker
Professor Harmit Malik. Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center
Title
Evolutionary arms races between host and viral genomes
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre Friday 20th October at 1pm
Speaker
Professor Simon Heilbronner. Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich
Title
Staphylococcal Iron Acquisition at the Host Microbiome Interface
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre Thursday 25th May at 4pm
2022 Seminars
Speaker
Professor Ursula Bond, Microbiology, Trinity College Dublin
Title
Packing a Punch: How the unique genomes of Saccharomyces pastorianus are designed for making beer
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre, Tuesday 26th September, 1:00pm
Host
The DU Microbiological Society as part of the Department of Microbiology Seminar Series
Speaker
Professor Ian Henderson, The University of Queensland, Australia
Title
Host lipids define niche-specific colonisation of Salmonella
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre, Wednesday 22nd February, at 2pm
Host
Marta Martins
2022 Seminars
Speaker
Dr. Jake Baum, Professor and Head of School of Medical Sciences at UNSW, Sydney
Title
Paratechnology: New tools for malaria control and eradication
Venue & Time
VIA Zoom, Tuesday 11th October at 9:30am - Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82362756284?pwd=cE9uQjY2OWVMeFRwNXFvbHZuVktrZz09
Host
The DU Microbiological Society as part of the Department of Microbiology Seminar Series
Speaker
Professor Syma Khalid, University of Oxford
Title
Step towards computational Microbiology
Venue & Time
Via Zoom; https://tcd-ie.zoom.us/j/92566414391?pwd=YnVicFdxSVFDYnFUV3lnVjIzSSs4Zz09
Meeting ID: 925 6641 4391 Passcode: 247349
Host
Maire Ni Leathlobhair
Speaker
Dr. John Lees, EMBL-EBI European Bioinformatics Institute
Title
Bacterial population structure: defining it, visualising it, and using it (appropriately)
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre, Thursday 24th March, 1:00pm (Save the date)
Host
Maire Ni Leathlobhair
Speaker
Professor Johannes Wagener, Consultant Microbiologist, St James's Hospital
Title
Molecular aspects of defence against invasive aspergillosis
Abstract : The airborne opportunistic fungal pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus causes severe systemic infections in immunocompromised patients. Multiple mechanisms contribute to the host’s defence against and successful treatment of invasive aspergillosis. We are interested in understanding the molecular aspects of the invasive infection and how antifungal treatments help to eliminate this pathogen from the host.
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre, Thursday 3rd March, 1:00pm (Save the date)
Host
Maire Ni Leathlobhair
2020 Seminars
Speaker
Dr. John MacSharry, APC Microbiome Ireland, School of Medicine & Dept. of Microbiology, University College Cork
Title
Aiming at Asthma, the immune microbiome dialogue
Biography: Dr John Mac Sharry is a Lecturer in Molecular Microbiology and Assistant director of the GEM programme with the School of Medicine with an affiliation to the Department of Microbiology, Univeristy College Cork. He graduated with a B.Sc. in Microbiology and a Ph.D. in Mucosal Immunology from University College Cork. John worked with Alimentary Health Ltd as Molecular Biology section head collaborating with several multinational research partners. In 2008 he joined the APC Host Response core as a Post-Doctoral researcher and collaborated on research with GlaxoSmithKline. His research interests are in host-microbe interactions with particular focus on the immune sampling and response in the gut and the lungs.
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre, Thursday 30th January, 1:00pm
Host
Sinead Corr
Speaker
Professor Martin Cormican, NUI Galway
Title
AMR and Salmonella
Venue & Time
Moyne Lecture Theatre, Thursday 23rd January, 1:00pm
Host
Marta Martins
