Science - News & Events | Trinity College Dublin

Trinity Tree of the Month – the Banana tree

This month we are featuring the Banana tree, or Musa acuminata, which is one of our unique indoor trees located in the O Reilly atrium. This plant can grow to seven metres tall and has leaves that are up to four metres long. These plants absorb a large amount of carbon to produce leaves and fruit, but quickly release it once fruited and die back occurs. Musa acuminata originated in Southern Asia and some reports suggest the plant has been in cultivation for close to 7000 years.

24 Aug 2023

Environment|Science|Sustainability

Neuroscientists successfully test theory that forgetting is actually a form of learning

The team designed tests to explore the idea that “forgetting” might not be a bad thing, and that it may represent a form of learning – and outline results that support their core idea.

17 Aug 2023

Health|Research|Science

Trinity-IBM team simulates super diffusion on a quantum computer

Trinity’s quantum physicists in collaboration with IBM Dublin have successfully simulated super diffusion in a system of interacting quantum particles on a quantum computer.

17 Aug 2023

Innovation|Research|Science

Can a special immune protein in the body be harnessed to stop ovarian cancer?

A major new study, published in Nature, has discovered the anti-tumour activities of the immune protein interferon epsilon, which in pre-clinical models blocks the metastasis of ovarian cancer cells by instructing immune cells to kill the cancer cells.

16 Aug 2023

Health|Research|Science

“Live” human brain biosamples to revolutionise translational neuroscience research

Researchers from Trinity are collaborating with those from the University of Oxford on a new project that will provide access to high quality, “live” human brain biosamples. They believe this approach has the potential to revolutionise research for the benefit of patients.

26 Jul 2023

Health|Research|Science

New study identifies association between lower levels of vitamin d and inflammation in older adults

Ageing experts at Trinity College Dublin and the University of Limerick have shown associations of vitamin D status with C-reactive protein (CRP, a measure of inflammation) in older adults.

21 Jul 2023

Health|Research|Science

Shark shock – scientists discover filter-feeding basking sharks are warm-bodied like great whites

Approximately 99.9% of fish and shark species are “cold-blooded”, meaning their body tissues generally match the temperature of the water they swim in – but researchers have just discovered the mighty basking shark is a one-in-a-thousand exception.

20 Jul 2023

Environment|Research|Science

Trinity team installs world's first user adjustable pole-piece electron microscope lens at Sandia National Laboratories

A team of researchers from the Ultramicroscopy Research Group at Trinity has recently completed the installation of a world-first UAP transmission electron microscope lens.

19 Jul 2023

Innovation|Research|Science

Fresh insights into how glucose drives tuberculosis vaccine responses offer hope for improved efficacy

BCG is a live bacterial vaccine, of limited effectiveness for tuberculosis, but it's the only one we've got. However, scientists in the TB Immunology group at Trinity College Dublin and St. James's Hospital have provided fresh insights into the behaviour of a crucial cell in vaccine mechanisms, which may offer a fresh target for scientists seeking to improve vaccine efficacy.

6 Jul 2023

Health|Research|Science

The weeds shall inherit the Earth

Human land use is now comparable to climate in driving global patterns of plant occurrence, with new research showing that species are not affected equally; slow-growing plants like trees are less able to cope with more intensive human land use than disturbance-tolerant species like grasses.

4 Jul 2023

Environment|Research|Science|Sustainability

A new bacterial blueprint to aid in the war on antibiotic resistance

A team of scientists from around the globe, including those from Trinity, has gained high-res structural insights into a key bacterial enzyme, which may help chemists design new drugs to inhibit it and thus suppress disease-causing bacteria.

1 Jul 2023

Health|Research|Science

“The start of something big” – first compelling evidence of low-frequency gravitational waves in the cosmos

Scientists from Trinity are part of the European Pulsar Timing Array, which joins teams worldwide in today announcing evidence for gravitational wave signals of cosmological origin. They believe these ripples in space-time, predicted by Einstein’s general theory of relativity, are produced by pairs of supermassive black holes.

29 Jun 2023

Research|Science

Oral vaccine programme secures non-dilutive funding

Trinity’s Professor Ed Lavelle identified vaccine adjuvants that will be used as part of the research.

26 Jun 2023

Awards and Funding|Innovation|Research|Science

Cryo conservation – a cool solution to saving species from extinction

In the face of the biodiversity crisis, and alarming data showing a 69% decline in global animal populations since 1970, researchers are banking on a cool solution to help save species from extinction.

20 Jun 2023

Environment|Research|Science

New anti-coagulants discovered in Trinity may help treat sepsis and COVID-19

Scientists have just discovered that the drug dimethylfumarate can block blood clotting during infection. Their work offers hope that it could be used to treat a number of conditions, such a life-threatening disseminated intravascular coagulopathy (DIC), which can occur in serious infections with bacteria that lead to sepsis or in response to viral infections such as COVID-19.

19 Jun 2023

Health|Research|Science

BioNTech founders among recipients of Trinity honorary degrees

Philanthropist Dr Beate Schuler and scientist Joan Steitz - known for her pioneering work on RNA (ribonucleic acid) - also received Trinity’s highest honour from Trinity’s Chancellor Dr Mary McAleese at a ceremony conducted in Latin in the historic Public Theatre.

16 Jun 2023

Awards and Funding|Innovation|Research|Science

Orla Sheils becomes Doctor in Science, joins WHO Scientific Council

Provost Dr Linda Doyle said: "These honours are richly deserved. In her busy role as Vice-Provost and Chief Academic Officer of Trinity, Orla Sheils is a pivotal force in the University, while her research has enhanced Trinity's reputation as an international leader in cancer research.

16 Jun 2023

Awards and Funding|Research|Science

National economies recover faster when countries are powered by renewable energy

Researchers from Trinity looked for patterns in data from 133 systemic economic crises that affected 98 countries over a 40-year span en route to their main finding, which has profound implications for global energy policy.

14 Jun 2023

Business|Environment|Research|Science|Sustainability

New technique to help the brain ‘unlearn’ phantom perceptions to be discussed at tinnitus conference

Hosted by the Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, the conference will also feature a public event aimed at people living with tinnitus.

6 Jun 2023

Health|Research|Science|Society

All-Ireland Chromatin Consortium forges scientific relationships across research institutes and borders

Researchers from Trinity recently attended the first in-person conference of the All-Ireland Chromatin Consortium (AICC), which was established in 2021 to promote scientific exchange and collaborations between chromatin researchers on the island of Ireland, particularly in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit.

2 Jun 2023

Health|Research|Science

Geneticists discover hidden “whole genome duplication” that may explain why some species survived mass extinctions

Geneticists have unearthed a major event in the ancient history of sturgeons and paddlefish that has significant implications for the way we understand evolution.

31 May 2023

Research|Science

People fear AI tech, but not enough to avoid autonomous cars

A significant percentage of people fear AI tech, but not enough to avoid using autonomous cars when they become available. That is according to new research that goes against the “Frankenstein complex”, where humans are predicted to be hostile to robots and AI because they are afraid of them.

22 May 2023

Research|Science|Sustainability

Trinity scientists take their research to the pub as Pint of Science comes to town

Trinity researchers will be among the scientists bringing their research to pubs across the country new week as part of the international Pint of Science festival.

19 May 2023

Culture|Research|Science

First radio signal reveals supernova origin

Astronomers from around the globe, including those from Trinity, today reveal the origin of a thermonuclear supernova explosion through the first ever detection of radio waves from an exploding white dwarf star.

17 May 2023

Research|Science

Professor Ed Lavelle wins Irish Society for Immunology Annual Award

Professor Lavelle, from Trinity’s School of Biochemistry and Immunology, has been recognised for his significant contribution to Irish immunology research and education.

9 May 2023

Awards and Funding|Research|Science

Trinity Quantum Alliance established to create vibrant quantum ecosystem in Ireland

Today saw the launch of the Trinity Quantum Alliance, a collaboration that brings together experts from research and industry, and which includes a new customised space in Trinity East for innovative projects in quantum science and technology, simulation, education and computation.

5 May 2023

Innovation|Research|Science

mRNA vaccine pioneer Dr Katalin Karikó receives 2023 Dawson prize in Genetics

Dr Katalin Karikó, whose work was central to the development of the mRNA based COVID-19 vaccines used all over the world, received the 2023 Dawson prize in Genetics in Trinity.

25 Apr 2023

Awards and Funding|Research|Science

360-million-year-old Irish fossil provides oldest evidence of plant self-defence in wood

An international team of scientists, co-led by Dr Carla J. Harper, Assistant Professor in Botany in the School of Natural Sciences at Trinity, has discovered the oldest evidence of plant self-defence in wood in a 360-million-year-old fossil from south-eastern Ireland.

21 Apr 2023

Environment|Research|Science

Machines – not humans – to drive future wireless demands, expert predicts

Professor Holger Claussen shares his assessment of the future of wireless networks as he becomes Joint Professor of Wireless Communications at UCC, Trinity, and Tyndall in an Irish first.

20 Apr 2023

Research|Science

Trinity’s Quantum Play event shines light on crucial role of emerging quantum tech

Trinity’s School of Physics celebrated World Quantum Day by opening its doors and inviting curious minds to a showcase of five exciting quantum versions of games, developed by Trinity’s very own Quantum Science and Technology MSc students.

20 Apr 2023

Innovation|Research|Science|Students