Seven TCD Academics Receive SFI Principal Investigator Awards

Jul 02, 2012

The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton TD, announced funding for seven Trinity College Dublin flagship scientific research projects through Science Foundation Ireland’s Principal Investigator Programme on Friday June 29th last. Trinity secured seven out of 30 awards.

The overall €39 million investment for 30 Principal Investigators’ research teams will support 151 researchers through to 2015 working in areas identified by Government as key for developing new commercial products and services from scientific research, including ICT, health/life sciences and energy.

Speaking at the announcement in the Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute, Director-General of Science Foundation Ireland, Professor Mark Ferguson, said: “The PI projects for 2012, selected following a highly-competitive, peer-reviewed process, are investigating some of the most important issues facing humanity today”.

The Trinity College Dublin recipients of the Principal Investigator Awards include:

Professor Jonathan Coleman, School of Physics and CRANN

2D atomic crystal-nanoconductor hybrids: High conductivity nano-structured materials for energy applications

Dr Hongzhou Zhang, School of Physics and CRANN

Helium-ion microscopy for graphene-based nanodevices

Professor Andrew Bowie, School of Biochemistry and Immunology

Sensing and signalling in anti-viral innate immunity

Professor Pete Humphries and Professor Jane Farrar, School of Genetics

On Prevention of Degenerative Retinopathies

Professor Marina Lynch, School of Medicine and TCIN

Modulating microglial function and its impact on neuronal function

Professor Kingston Mills, School of Biochemistry and Immunology

New immunotherapeutic approaches based on the Th1/Th17 axis and its regulation

Dr James O'Donnell, School of Medicine

Defining the molecular mechanisms responsible for clearance of the von Willebrand factor - factor VIII complex