APC People Profile - Ellen Murray

Intro - Ellen Murray is a PhD student in Prof. Colin Hill’s Gut Phageomics group at APC Microbiome Ireland. Her research focuses on the isolation of phage-derived peptidoglycan hydrolases and their potential to be used as alternatives to antibiotics. She is also interested in the possible emergence of resistance to these lytic proteins. Ellen is a co-founder of the APC Postgrad Association, which was established in October 2022, and is an active member of the School of Microbiology Postgrad committee.

Current research - Ellen is working on a number of projects surrounding the applications of endolysins and their cell-wall binding domains. These projects include the isolation of novel endolysins targeting the Inflammatory Bowel Disease-associated bacterium Ruminococcus gnavus and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium. These studies encompass the characterisation of the endolysins themselves, whilst also delving into the potential for these proteins to be used as novel antimicrobials.  

Background - Ellen moved from her hometown of Kilkenny to study her BSc Microbiology in UCC. During her final year project, she realised she had a passion for lab work and wanted to continue her studies after her degree. This prompted her to do her MSc Molecular Cell Biology with Bioinnovation. During her master’s degree she had a 6-month research project that she carried out in the UCC Virology lab under the supervision of Dr. Martina Scallan. Her work here focused on the impact of antioxidants and cell survival signalling on alphavirus infection, which increased her interests in pursuing a PhD. Following this Ellen joined APC in 2020 as a research assistant in the Gut Phageomics lab, before transferring into her PhD programme. 

Hobbies - In her free time Ellen enjoys reading, travelling to new places, cooking for friends and family, and playing with her cat, Sal. She also enjoys going for walks (when the Irish weather co-operates).