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2010 News
APC at School
Each year, scientists from the APC can be found back in primary schools around Cork city and county talking to young students about aspect of biology, such as the “The Guts of Digestion” and “Our 5 Senses”. APC researchers have given these interactive talks, along with experiments suitable for the classroom, for the last 6 years, involving almost 30,000 pupils.
Science Raps
1st prize in the 17 years and older category was awarded to Rory O’Connor for his rap entitled “E=MC Rory”. Ladislav Stec, who performed rap “Floating in Space”, written by Jonathan O’Neill received the runner-up award.
The 1st prize winner in the 16 years and under category was Catherine Finn, with her rap entitled “The Universal Rap”. The “Dimetional duo” rappers, Cian Ducrot and Stiofan O’ Máinnin Stapleton were runners up.
Winning raps can be viewed on the You Tube Pharmabiotic Channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/Pharmabiotic
TB: A re-emerging problem?
“TB: A re-emerging problem?” will be the focus for discussion at a public forum at UCC on Tuesday, November 9th. A panel of experts will discuss Tuberculosis, the recent outbreaks in the Cork and Kerry region, and modern technologies used to detect, monitor and treat the disease. Exciting new alternative strategies to control infectious diseases will also be presented.
Science Raps Challenge 2010 Competition
Science Raps is calling on you to unleash your inner rapper! Express yourself and your thoughts about science and technology through rap music and share your musical magic with the world! Compose and video a rap on this year’s Science Week theme: “Our Place in Space”. Take inspiration from our universe and beyond, exploring life and its many forms to compose your ‘Science Rap’ and be in with a chance to win a fantastic prize of an iPad!
APC Academics donate new books to Boole Library
University College Cork’ Boole Library was recently presented with 2 new biomedical books “Inflammatory Bowel Disease” and “Bifidobacteria- Genomics and Molecular Aspects” authored by Professor Fergus Shanahan and Professor Douwe van Sinderen of the Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, based at UCC.
Talented bacteria make food poisoning unpredictable
While we are often exposed to bacteria in our food which could cause food poisoning, we don’t always become ill - why should this be so?
Professor Colin Hill who is presenting his work at the Society for General Microbiology’s autumn meeting in Nottingham today describes how bacteria use different tricks to aid their survival inside the body, helping to explain why food poisoning can be so unpredictable.
“Preventing colon cancer - is screening the way forward?”
Professor Jonathan Rhodes, Professor of Medicine and Honorary Consultant Gastroenterologist, Royal Liverpool University Hospital, will give the 12th Annual De Pazzi Lecture, held in honour of Sr De Pazzi, retired Matron of Mercy University Hospital. The lecture, which is being hosted by UCC’s Department of Medicine and Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, will take place at University College Cork in lecture theatre G10 Brookfield Health Science Complex, College Road on Tuesday, September 14th at 6pm. All are welcome and admission is free.
UREKA Summer Students 2010 at APC
Twelve science students are taking part in this year’s UREKA Summer research programme, funded by Science Foundation Ireland at the APC and Departments of Microbiology and Biochemistry, UCC. The 12 students, chosen from a group of 160 applicants, are from universities in the US and Poland as well as from Irish third level institutions including Maynooth, DIT, CIT and UCC.
New treatment for hospital-acquired superbug C. difficile
Scientists at University College Cork, Teagasc and the University of Alberta have identified a new antimicrobial, thuricin CD, that is effective against the hospital-acquired superbug Clostridium difficile. The research, funded by Science Foundation Ireland, is published, today 28/6/10, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA. This study shows that thuricin compares very favourably with standard antibiotics in terms of controlling C. difficile in a model of the human colon.
Awards for APC Scientists
APC's Declan McKiernan was awarded a Michael C Berndt Gold Medal for his presentation "Altered Toll Like Receptor responses in Irritable Bowel Syndrome". at UCC's College of Medicine and Health Annual Research Day in Brookfield Health Sciences Complex on Wednesday 16th June 2010.
In the poster category, APC scientists Carola Murphy, Gerard Moloney, Lindsay Hall, Aoife Quinlan, Emilie Faivre, Pat Casey, Fergus Shanahan, Silvia Melgar and Ken Nally. were awarded first prixze for their poster.
International Award for APC Scientists
Four scientists from the APC have been awarded the IDF Elie Metchnikoff Prize in Microbiology for 2010. The Prize is named in honour of the recipient of the 1908 Nobel Prize and is awarded in recognition of their contribution to the study of lactic acid bacteria. The Prizewinners are Dr Catherine Stanton and Professor Paul Ross of Teagasc, Moorepark and Professors Colin Hill and Gerald Fitzgerald of the Microbiology Department, UCC.
A Gut Feeling about Pain and Childhood Stress
Stress, especially that occurring in early life and childhood, is a major predisposing factor to developing pain symptoms associated with Irritable Bowel Syndrome according to a study by UCC scientists published in the journal Gastroenterology. Dr John Cryan and Professor Ted Dinan and their colleagues have unravelled a novel mechanism underlying how such early-life stress can alter the levels of a specific protein involved in controlling the amount of chemical glutamate which transmits nerve impulses in the spinal cord.
SFI Research Frontiers Programme Awards
APC investigators Dr Elizabeth Brint and Dr Aileen Houston received awards under Science Foundation Ireland’s Research Frontiers Programme (RFP). Minister Batt O’Keeffe recently announced the 47 awards amounting to €8.5million to 11 Higher Education Institutions. The Research Frontiers Programme (RFP) plays a key role in developing Ireland’s knowledge-based economy and makes a major contribution to the development of a highly skilled workforce.
Inflammatory Bowel Diseases
To coincide with World Digestive Health Day, APC will host a Public Forum on Monday, June 14th next. The aim of this Forum is to provide an awareness about IBD and provide up-to-date information on living with this condition. The event is being organised by the Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre (APC), in association with Danone, and will take place at 7.30pm in Brookfield Health Sciences Complex, UCC.
APC Budding Biologists TY Experience Programme 2010
The APC recently hosted 16 students from 10 secondary schools around Munster for their annual weeklong Budding Biologists Transition Year Experience Programme organised in conjunction with UCC's Microbiology Department.
Participants pictured with Ms Jill Haynes, Dept. Microbiology UCC
Science For All and Science Speak 2010
Congratulations to APC's Heather McLaughlin Winner of Science for All 2010. Her presentation "Listeria monocytogenes and the Battle for Iron inside the Body" has won her the honours.
We are delighted that Heather was awarded 2nd prize at the national intervarsity Science Speak on 27th April at the RDS.
Debating Science Issues 2010
Congratulations to Clonakilty Community College, winners of the Munster Regional Final of Debating Science Issues 2010. Evelyn McSweeney and Lucy Anne Edmunds persuaded a panel of judges, which included a doctor, a scientist and a journalist, that “the entire population should be immunised against seasonal flu and potentially pandemic animal influenzas such as swine flu”.
Clonakilty went on to win their national semi-final against St Attracta's Community School, Tubbercurry, Co. Sligo but were narrowly defeated in the national Final by Our Lady and St Patrick's College, South Belfast.
| Biosciences Institute University College Cork Ireland email: apc@ucc.ie |
Moorepark Food Research Centre Teagasc, Fermoy, Co. Cork Ireland |
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