2008 Press Releases
UCC student wins HRB Watts Medal 2008
17.12.2008
UCC Medical student, Aoife McSweeney has won the 2008 Health Research Board (HRB) Watts medal. Aoife won with a presentation on her research for treating pre-eclampsia, a condition which affects 100,000 expectant mothers worldwide each year.
17.12.2008
UCC Medical student, Aoife McSweeney has won the 2008 Health Research Board (HRB) Watts medal. Aoife won with a presentation on her research for treating pre-eclampsia, a condition which affects 100,000 expectant mothers worldwide each year.
Working under the direction of Dr Louise Kenny in the Anu Research Centre at Cork University Maternity Hospital (CUMH), Aoife discovered that by introducing a PARP inhibitor to pre-eclamptic cells in the lab, she and Dr Kenny could almost recreate the response of a normal pregnant woman’s arteries. “Patients with pre-eclampsia experience problems because their blood vessels do not transport nutrients effectively. This prevents oxygen passing through to the cells which causes oxidative stress,” says Aoife. “We know that an enzyme called PARP becomes overactive in conditions that are characterised by oxidative stress, so we wanted to test the effects of PARP inhibitors in a recreated model of pre-eclampsia to see how they would effect the dysfunctional cells. These results would indicate that the enzyme PARP is a mediator in vascular dysfunctions, but that PARP inhibitors have the potential to reverse the effects of pre-eclampsia. This may have promise in terms of treating this critical condition,” she explained.
Aoife, who is a fifth year medical year student, was one of 50 students who participated in the HRB summer student scheme. A total of 150 applications were received for the summer scholarships this year and 50 students were funded.
Two other UCC students were finalists for the Watts Medal: Triona O’Riordan, School of Pharmacy, UCC for her project “An analysis of inappropriate prescribing of benzodiazepines in elderly patients admitted through the Accident and Emergency Department of Cork University Hospital” and Alan Marsh, Department of Microbiology, UCC with his project titled “Can good bacteriocins go bad? The contribution of Bsa to the competitiveness of community-acquired MRSA. “
“The work presented by the HRB summer students is outstanding. Their knowledge of their specialist field, enthusiasm and confidence is refreshing,” said Enda Connolly, Chief Executive of the Health Research Board. "This is the next generation of health researchers and we look forward to seeing the impact of their research on the health system in years to come," he added.
Aoife McSweeney, HRB Watts Medal 2008 Winner
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Aoife, who is a fifth year medical year student, was one of 50 students who participated in the HRB summer student scheme. A total of 150 applications were received for the summer scholarships this year and 50 students were funded.
Two other UCC students were finalists for the Watts Medal: Triona O’Riordan, School of Pharmacy, UCC for her project “An analysis of inappropriate prescribing of benzodiazepines in elderly patients admitted through the Accident and Emergency Department of Cork University Hospital” and Alan Marsh, Department of Microbiology, UCC with his project titled “Can good bacteriocins go bad? The contribution of Bsa to the competitiveness of community-acquired MRSA. “
“The work presented by the HRB summer students is outstanding. Their knowledge of their specialist field, enthusiasm and confidence is refreshing,” said Enda Connolly, Chief Executive of the Health Research Board. "This is the next generation of health researchers and we look forward to seeing the impact of their research on the health system in years to come," he added.
Aoife McSweeney, HRB Watts Medal 2008 Winner
934MMcS