The Annual Invention Disclosure Award ceremony was held on 5th December 2008 in the Invent Centre.  These awards were set up by Invent DCU to publicly recognise the researchers who work with Invent to protect and commercialise their research. The awards were a great success with attendance of over 80 researchers on the day from various Schools and Faculties.

The ceremony was officially opened by Prof. Ferdinand von Prondzynski and the awards were presented by Professor Eugene Kennedy, Vice-President for Research.  Shay Garvey Delta Partners was the guest speaker who gave an excellent overview of the venture capital environment in Ireland.

There were a total of 36 Invention Disclosures with each group receiving a prize of €200. An overall prize of €1000 was also awarded in each of the categories of Life Sciences; Physical/Chemical Sciences and ICT/Engineering.

Richard Stokes, Director of Invent, stated that these individuals had demonstrated great initiative in the commercialisation of their technology and both DCU and Invent value the time and effort researchers put into commercialising their research.
As the commercialisation gateway of DCU, Invent has the infrastructure, the ability and the expertise to assist and advise industry, academia and researchers in their innovation, commercialisation and business development endeavours.

The Overall Award for Life Sciences of €1000 was given to Lourdes Basabe-Desmonts, Asif Riaz, Antonio Ricco and Luke Lee (BDI) for their invention disclosure entitled ‘Single Platelet Adhesion Assay’. This was a joint invention between DCU and the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.

The overall award for Physical/Chemical Sciences of €1000 was given to Stephen O’Driscoll, Conor Burke and Brian MacCraith (NCSR) for their invention disclosure entitled ‘Mobile Phone-based Sensor Platform’.

The overall award for ICT/Engineering of €1000 was given to Paul Whelan, John Mallon and Julia Dietlmeier (Electronic Engineering) for their invention disclosure entitled ‘Precise Correction of Optical Lateral Chromatic Aberration in Digital Imaging Systems’.

Overall NCSR based research received 24 of the 36 Invention Disclosures awarded in the categorie of Life Sciences; Physical/Chemical Scicences. Congratulations to all. For a full list of recipients please click here.

The Higher Education Authority (HEA) celebrated 10 years of its Programme of Research in Third Level Institutions (PRTLI), by holding an exhibition in the Science Gallery from Thursday 27th November to Tuesday 2nd December.

Transformations showcased some of the research that impacts on our daily lives, helping us get around faster, live longer and helping us to understand our enviromnent. The exhibition featured interactive and engaging events, along with a seminar series, from research institutions across the country including the National Centre for Sensor Research (NCSR) and the National Centre for Cellular Biotechnology (NICB) from DCU.

The NCSR's 'Sensor Science' exhibit gave visitors the opportunity to take a virtual tour of the Botanic Gardens, learn about monolithic materials, light emitting diodes and optic fibres. Experiments included fluorescence of solutions when different light is applied to them. Wearable sensors for sport and personal health monitoring, and the development of future sensing technologies were also be amongst the exciting displays that comprise the NCSR's exhibit.

The NCSR would like to say a huge thanks to Ms. Emma O'Brien and Ms. Rachel Tracey from the BDI E&O team, Dr. Silvija Abele, Ugis Danilevics and Ms. Marketa Ryvolova from the Microfludic Analysis group and Dr. Breda Kiernan, Mr. Conor Slater, Dr. Stephen Beirney and Dr. John Cleary from the Adaptive Sensors Group for all their help and demonstrations during the exhibition.

The third Commercialisation of University Research Student Project Awards took place on November 10th at Dublin City University Business School during the annual graduation ceremony. The award is for the best commercialisation plan for a product/service ideas generated by university science and technology researchers. Students identify the best route to market for the products/ideas and undertake extensive research on competitors, markets and customers. The projects are undertaken as part of the Innovation and High Technology Entrepreneurship Module on the Masters in Electronic-Commerce Degree Programme.  

This year students from DCU worked in collaboration with students from Arizona State University. The Award is sponsored by INVENT DCU and coordinated by Dr. Teresa Hogan, lecturer in Entrepreneurship at DCU Business School. This year’s first prize was awarded to a group of students who carried out a commercialisation plan for an Ammonia Breath Monitor, developed by Dr. Tony Killard and his research team in the NCSR.

The Healthisense breath monitor system which provides real time breath-by-breath measurement of oxygen & carbon dioxide content in inhaled and exhaled breath. It is a lightweight, portable, wireless apparatus that consists of a mask which houses the disposable sensors and communication device, which through the use of specialised software, can be linked to a computing device (PC, PDA laptop etc.). This is the second time that a project which examined the commercialisation potential of research undertaken by NCSR has won the competition.Congratulations to Tony and everyone involved in this award.

The Solid Phase Microextraction (SPME) course organised by Dr. Mirek Macka (u-FAn research group and Separation Science Cluster (SSC)) was held in the National Centre for Sensor Research, Dublin City University on the 7th and 8th October 2008. This was the fourth annual workshop/course organised by SSC (previous courses include ANN I, ANN II and Molecular Modelling in collaboration with the Adaptive Information Cluster) and the most successful with 35 participants from across Europe.

SPME is used for a spectrum of analysis from alcohol in blood and other drugs in biological fluids to environmental analysis. The main speaker was Prof. Janusz Pawliszyn, from the Department of Chemistry at the University of Waterloo, Canada, and the inventor of SPME. Prof. Pawliszyn is one of the most highly cited contemporary analytical chemists worldwide and the author of approximately 400 papers. Prof. Pawliszyn also holds 22 patents.

The course covered both basic and advanced topics related to Solid Phase Microextraction (SPME). The principles of SPME were presented in relation to practical problems. Thermodynamic and kinetic theory of direct and headspace SPME, as well as the effects of stirring, temperature and sample volume and matrix modification on the amount extracted were discussed. A complete method development was described and illustrated by real life examples.

The course covered both basic and advanced topics related to Solid Phase Microextraction (SPME). The principles of SPME were presented in relation to practical problems. Thermodynamic and kinetic theory of direct and headspace SPME, as well as the effects of stirring, temperature and sample volume and matrix modification on the amount extracted were discussed. A complete method development was described and illustrated by real life examples.

To view a full photo gallery of the course, please click here.

Dr. Keith Sharrock from HortResearch, New Zealand visited the NCSR on Monday 15th September. HortResearch is a world-class fruit science research company and has 10 sites around New Zealand. With orchards at five of these sites, HortResearch uses this unusual resource to produce innovative fruit and food products, and to assist industry by developing novel solutions. Dr. Sharrock is a member of the Biosensors and Biomeasurement team, which specialises in enzymatic sensors, immunosensors, imprinted polymer, optical sensors and biophysical sensors and their applications.

During his visit to the NCSR Dr. Sharrock hosted a seminar describing the Active and Intelligent Packaging products developed at HortResearchs facilities, specifically, the ripeSense® sensor. This sensor was developed to allow consumers to determine the ripeness of fruit via a sensor label that changes colour, from red through to yellow. This sensor works by reacting to the changing aromas released by the fruit as it ripens.

The Biosensors and Biomeasurements group are currently developing similar labelling systems for a wider variety of fruit, including kiwifruit, avocado, melon, mango and stone fruit. For more information on HortResearch please go to www.hortresearch.co.nz and for information on ripeSense® please see www.ripesense.com.

On 11 and 12 September, Drs Ciarán Fagan and Jessica Forde hosted the final partners' meeting of the COMBIO consortium in the NCSR. COMBIO, an acronym for "Composite Materials for the Immobilisation of Biocatalysts", is a network of 7 European companies (from Austria, Finland, Germany, Netherlands and UK) plus 3 universities (Leeds, Delft and DCU).

The aim of this 2006-08 project is to enable a substantial increase in the rate and extent of the uptake of biocatalysis processes by industry. The objective is to provide a generic approach to the immobilisation and/or stabilisation of enzymes using low cost, renewable support materials and novel internal cross-linking methods, where the enzyme becomes its own support and compatible microenvironments are created to improve stability.

The research has focused on the immobilisation/stabilisation techniques and on the assessment of performance enhancement in the main target application of the synthesis of fine chemicals. The COMBIO project is funded by the European Commission within its FP6 Programme, under “Horizontal research activities involving SMEs”, Contract number COOP-CT-2006-032628.

Deirdre Fox, who works under the supervision of Dr. Gillian McMahon in the Bioanalytical Chemistry and Diagnostics group in the NCSR, has recently been offered a FAS Science Challenge Internship in Dynamac Corporation in Kennedy Space Centre, Florida.

This internship will provide Deirdre with an opportunity to carry out research in the Space Life Science Lab (SLS Lab) with some of the world’s most esteemed scientists in the field of life sciences, including Dr. Lanfang Levine, Deirdre’s supervisor. The SLS Lab was developed as a result of partnership between State of Florida and NASA and is capable of hosting International Space Station experiment processing as well as associated biological and life sciences research.

One of the on-going efforts in the SLS lab is metabolite profiling (metabolomics). So far, the work has focused on plant metabolites using a GC-MS platform. As Deirdre’s PhD involves the evaluation of novel phases and approaches to selectively extract and analyse different drugs in human blood and other biological samples, it has been devised that a similar approach to that of the plant metabolomics could be employed if a LC-MS platform is used to profile drug and drug metabolites in blood.

Deirdre’s project in the Kennedy Space Centre will involve determining the level of Scopolamine in blood. Scopolamine is an anti motion sickness drug; the drug is being used to determine the drug level in blood by patch application and oral administration. The project is in correlation with the response of test objects to motion sickness induced by spinning chair.

The FAS Science Challenge Initiative was devised 5 years ago as a means of cultivating Ireland’s highly skilled and educated workforce, and encouraging entrepreneurship in applied sciences and advanced engineering. The programme is comprised of 6 programmes, Upskilling, Internship, National Scholars, Research Training, Science Asia Challenge and Bursaries. The FAS Science Challenge has a number of preferred partners for this initiative, particularly in the US, including Space Florida, BioLink USA – Ireland and the National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI).

The Internship Programme is a combined internship and work experience programme for postgraduates and apprentices at phase 5 on the apprenticeship scale, and runs for a duration of 6 months. Participants apply for specific projects according to their specialist area of research and skills. These projects have been incorporated into the leading – edge areas of research and further studies and include disciplines such as biochemistry, genetics/microbiology, biotechnology and life sciences.

Graduates and apprentices who are chosen to take part in this programme are privileged as they are being mentored throughout these projects by mentors of the highest calibre. Congratulations to Deirdre on securing this internship. We wish her the very best during her time in the SLS Lab and look forward to hearing about her experience upon her return to the NCSR.

To find out more about the Bioanalytical Chemistry and Diagnostics Group please click here.
To find out more about the FAS Science Challenge Initiative please click here. 

This years Hamilton Undergraduate Research Symposium draws to a close on Friday 5th September. To mark the end of this programme the annual Hamilton Symposium was held on 4th September. This years symposium was held in conjunction with the Beaufort Scholarship Symposium as both scholarships are run in tandem. During this event, each of the scholars presented the research they have been carrying out during the last ten weeks by giving clear and informative presentations.

The first to speak was Beaufort Scholarship student, Manika Poply, who described a series of tests she ran on a number of water samples taken from various water sources throughout Ireland, as part of her project entitled, Coliform Detection in Irish Waters. This study demonstrated shocking levels of contamination from coliforms in Irish waters and the need for constant monitoring of water using methods that will provide immediate results.

Gerard Tobin desrcibed the research he carried out during his project Development and Characteristics of Photocurable Sol-Gel Materials for Photonic Applications. Gerard described the fabrication process the sol-gel underwent and the effect hydrolysis and chelation degree had on the sizes and structure of the fabricated waveguides.

John Gallagher carried out the cultivation of mutant forms of recombinant horseradish peroxidase and compared the results to establish the number of active mutants during his project,Cultivation, Analysis and Peroxide of Recombinant Horesradish Peroxidase.

The NCSR would like to congratulate each of the students on the successful work carried out by each of the during the summer. We would like to thank the students' supervisors, Dr. Yuliya Shakalisava, Prof. Dermot Diamond and all of the Adaptive Sensors Group who hosted Manika, Dr. Mohamed Oubaha, Prof. Colette McDonagh and all of the Optical Sensors Group who hosted Gerard and Ms. Noeleen Laughran, Dr. Ciaran Fagan and all in the Enzyme Laboratory who hosted John. We would also like to thank, Ms. Clare Scalzo and the BDI E&O team for all of their assistance throughout the programme.

The NCSR hosted Dr. Shane Peper from  Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) as part of continuous effort to build and maintain international recognition of a world class research institution. Dr. Peper is a world renown expert in actinide and lathanide research with an extensive experience in development and optimization of chemical sensors for trace level analysis of ionic species. Such interesting combination of experience and expertise has already resulted in fruitful collaboration with the group of Prof. Dermot Diamond (in particular with Dr. Aleksandar Radu) and the development of first potentiometric sensor for fission products.

As a part of his visit to NCSR, Dr. Peper gave a lecture on Tuesday 19th August titled "U and Pu Coordination Chemistry under Oxidizing Alkaline Conditions: Implications for a "Green" Approach to Spent Nuclear Fuel Processing". Increasing energy needs, global warming, and dependence on foreign fossil fuels have all contributed to the recent renaissance in nuclear energy both in the U.S. and abroad. With more than 20 new nuclear power plants proposed in the U.S. in the next few years and with more than 160 proposed worldwide it is of paramount importance that efficient and preferably environmentally benign (“green”) processes be available to reprocess the current and future inventories of commercial spent nuclear fuel (SNF). Historically, SNF reprocessing approaches that have been used to any significant degree, such as PUREX, have used highly concentrated corrosive acids at high temperatures and toxic organic solvents and extractants. This acid-based paradigm generates large volumes of highly radioactive mixed waste and requires numerous engineering controls to mitigate the various hazards posed to workers and the environment.

Dr. Peper's group are working on developing a green approach for SNF reprocessing based on the unique behavior of actinides in the presence of peroxide under alkaline conditions. In systems that contain carbonate and hydrogen peroxide, for example, it is possible to rapidly dissolve the principal component of SNF, namely UO2, at room temperature! Moreover, the unique redox chemistry and speciation of the actinides under these conditions creates an opportunity to potentially develop a closed system for reprocessing by simply using gaseous feed materials and batch precipitations. The work presented described some of the interesting dissolution and coordination chemistry of U and Pu observed thus far.

Gary Nijak and Joe Geary from the Talley Research Group (TRG), based in the University of Notre Dame, Indiana, recently spent some time in the NCSR working with members of Fiona Regan’s Research Group. Gary and Joe’s visit was coordinated by Antóin Lawlor of the NCSR, and is a result of the recently agreed research collaboration agreement between DCU and the University of Notre Dame.

Gary and Joe’s work within the Talley Research Group primarily involves the development of a biosensor, capable of the identification and partial quantification of faecal contamination indicators to include Escherichia Coli, Total Coliforms and/or enterococci in marine and freshwater environments. The biosensor is capable of continuous, long-term in situ monitoring of faecal matter indicators in recreational and source water, and may be wirelessly connected to a central monitoring station with the capability of sending a signal alerting to the presence or absence of faecal matter.

In Ireland, there are currently 131 designated bathing areas, of which 122 are seawater bathing areas and 9 are freshwater bathing areas. These bathing areas are monitored on a fortnightly basis during the bathing season to check the quality of the water by the competent Local Authority. The capability of the TRG biosensor when deployed to continuously sample, identify and partially quantify faecal contamination indicators as required under the new Bathing Water Directive (2006/7/EC) will enable the provision of more up-to-date information ensuring better communication with the general public.

When persistent fluctuations in contaminants occur it is likely only to be detected through continuous measurement, as traditional spot/grab sampling will only provide a reasonable estimate of the true maximum and/or mean concentration of faecal matter in a water body. The TRG biosensor will also aid in the cutting of monitoring costs and the provision of better spatial and temporal coverage, representing long-term trends in fluctuations of faecal contaminants.

Joe Geary (TRG), George Sharpson (PEHO Fingal Co. Co.) & Gary Nijak (TRG)

During their stay, the group conducted the biosensors first marine field trial at Balbriggan Harbour, north Co. Dublin, which historically has been an area associated with high E. coli levels over the bathing season. Samples were taken twice daily with results available in roughly three hours, an improvement on the typical two day turn around of fortnightly samples taken by the Local Authority. Further work will move away from the detection of E. coli to the more widely used enterocolli for marine waters.

The field deployment could not have occurred without the help and assistance of personnel from Fingal County Council. In particular, George Sharpson the Principal Environmental Health Officer for Fingal County Council, who organised the setup of a secure sampling station at Balbriggan for the duration of the trial. The involvement of Fingal County Council was greatly appreciated, and it is hoped further field trials will occur when Gary returns next summer with his supervisor Prof. Jeff Talley who will be here as a visiting professor.

The Fourth International Conference on Environmental Science and Technology 2008 was held in the Hilton Hotel, Houston, Texas from the 28th to 31st July 2008. The conference, which is sponsored by the American Academy of Sciences, has 3 main objectives; to provide a platform for presenting new approaches to environmental science, to encourage the integration of new developments in scientific research into engineering applications and to facilitate technology transfer into practical products. Environmental ethics, environmental law, environmental economy and environmental management were also included in the multidisciplinary conference.

The conference included 1,500 attendees and 600 oral and poster presentations. One of the attendees of this conference was Dr. Tanja Radu of the Adaptive Information Cluster (AIC) at the National Centre for Centre Research in DCU.

Dr. Radu’s poster, entitled, Autonomous sensing devices for environmental monitoring, details a new approach in the use of sensors for environmental monitoring applications. The ultimate goal is producing autonomous, field deployable devices for continuous monitoring of target environmental parameters: phosphates in rivers and lakes and heavy metals in airborne dust.  These devices are intended to be used for dynamic tracking of the pollutants and as early warning systems for the local communities. Particular attention has been paid to autonomous logging and wireless transmission of the collected data. Integrating wireless communications with the sensing devices provides remote access to the data and operational characteristics, which can significantly simplify and improve pollution detection, particularly in remote areas.

Detection of phosphate levels in the lakes and rivers has been achieved using a simple colorimetric method (yellow method) paired with light emitting diode (LED) based optical detection. Miniaturization of the method was achieved using microfluidics, which, in combination with pumps, was used for transport and mixing of reagents with the sample. The device provides sample collection, reagent and waste storage, phosphate detection, and wireless communication for remote data transmission. Field trial showed good correlation between Dr. Radu’s device and existing monitoring systems at the wastewater treatment plant.

A prototype automated sampling unit built in our laboratories has been coupled with an air sampling pump to provide an excellent platform for sampling and analyzing dust from air.  As for the phosphate analyzer outlined above, wireless communications provides remote access to the data and control of the device operational characteristics.

“Oxidative DNA Damage”, was the first in a series of workshops hosted by the Royal Society of Chemistry entitled “Analytical Tools for the Life Sciences”. The aim of this workshop series is to bring together researchers from chemistry and life science to discuss problems and opportunities and to facilitate collaborations between the two disciplines. This was certainly the outcome of the first workshop, which was held in the Research and Engineering Building in DCU on March 28th, 2008.

The opening address was given by Prof. Jean Cadet, a world renowned expert on radiation induced DNA damage, who highlighted recent advancements in measurement of DNA damage in human cells. This was followed by a lecture from Prof. Craig Lunte, who provided an indepth analysis of cutting edge sampling techniques. After lunch Prof. John Kelly explained how picosecond spectroscopy was utilised by his research team to probe the intermediate species formed during light-induced damage to DNA, while Prof. Peter Farmer described the different products detected from carcinogen-induced DNA damage, and provided examples from real human studies to illustrate the complexity of oxidative DNA damage pathways. After an illustration by Dr. Blánaid White of how recent advances in separation techniques can provide improvements in resolving power and limits of detection of oxidative DNA damage analyses, Prof. Mario Leclerc revealed how optical polymers can be manipulated to provide DNA detection rivalling PCR in sensitivity.

Attended by over 70 delegates from across Ireland and the U.K., the workshop was a great success. The relaxed and friendly atmosphere contributed to extensive networking and lively discussions at the poster sessions and coffee breaks. The feedback provided by delegates after the conference end reported that the found the workshop above average to excellent in terms of quality and interest of the speakers, an accurate reflection of the inaugural workshop of the “Analytical Tools for the Life Sciences” series.

Delegates who attended the “Analytical Tools for the Life Sciences” workshop entitled “Oxidative DNA Damage”, which was held in the National Centre for Sensor Research, Dublin City University on March 28th 2008

8th August 2007

SFI Secondary Teacher Assistant Researchers (STARs) today faced the challenge of lighting a small bulb with a battery and just one wire. Thinking it couldn't be done, the STARs experimented with various set ups and discovered that there were actually a number of possibilities that would light the bulb. This activity was part of a workshop developed and delivered by Dr. Paul van Kampen of DCU's School of Physical Sciences and the Centre for the Advancement of Science Teaching and Learning (CASTeL). The workshop demonstrated the technique of teaching by guided-inquiry, which encourages students to explore new ideas through small group, collaborative, hands-on work. This technique has been shown to improve students' understanding of a topic, rather than focusing on learning a new set of facts in isolation.

The teachers all agreed that the technique could be used effectively in their classrooms to introduce a number of science topics to Junior Certificate students.

July 2007

The NCSR is host to one SFI Secondary Teacher Assistant Researcher (STAR) this year. Deirdre Brennan, a science teacher at Moyle Park College, Clondalkin, is working with Dr. Brian Kelleher of the School of Chemical Sciences, studying organic matter on the River Shannon. Deirdre has been welcomed in to the lab and is working closely with postgraduate students Margaret McCaul, Michal Szpak and Adrian Spence.

This is Deirdre's second year as a STAR, returning to work in Dr. Kelleher's group. She finds the research experience extremely valuable and hopes to gain new insights to bring back to her classroom.

Hamilton Undergraduate Research Scholarship
The NCSR's Hamilton Undergraduate Research Scholarship program provides students with direct experience of a research environment during their summer holidays. The program is open to undergraduate Science & Engineering Students from 3rd level institutes in Ireland.

This year the NCSR hosted three successful students:

• Magdalena Emilianow, a student of Management and Production Engineering at the University of Zielona Gora, Poland, worked with the Sensors and Separations group on a research project entitled “Investigation of nanostructured sensing materials for novel biosensor fabrication methodologies”, under the supervision of Dr. Aoife Morrin.
• Thomas Kelly studies Applied Physics in DCU. His research project was entitled “Optical detection on microfluidic chips with light emitting diodes and laser diodes”. He worked with the Analytical Separations group under the supervision of Dr. Mirek Macka and Dr. Brett Paull.
• Yinka Rahman, a student of Analytical Science in DCU undertook a study of "The use of novel passive sampling materials for the screening of priority pollutants” with Dr. Fiona Regan.

Click here to read an article published in Spin Magazine by Hamilton Scholar Thomas Kelly on his research project - www.sciencespin.com.

EU FP 7 Seminar - 05/10/06

Dr. Martha Cahill, National Contact Point for Life Science, Genomics & Biotechnology for Health at Enterprise Ireland visited the NCSR to give a briefing on EU FP 7 Funding for Health. Her talk included background to FP 7, rules for participation, project structures and the evaluation process. Presentation slides are available here (pdf format).