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Prof. Noel F. Lowndes

Career history:
1983, BA (Genetics), University of Dublin, Trinity College, Ireland.
1987, PhD (Pathology), University of Glasgow. Scotland
1988-1993, Postdoctoral Fellow, National Institute for Medical Research, Mill Hill, London, England.
1993- 2001, Principal Investigator, Cell Division Cycle (CDC) Laboratory, Cancer Research UK London Research Institute, Clare Hall Laboratories, England.
2001-present, Professor of Biochemistry and Head of Department, National University of Ireland, Galway.
2003, Elected a member of the European Molecular Biology Organisation
Research interests:
We are interested in eukaryotic cellular responses to DNA damage primarily in two model systems, budding yeast and chicken DT40 cells. Using the genetic tractability of these systems we both knock-out' genes, as well as knock-in' fluorescent protein and affinity purification tags. The strains developed are used for biochemical, cell biological and genetic analyses. Currently we are focused on proteins required for sensing and transducing the DNA damage signal, including yeast Mec1 and Rad9; as well as vertebrate ATM, ATR, Brca1, 53BP1 and Mdc1. Discoveries made in the model systems are extrapolated and extended to human cells where these proteins function as potent tumour suppressors.
Key publications
Grenon M, Costelloe T, Jimeno S, O'Shaughnessy A, Fitzgerald J, Zgheib O, Degerth L, Lowndes NF. (2007) Docking onto chromatin via the Saccharomyces cerevisiae Rad9 Tudor domain. Yeast. 24:105-19.

Toh GW, O'Shaughnessy AM, Jimeno S, Dobbie IM, Grenon M, Maffini S, O'Rorke A, Lowndes NF. (2006) Histone H2A phosphorylation and H3 methylation are required for a novel Rad9 DSB repair function following checkpoint activation. DNA Repair (Amst). 5:693-703.
Nakamura K, Sakai W, Kawamoto T, Bree RT, Lowndes NF, Takeda S, Taniguchi Y. (2006) Genetic dissection of vertebrate 53BP1: a major role in non-homologous end joining of DNA double strand breaks. DNA Repair (Amst). 5:741-9.
Gilbert, C, Green, CM and Lowndes, NF (2001) Budding yeast Rad9 is an ATP-dependent Rad53-activating machine. Mol. Cell 8 : 129-136.
Grenon, M and Lowndes, NF (2001) The Rad50/Mre11/Xrs2 complex functions in the DNA damage checkpoint as a specific sensor of double-strand breaks. Nat. Cell Biol. 3 : 844-847.

Full publication list
Lab members
Postdoctoral fellows:
Muriel Grenon
Kevin Roche
Petra Werler

Graduate students:
Carla Abreu
Thomas Costelloe
Karen Finn
Jennifer FitzGerald
Ramesh Kumar
Fabio Pessina
Agnieszka Rupnik
Mary Walsh

Visiting Students:
Linda Degerth (Jan-May 2005), Erasmus student from Helsinki.
Noelia Escartin (July-Aug 2006), summer student from Valencia.
Elena Bosneaga (June-Aug 2006), summer student from Strasbourg.
Meabh McCurtin, (Aug-Sept 2006), summer student from Galway.
Carla Abreu, (Feb-July 2007), Erasmus student from Portugal.
Thomas McWilliams, (June-July 2007), summer student from Galway.

Previous lab members:

more...

Lectures/ courses
3rd Year course on 'Genomes and their organisation';
4th Year course on 'control of cellular proliferation and cancer'.
Contact details
Email: noel.lowndesnuigalway.ie
Ph: 00 353 91 492415(Direct)
Fax: 00 353 91 495504 (Departmental)
Positions available
Please contact Prof Lowndes for further information

Biochemistry, School of Natural Science.
National University of Ireland, Galway, University Road, Galway, Ireland.
Phone: +353 (0)91 492420
E-mail: Biochemistry
This page was last updated Monday, September 08, 2008