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Research Matters

IDEAS

Creating Opportunities for Studentpreneurs in NUI Galway

SEEN, NUI Galway’s student enterprise support service, has launched a hot-desk facility for the summer of 2011.  SEEN provides NUI Galway students who want to progress their business ideas the benefit of networking with like-minded students and on-campus support and resources.

The hot-desk facility was managed by the Technology Transfer Office (TTO) and SEEN.  SEEN is a student run network which encourages entrepreneurship among the student populace. Since January 2011, SEEN has worked with students to bring their business and social concepts and ideas to a commercial reality.  

Paddy Melia from the SEEN team adds, “We are delighted at the possibilities of this new facility. This space will act as a springboard for students with ideas and demonstrates how NUI Galway is leading the way in developing a culture for ’studentpreneurs’ on campus.”  SEEN have also launched their website, www.seen.ie, which is a first point of contact for students. The site provides NUI Galway students with the latest news, opportunities, and connections as well as details on how to access the hot-desk facility.

The website and hot-desk facility demonstrate NUI Galway’s commitment to entrepreneurship and enterprising students on campus. With the announcement of this additional support available to students, Professor Chris Curtin, Vice-President for Innovation & Performance says, “We are preparing the students of NUI Galway to drive forward the society and economy of the future.”


Author: Paddy Melia, Postgraduate Student, Engineering

Access to the Hot Desks is through Clodagh Barry, Ext 5382, clodagh.barrynuigalway.ie.  The Hot Desk facility is based in Aras Moyola.

US microRNA Therapeutic Company Collaborates with Surgery Researchers

Breast cancer researchers in the Discipline of Surgery at NUI Galway have recently engaged in an exciting collaboration with Regulus Therapeutics Inc, San Diego, CA. 

Arising from a 2010 publication in the Annals of Surgery, “Circulating microRNAs as novel minimally invasive biomarkers for breast cancer” by HRB Clinical Research Fellow Dr Helen Heneghan and colleagues, Regulus approached the breast cancer research team to collaborate on the next stage of this study. The high-impact publication reported that increased levels of miR-195 and let-7a were present in the circulation of breast cancer patients and that levels decreased to those comparable with control subjects following tumour removal.

Regulus Therapeutics Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company leading the discovery and development of a new class of high-impact medicines based on microRNAs. Regulus is focused exclusively on the development of microRNA therapeutics. In June 2011 a license agreement between both research teams was reached with the assistance of the NUI Galway Technology Transfer Office.

MicroRNAs are small non-coding, stable RNA molecules that play critical regulatory roles in a wide range of biological and pathological processes. Their role in cancer is of immense interest to researchers in this field. MicroRNA research has been ongoing in the surgery laboratory since 2006 under the direction of Dr Nicola Miller and Professor Michael Kerin. It is being continued by a team of researchers thanks to the financial support of the National Breast Cancer Research Institute (NBCRI), the Health Research Board and Molecular Medicine Ireland.

Author: Emer Hennessy, Discipline of Surgery

 

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