Posted 01 July 2015
Cancer biologist at UCD awarded distinguished ‘For Women in Science’ scholarship
A cancer biology researcher at UCD has been awarded the distinguished L’Oreal and Unesco ‘For Women in Science’ fellowship along with four leading scientists from universities in the United Kingdom.
The scholarships are offered through a partnership between L’Oreal UK and Ireland and the Irish and UK National Commissions of UNESCO, with the support of the Royal Society in London.
The fellowship was awarded to Dr Tríona Ní Chonghaile, a postdoctoral cancer researcher in the laboratory of Professor William Gallagher, Professor of Cancer Biology in the UCD School of Biomolecular and Biomedical Science.
Dr Triona Ni Chonghaile, UCD Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, winner of one of the five L’Oreal and Unesco ‘For Women in Science’ fellowships
Dr Ní Chonghaile is also a researcher at the UCD Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research.
The Co Mayo native secured the scholarship for her study on ‘The development of a novel HDAC6 inhibitor that can kill chemoresistant breast cancers’.
She said: “I am very privileged to be part of the global network of esteemed female scientists associated with the For Women in Science Fellowship, in over 100 countries.”
A key focus of Dr Ní Chonghaile’s research to date has been trying to understand why certain cancers are sensitive to chemotherapy while others are resistant, and how best to treat the resistant cancers.
To address this issue, she has utilised a novel technology known as BH3 profiling, which can measure the cell death sensitivity of the mitochondria, which supply cellular energy, and thereby enables similar analysis of the cell.
Pictured (l-r): Dr Paola Crippa, University of Newcastle; Dr Aarti Jagannath, University of Oxford; Amandine Ohayon; Managing Director, L’Oréal Luxe UK & Ireland; Dr Tríona Ní Chonghaile, University College Dublin; Dr Rita Tojeiro, University of St Andrews; Dr Joanne Durgan, Babraham Institute, Cambridge, receiving their fellowship awards
The only Irish scientist among the winners, Dr Ní Chonghaile’s research surrounded her quest to find an effective therapy for a subtype of breast cancer, called triple negative breast cancer, that has a poor response to treatment.
After screening 30,000 small molecules, she and her colleagues identified a molecule that could kill chemoresistant breast cancer cells more readily than the normal non-cancerous cells.
“We are now trying to understand exactly how this small molecule works. How does it kill cancer cells selectively?” she said.
“We hope to improve the structure of the small molecule so that it can go from a molecule in the laboratory to potentially being a drug used in the clinic that has an impact on patient care.”
The five winners of the scholarships were selected by a jury of eminent scientists, chaired by Professor Pratibha Gai, who was L’Oréal’s International Laureate in 2013.
The awards programme is designed to promote and highlight the critical importance of ensuring greater participation of women in science, by awarding promising female scientists with fellowships to help them further their research.
Each worth just over €21,000 (£15,000), the fellowships can be spent on whatever the academics need to help drive their research forward.
The other winners of the award were: Dr Paola Crippa, University of Newcastle; Dr Aarti Jagannath, University of Oxford; Dr Rita Tojeiro, University of St Andrews and Dr Joanne Durgan, Babraham Institute, Cambridge.(Produced by UCD University Relations)
