Professor of Molecular Medicine, University College Dublin
Professor Catherine Godson obtained her BSc (Biochemistry) and PhD (Pharmacology) from UCD and, following postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Geneva and at University of California San Diego, joined the faculty of Harvard University in 1994. She returned to UCD in 1997 where she was appointed Professor of Molecular Medicine. Professor Godson served between 2004–2007 as the University’s Vice President, Innovation and Corporate Partnerships.
In 2007, she was appointed Director of UCD Diabetes Research Centre, where she leads a major research programme funded by Science Foundation Ireland and collaborators in biopharmaceutical industry. Professor Godson has an international reputation in research on inflammation and its resolution, microvascular complications of diabetes and extracellular signal transduction. She has authored or co-authored more than 100 research papers, review articles, patents and book chapters. Professor Godson’s research activities are supported by grants from Science Foundation Ireland, Wellcome Trust, Health Research Board and the European Union.
Professor Godson was appointed to the Health Research Board in 2007, is a member of the European Medical Research Council and also serves on several international grant review committees, including the Wellcome Trust Physiological Sciences Committee. In 2011, she was elected as a member of the Royal Irish Academy, one of the highest academic honours available to Irish scientists.