I am currently the Research Impact Lead at TU Dublin and a Principal Investigator, leading my own research group with my colleague Dr. Emma Caraher. Previously, I was a lecturer in biopharmaceutical sciences. I completed my PhD in 2004 at IT Tallaght before being appointed as a Newman Fellow at UCD, where I studied Barrett’s Metaplasia. Following this, I worked as a Research Assistant in the School of Nursing at the University of Auckland in New Zealand.

I returned to Ireland in 2008 to work with Professor Seamas Donnelly in the Conway Institute at UCD (now of TCD) as a postdoctoral researcher, focusing on pulmonary fibrosis and bacterial infection. I later joined Professor Michael Keane’s group, where I developed an interest in extracellular vesicles and their role in fibrotic disease and infection. In August 2016, I joined Technological University Dublin, where I established my own research group.

I am actively engaged in research on bacterial antibiotic resistance and therapeutic approaches. My work also explores the role of extracellular vesicles, derived from both mammalian and bacterial cells, in disease progression and treatment. Additionally, I have a strong interest in educational research, particularly in the areas of technology-enhanced learning, student retention, and student resilience. I am open to collaboration and would be pleased to hear from Erasmus students interested in undertaking a period of laboratory-based research abroad.