Life Sciences Commons^™

The Science Of Christmas: Dinner Table, Máirtín Mac Con Iomaire

Articles

This article discusses the science of preservation behind two famous Irish and English Christmas foods, Christmas Pudding and Mince Pies.

The 21st Century Graduate: Delivering A Tailored Approach To Social And Emotional Competency Training For Final Year Students To Enhance Graduate Attributes And Increase Employability, Ailish Jameson, Aiden Carthy, Colm Mcguinness, Fiona Mcsweeney

Conference Papers

The Higher Education Authority recently reported an average drop-out rate of 16% for Irish third level students, which poses significant pedagogical and economic challenges across the educational sector and negatively impacts the Irish economy. With respect to tackling this issue, a considerable body of international research has identified a strong positive correlation between higher levels of emotional intelligence (EI) and increased levels of student engagement and academic attainment. A wealth of previous research has also shown that employers favour graduates who possess higher levels of EI, for example, Job Outlook Survey, 2008, therefore, increasing students’ levels of EI is also …

Raman Spectroscopic Analysis Of Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma And Oral Dysplasia In The High-Wavenumber Region, Hugh Byrne, Luis Felipe Carvalho, Fiona Lyng, Franck Bonnier

Articles

Raman spectroscopy can provide a molecular-level signature of the biochemical composition and structure of cells with excellent spatial resolution and could be useful to monitor changes in composition for early stage and non-invasive cancer diagnosis, both ex-vivo and in vivo. In particular, the fingerprint spectral region (400–1,800 cm^-1) has been shown to be very promising for optical biopsy purposes. However, limitations to discrimination of dysplastic and inflammatory processes based on the fingerprint region still persist. In addition, the Raman spectral signal of dysplastic cells is one important source of misdiagnosis of normal versus pathological tissues. The high wavenumber …

Science Undergraduate Research Conference 2015 Booklet, Dublin Institute Of Technology, Institute Of Technology, Tallaght, Institute Of Technology, Blanchardstown

Group Reports

Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT), IT Tallaght and IT Blanchardstown hosted the Science Undergraduate Research Conference (SURC 2015) on 13th November 2015 in DIT's Grangegorman Campus. 25 students from DIT, IT Tallaght and IT Blanchardstown who completed an undergraduate research project in a Scientific discipline in the academic year 2014-15 presented at this conference.

The aims of the conference were to:

1. Provide current students with an opportunity to gain an understanding of the work which has been undertaken by recent graduates, and the career opportunities that exist for graduates in Scientific disciplines.
2. Provide recent graduates with an opportunity to gain …

Raman Spectroscopy For Screening And Diagnosis Of Cervical Cancer, Fiona Lyng, Damien Traynor, Ines Rm Ramos, Franck Bonnier, Hugh Byrne

Articles

Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women worldwide and mainly affects younger women. The mortality associated with cervical cancer can be reduced if this disease is detected at the pre-cancer stage. Current gold standard methods include cytopathology, HPV testing and histopathology but these methods are limited in terms of subjectivity, cost and time. There is an unmet clinical need for new methods to aid clinicians in the early detection of cervical pre-cancer. These methods should be objective, rapid and require minimal sample preparation. Raman spectroscopy is a vibrational spectroscopic technique by which incident radiation is used to …

Investigating The Role Of Shape On The Biological Impact Of Gold Nanoparticles In Vitro, Furong Tian, Hugh Byrne, Joao Conde, Tobias Stoeger, Martin Clift,, Alan Casey, Pablo Del Pino, Beatriz Pelaz, Barbara Rothen-Rutishauser,, Giovani Estrada, Jesús De La Fuente

Articles

Aim: To investigate the influence of gold nanoparticle (GNP) geometry on the biochemical response of Calu-3 epithelial cells.

Materials and Methods: Spherical, triangular and hexagonal GNPs were used. The GNP-cell interaction was assessed via atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The biochemical impact of GNPs was determined over 72hrs at [0.0001-1mg/mL].

Results: At 1mg/mL, hexagonal GNPs reduced Calu-3 viability below 60%, showed increased reactive oxygen species production and higher expression of pro-apoptotic markers. A cell mass burden of 1:2:12 as well as number of GNPs per cell (2:1:3) was observed for spherical:triangular:hexagonal GNPs.

Conclusion:

These findings do …

Incorporation Of Fibrin Into A Collagen–Glycosaminoglycan Matrix Results In A Scaffold With Improved Mechanical Properties And Enhanced Capacity To Resist Cell-Mediated Contraction, Claire Brougham, Tanya J. Levingstone, Stefan Jockenhoevel, Thomas C. Flanagan, Fergal J. O'Brien

Articles

Fibrin has many uses as a tissue engineering scaffold, however many in vivo studies have shown a reduction in function resulting from the susceptibility of fibrin to cell-mediated contraction. The overall aim of the present study was to develop and characterise a reinforced natural scaffold using fibrin, collagen and glycosaminoglycan (FCG), and to examine the cell-mediated contraction of this scaffold in comparison to fibrin gels. Through the use of an injection loading technique, a homogenous FCG scaffold was developed. Mechanical testing showed a sixfold increase in compressive modulus and a thirtyfold increase in tensile modulus of fibrin when reinforced with …

An Investigation Into The Biological Responses Induced Following Oral Exposure To Silver Nanoparticles, Anna Murphy

Doctoral

This study aims to investigate the biological responses induced by silver nanoparticles (AgNP) following oral exposure. The commonality of AgNP in consumer goods highlights the need for a thorough investigation into the interaction with and subsequent responses evoked in living systems following exposure. Firstly, the potential interaction with and effect of biofluid components, namely cholic acid (CA), deoxycholic acid (DCA) and ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA), on AgNP toxicity was investigated. Two cell lines corresponding to organs related to the biofluid components, HepG-2 a hepatocellular carcinoma derived from liver tissue and Hep2 an epithelial cell line, were employed. Physicochemical and cytotoxic screening …

Age-Related Sexual Dimorphism In Temporal Discrimination And In Adult-Onset Dystonia Suggests Gabaergic Mechanisms, John Butler, Ines M. Beiser, Laura Williams, Eavan Mcgovern, Fiona Molloy, Timothy Lynch, Dan G. Healy, Helena Moore, Richard Walsh, Richard B. Reilly, Sean O'Riordan, Cathal Walsh, Michael Hutchinson

Articles

Background: Adult-onset isolated focal dystonia (AOIFD) presenting in early adult life is more frequent in men, whereas in middle age it is female predominant. Temporal discrimination, an endophenotype of adult-onset idiopathic isolated focal dystonia, shows evidence of sexual dimorphism in healthy participants. Objectives: We assessed the distinctive features of age-related sexual dimorphism of (i) sex ratios in dystonia phenotypes and (ii) sexual dimorphism in temporal discrimination in unaffected relatives of cervical dystonia patients. Methods: We performed (i) a meta-regression analysis of the proportion of men in published cohorts of phenotypes of adult-onset dystonia in relation to their mean age of …

The Effectiveness Of Background Noise During A Sleep Deprived Eeg: A Randomised Control Trial, Louise Grant

Masters

Introduction Sleep Deprived Electroencephalogram’s (EEG’s) are usually carried out routinely in dedicated children’s Hospitals as they have been shown to increase the yield of the study. However, despite sleep deprivation being successfully carried out prior to the EEG the patient may fail to fall asleep. Various techniques have been developed to enhance sleep, such as the use of “white or background noise”. This study examined the use of background noise during the sleep portion of the EEG in comparison with a control group. Methodology This was a randomised control trial with two interventions (two different types of background noise) and …

Cold Plasma Inactivation Of Internalised Bacteria And Biofilms For Salmonella Enterica Serovar Typhimurium, Listeria Monocytogenes And Escherichia Coli, Dana Ziuzina, Lu Han, Patrick Cullen, Paula Bourke

Articles

Microbial biofilms and bacteria internalised in produce tissue may reduce the effectiveness of decontamination methods. In this study, the inactivation efficacy of in-package atmospheric cold plasma (ACP) afterglow was investigated against Salmonella Typhimurium, Listeria monocytogenes and Escherichia coli in the forms of planktonic cultures, biofilms formed on lettuce and associated bacteria internalised in lettuce tissue. Prepared lettuce broth (3%) was inoculated with bacteria resulting in a final concentration of ~ 7.0 log₁₀ CFU/ml. For biofilm formation and internalisation, lettuce pieces (5 × 5 cm) were dip-inoculated in bacterial suspension of ~ 7.0 log₁₀ CFU/ml for 2 h and …

Cold Plasma Inactivation Of Bacterial Biofilms And Reduction Of Quorum Sensing Regulated Virulence Factors, Dana Ziuzina, Daniela Boehm, Sonal Patil, Patrick Cullen, Paula Bourke

Articles

The main objectives of this work were to investigate the effect of atmospheric cold plasma (ACP) against a range of microbial biofilms commonly implicated in foodborne and health- care associated human infections and against P. aeruginosa quorum sensing (QS)-regu- lated virulence factors, such as pyocyanin, elastase (Las B) and biofilm formation capacity post-ACP treatment. The effect of processing factors, namely treatment time and mode of plasma exposure on antimicrobial activity of ACP were also examined. Antibiofilm activity was assessed for E. coli, L. monocytogenes and S. aureus in terms of reduction of cultur- ability and retention of metabolic activity using …

The Effect Of Carbon Monoxide Pre-Treatments On The Colour Stability Of Vacuum Packaged Beef Steaks, L.A. Van Rooyen, P. Allen, S. Crawley, David I. O'Connor

Conference papers

Carbon monoxide (CO) as a component of wood smoke has a long history of applications in meat, fish, vegetable and fruit processing. More recently it has been used in meat packaging to enhance colour stability. Concerns have been raised by regulatory authorities that CO may mask meat spoilage and meat might be sold beyond its sell-by-date due to the bright red colour being retained. This study investigated the use of 5% CO as a pre-treatment prior to vacuum packaging beef striploin steaks (Longissimus thoracis et lumborum, LTL) to induce the desirable cherry red colour, while determining the optimum pre-treatment time …

Cold Plasma Treatment Of Biodegradable Films And Smart Packaging, Shashi Pankaj

Doctoral

Cold plasma is an emerging technology offering many potential applications for food packaging. While it was originally developed to increase the surface energy of polymers, enhancing their adhesion and printability, it has recently emerged as a powerful tool for surface sterilisation of both food and food packaging materials. The food packaging industry is still dominated by petroleum derived polymers but in the past few decades there has been significant interest in the development of environment friendly, biodegradable green polymers. In this study, the interaction and effects of cold plasma with biopolymer based packaging materials (polylactic acid, zein, sodium caseinate, starch, …

Protective Properties Of Functionalised Tetrazine On An Aerospace Aluminium Alloy (Aa 2024-T3), Swarna Jaiswal, P.C. Rajath Varma, Brendan Duffy, Felicia Mutuma, Patrick Mchale

Articles

Environmental health concerns over conventional chromium based surface treatments on aluminium substrates are well known. Current research efforts have concentrated on developing protective technologies for multiple applications. Such properties would enable manufacturers to address both corrosion and bacterial threats in areas such as fuel tanks and delivery systems.

The present study explores the anticorrosion properties of 1,2-dihydro 1, 2, 4, 5 tetrazine-3, 6-dicarboxylic acid (H₂DCTZ) on a copper rich aerospace aluminium alloy (AA 2024-T3). Furthermore the antimicrobial activity of the tetrazine is evaluated against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, both capable of inducing corrosion. The protective action of the …

Valorization Of Fish By-Products: Rheological, Textural And Microstructural Properties Of Mackerel Skin Gelatins, Zied Khiari, Daniel Rico, Ana Belen Martin-Diana, Catherine Barry-Ryan

Articles

The fish processing industry generates significant amounts of waste which is usually discarded. The present study investigated the recovery of gelatins from Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus) skins after pre-treatment with different environmentally-friendly organic acids (acetic, citric, lactic, tartaric or malic acid). The chemical composition, the rheological and the textural properties as well as the microstructural characteristics of the extracted gelatins were analysed and compared to commercial bovine hide gelatin. Although the organic acid used in the pre-treatment step did not affect the extraction yield and the chemical composition of the prepared gelatins, differences were observed in terms of rheology and …

Bordeaux 2014 En Primeur Report, Diarmuid Cawley

Reports

A guide report of the 2014 Bordeaux Wines tasted at En Primeur stage in early 2015.

The Surfactant Dipalmitoylphophatidylcholine (Dppc) Modifies Acute Responses In Alveolar Carcinoma Cells In Response To Low Dose Silver Nanoparticle Exposure, Gordon Chambers, Anna Murphy, Kate Sheehy, Alan Casey

Articles

Nanotechnology is a rapidly growing field with silver nanoparticles (AgNP) in particular utilized in a wide variety of consumer products. This has presented a number of concerns relating to exposure and the associated toxicity to humans and the environment. As inhalation is the most common exposure route, this study investigates the potential toxicity of AgNP to A549 alveolar epithelial carcinoma cells and the influence of a major component of lung surfactant dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) on toxicity. It was illustrated that exposure to AgNP generated low levels of oxidative stress and a reduction in cell viability. While DPPC produced no significant effect …

Exploring The Unknown: Electrophysiological And Behavioural Measures Of Visuospatial Learning, Brendan Quinlivan, John Butler, Abdur R. Ridwan, Ines Beiser, Laura Williams, Eavan Mcgovern, Sean O'Riordan, Michael Hutchinson, Richard B. Reilly

Articles

Visuospatial memory describes our ability to temporarily store and manipulate visual and spatial information, and is employed for a wide variety of complex cognitive tasks. Here, a visuospatial learning task requiring fine motor control is employed to investigate visuospatial learning in a group of typically developing adults. Electrophysiological and behavioural data are collected during a target location task under two experimental conditions: Target Learning and Target Cued. Movement times (MTs) are employed as a behavioural metric of performance, while dynamic P3b amplitudes and power in the alpha band (approximately 10 Hz) are explored as electrophysiological metrics during visuospatial learning. Results …

Potential Of Biofluid Components To Modify Silver Nanoparticle Toxicity, Gordon Chambers, Anna Murphy, Kate Sheehy, Alan Casey

Articles

Abstract

Establishing realistic exposure scenarios is critical for cytotoxic investigation of silver nanoparticles (AgNP) in the gastrointestinal tract. This study investigated the potential interaction with and effect of biofluid components, namely cholic acid, deoxycholic acid and ursodeoxycholic acid, on AgNP toxicity. Two cell lines corresponding to organs related to the biofluid components were employed. These were HepG-2 a hepatocellular carcinoma derived from liver tissue and Hep2 an epithelial cell line. Physiochemical and cytotoxic screening was performed and the ability of biofluid components to modify AgNP cytotoxicity was explored. No alteration to the physiochemical characteristics of AgNP by biofluid components was …

Optimisation Of Isolation Methods For The Aza Group Of Marine Biotoxins And The Development Of Accurate And Precise Methods Of Analysis, Jane Kilcoyne

Doctoral

The two main groups of biotoxins which affect the Irish shellfish industry are azaspiracids (AZAs) and the okadaic acid (OA) group (OA, DTX2, DTX1 and their esters) toxins. Since AZAs were first identified in 1998, well over 30 analogues have been reported. Structural and toxicological data have been described for AZA1–5 (isolated from shellfish). LC-MS/MS is the EU reference method for detection of the AZAs (AZA1, -2 and -3) and the OA group toxins in raw shellfish with the regulatory limit set at 160 μg/kg for each toxin group. Limited supplies of purified toxins for certified reference materials (CRMs) were …

Cell Viability Assessment Using The Alamar Blue Assay: A Comparison Of 2d And 3d Cell Culture Models, Franck Bonnier, Mark Keating, Tomasz P. Wrobel, Katarsyna Majzner, Malgorzata Baranska, Amaya Garcia, Alfonso Blanco, Hugh Byrne

Articles

Comparisons of 2D and 3D cell culture models in literature have indicated differences in cellular morphology and metabolism, commonly attributed the better representation of in vivo conditions of the latter cell culture environment. Thus, interest in the use of 3D collagen gels for in vitro analysis has been growing. Although comparative studies to date have indicated an enhanced resistance of cells on collagen matrices against different toxicants, in the present study it is demonstrated that non-adapted protocols can lead to misinterpretation of results obtained from classical colorometric dye-based cytotoxic assays. Using the well established Alamar Blue assay, the …

The Determination Of The Potential Risks Associated With Engineered Nanoparticles In Aquatic Environments, Karina Carey

Masters

The presented body of work is submitted for examination to the degree of Masters of Philosophy, (MPhil). The objective of the overall project is to assess the potential risks associated with engineered nanoparticles in the aquatic environment. The current study assesses the potential toxic effects of C60 and CB with a range of ecotoxicological end points. The tests employed here include cytotoxicological assessment using two end-points; the Alamar Blue Assay and the Neutral Red Assay on two fish cell lines; PLHC-1 and RTG2. Growth Inhibition of algae Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata, OECD test 201, acute toxicity test of the crustacean Thamnocephalus platyurus, …

Regional-Scale Simulations Of Fungal Spore Aerosols Using An Emission Parameterization Adapted To Local Measurements Of Fluorescent Biological Aerosol Particles, M. Hummell, C. Hoose, M. Gallagher, D. A. Healy, J. A. Huffmann, David O'Connor, U. Poschl, C. Pohlker, N. H. Robinson, M. Schnaiter, J. R. Sodeau, M. Stengel, E. Toprak, H. Vogel

Articles

Fungal spores as a prominent type of primary biological aerosol particles (PBAP) have been incorporated into the COSMO-ART (Consortium for Small-scale Modelling- Aerosols and Reactive Trace gases) regional atmospheric model. Two literature-based emission rates for fungal spores derived from fungal spore colony counts and chemical tracer measurements were used as a parameterization baseline for this study. A third, new emission parameterization for fluorescent biological aerosol particles (FBAP) was adapted to field measurements from four locations across Europe. FBAP concentrations can be regarded as a lower estimate of total PBAP concentrations. Size distributions of FBAP often show a distinct mode at …

Raman Micro-Spectroscopy For Rapid Screening Of Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma, Luis Felipe Carvalho, Franck Bonnier, Kate O'Callaghan, Jeff O'Sullivan, Stephen Flint, Hugh Byrne, Fiona Lyng

Articles

Raman spectroscopy can provide a molecular-level fingerprint of the biochemical composition and structure of cells with excellent spatial resolution and could be useful to monitor changes in composition for dysplasia and early, non-invasive cancer diagnosis (carcinoma in situ), both ex-vivo and in vivo. In this study, we demonstrate this potential by collecting Raman spectra of nucleoli, nuclei and cytoplasm from oral epithelial cancer (SCC- 4) and dysplastic (pre-cancerous, DOK) cell lines and from normal oral epithelial primary cell cultures, in vitro, which were then analysed by principal component analysis (PCA) as a multivariate statistical method to discriminate the spectra. Results …

Current Advances In The Application Of Raman Spectroscopy For Molecular Diagnosis Of Cervical Cancer, Ines Martins Ramos, Alison Malkin, Fiona Lyng

Articles

Raman spectroscopy provides a unique biochemical fingerprint capable of identifying and characterizing the structure of molecules, cells and tissues. In cervical cancer, it is acknowledged as a promising biochemical tool due to its ability to detect pre-malignancy and early malignancy stages. This review summarizes the key research in the area and the evidence compiled is very encouraging for ongoing and further research. In addition to the diagnostic potential, promising results for HPV detection and monitoring treatment response suggest more than just a diagnosis prospective. A greater body of evidence is however necessary before Raman spectroscopy is fully validated for clinical …

Blanching As A Treatment Process: Effect On Polyphenols And Antioxidant Capacity Of Cabbage, Nissreen Abu-Ghannam, Amit Jaiswal

Books/Book Chapters/ Proceedings

Cabbage is considered an excellent source ofpolyphenolswith substantial antioxidant properties associated with the alleviation of oxidative stress and the prevention of free-radical mediated diseases. Many cabbage varieties are typically blanched prior to consumption mainly to enhance associated sensory attributes. Conventional hot water (80-100°C) or steam blanching are the most industrially applied methods. Blanching causes adverse losses in the antioxidant capacity of cabbage with over 70% resultingwithin the first few minutes. Blanching time, water to cabbage ratio and cabbage variety are the main determinants of the extent of antioxidant losses. The effect of the blanching temperature is of a lesssignificance particularlywithin …

Identification Of Key Proteins In Human Epithelial Cells Responding To Bystander Signals From Irradiated Trout Skin, Hayley Furlong, Richard Smith, Jiaxi Wang, Colin Seymour, Carmel Mothersill, Orla L. Howe

Articles

Radiation-induced bystander signaling has been found to occur in live rainbow trout fish (Oncorhynchus mykiss). This article reports identification of key proteomic changes in a bystander reporter cell line (HaCaT) grown in low-dose irradiated tissue-conditioned media (ITCM) from rainbow trout fish. In vitro explant cultures were generated from the skin of fish previously exposed to low doses (0.1 and 0.5 Gy) of X-ray radiation in vivo. The ITCM was harvested from all donor explant cultures and placed on recipient HaCaT cells to observe any change in protein expression caused by the bystander signals. Proteomic methods using 2-dimensional (2D) gel electrophoresis …

Self-Cleaning Applications Of Tio2 By Photo-Induced Hydrophilicity And Photocatalysis, Swagata Banerjee, Dionysios Dionysiou, Suresh Pillai

Articles

Self-cleaning materials have gained considerable attention for both their unique properties and practical applications in energy and environmental areas. Recent examples of many TiO2-derived materials have been illustrated to understand the fundamental principles of self-cleaning hydrophilic and hydrophobic surfaces. Various models including those proposed by Wenzel, Cassie-Baxter and Miwa-Hashimoto are discussed to explain the mechanism of self-cleaning. Examples of semiconductor surfaces exhibiting the simultaneous occurrence of superhydrophilic and superhydrophobic domains on the same surface are illustrated, which can have various advanced applications in microfluidics, printing, photovoltaic, biomedical devices, anti-bacterial surfaces and water purification.

Several strategies to improve the efficiency of …

An Estimation Of Periconceptional Under-Reporting Of Dietary Energy Intake, Laura Mullaney, Amy C. Higgins, Shona Cawley, Anne Doolan, Daniel Mccartney, Michael J. Turner

Articles

Background The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to examine periconceptional misreporting of energy intake (EI) using the Willet food frequency questionnaire (WFFQ). Methods Women were recruited in the first trimester. Women completed a semi-quantitative WFFQ. Maternal body composition was measured using eight-electrode bioelectrical impedance analysis. Under-reporters were those whose ratio of EI to their calculated basal metabolic rate fell below the calculated plausible threshold for their physical activity category. Results The mean age was 30.1+5.3 years (n ¼ 524). The mean body mass index (BMI) was 25.4+5.6 kg/m2 , and 16.6% were obese (BMI 30.0 kg/m2 ). Under-reported EI …