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AGRC involved in curation of Sugarbind database

The SugarBind database is a repository of all publically available sugar-binding data and a very useful resource for Glycobiologists.  SugarBind was established in 2003 by the MITRE Corporation, a not-for-profit US national technology resource engaged in scientific and technical activities for various government organizations. SugarBind has recently been installed and made publically available on the ExPASy portal by members of the Proteome Informatics Group of the Swiss Institute of BioInformatics (SIB) in Geneva, Switzerland.

The AGRC have received an open source license for the SugarBind database from MITRE Corporation and will contribute to its continued development in collaboration with Elaine Mullen of MITRE and members of the BioMolecular Frontiers Research Centre (BFRC) of MacQuarie University New South Wales Australia. Improvements will include addition of newly curated material, the expansion of data fields and the cross-linking to other databases maintained at SIB.   Website:  http://sugarbind.expasy.org/sugarbind/

3nd Annual Meeting of Glycoscience Ireland

The 3rd Annual Meeting of GlycoScience Ireland was held in University College Dublin at the start of September. GlycoScience Ireland is an academic organization led by Prof. Lokesh Joshi and Prof. Pauline Rudd, which aims to build support for and promote Glycosciences research in Ireland and to provide visibility and collaborative opportunities for Irish glycoscientists with international academic and industrial communities. Attendees included representatives from Irish academic institutions, Irish and multinational Biopharmaceutical and Biotechnology industries, the major Irish funding agencies, and a distinguished panel of speakers from the US and Europe. Web-site: http://www.glycoscienceireland.ie/

EU FP7 Health project starting January 2011: GlycoHIT

A grant of €3 million has recently been awarded under the EU Framework 7 Health programme for a collaborative project entitled “Glycomics by High-throughput Integrated Technologies: Development and validation of complementary and integrated technologies for glycomic analysis of serum in cancer glycobiomarker discovery, diagnostics and glycotherapeutic monitoring” (acronym: GlycoHIT). GlycoHIT will be led by Prof. Lokesh Joshi of the AGRC and will involve 15 partners from both academia and industry with representatives from many European countries, Israel, China, Japan and the USA.  Partners include Professor Pauline Rudd of NIBRT and Dr. Zohar Yakhini of Agilent Technologies, both partners in the AGRC, and Ciaran Clissman of Pintail Ltd., a project management consultancy SME based in Dublin

TEDx Galway

The first TEDxGalway was held on Friday June 11th 2010 on the campus of NUI Galway and attendees were treated to a range of fascinating presentations and performances spanning aspects of Irish culture to the latest scientific research, celebrating the diversity of intellectual and cultural life in this small but vibrant city. Prof. Lokesh Joshi was one of the speakers and presented on "Glycoscience - the sweet and sticky language of biology".  All the presentations were recorded and uploaded to the TEDxTalks youtube site and can be accessed from the TEDxGalway Web site.

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NUI Galway Launches First Comprehensive Book in Emerging Field of Microbial Glycobiology

The first comprehensive book to be published in the emerging field of microbial glycobiology has been launched at NUI Galway. Microbial Glycobiology - Structures, Relevance and Applications presents information on sugars (carbohydrates) influencing the biology of microorganisms, what is termed microbial glycobiology.

The new book, with Professor Anthony Moran, School of Natural Sciences at NUI Galway as Editor-in-Chief, runs to over 1,000 pages, with 50 chapters by 100 contributors from Europe, North America, Japan and Australia.  Ireland has already established a strong footing in the burgeoning field of glycoscience. NUI Galway is home to the Alimentary Glycoscience Research Cluster (AGRC) of which Professor Moran is a member. A collaboration of research institutions and industry partners, the AGRC was established in 2009 with a significant grant from Government through Science Foundation Ireland, and is aiding in the discovery of novel diagnostics, therapeutics and nutraceuticals.

Microbial Glycobiology is published by Academic Press, for more information see http://www.elsevierdirect.com/

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AGRC Official Launch

Mr Conor Lenihan T.D., Minister for Science, Technology and Innovation, officially launched the Alimentary Glycoscience Research Cluster (AGRC) at NUI Galway.

Launching the Strategic Research Cluster, Minister Lenihan said: “The AGRC is dedicated to conducting invaluable study into key research areas that impact enormously on each of us, directly or indirectly at some point in our lives. Its multi-disciplinary team of 36 researchers, together with industry partners and Government agencies, is the physical manifestation of the Government's 'Smart Economy' aspiration, and over the next five years will work steadfastly towards unearthing ground-breaking discoveries of benefit to wider society. The participation of leading Industry and government agency partners - Agilent Technologies Ireland Ltd, Alimentary Health, Biomining Inc. and Bristol Myers-Squibb, Teagasc and NIBRT - illustrates the ambition and pharmaceutical expertise that the cluster possesses from the outset."

Speaking at the launch, director general of Science Foundation Ireland, Professor Frank Gannon, said “The Strategic Research Cluster model has proven, in a very short period, that the pooling of resources creates new opportunities which can potentially accelerate commercial outputs and other beneficial consequences. The AGRC has already built up considerable momentum around its specialized discipline.”

“This is an extremely important initiative for NUI Galway and a very exciting development for Glycoscience research in Ireland. The internationally leading consortium of academic and industry partners, led by Professor Joshi will ensure that Ireland is positioned as a global leader in this emerging research area”, said Professor Terry Smith, Vice-President for Research, NUI Galway.

 

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