Meet our Team

Carol Aherne

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

My research focuses on epithelial barrier function in the context of inflammatory bowel disease.

Dimitrios Argyropoulos

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Dr. Dimitrios Argyropoulos is an Assistant Professor in the UCD School of Biosystems and Food Engineering, a multi-disciplinary school – Ireland’s premier agri-food related research entity with excellent networks into the agri-food industry. He is currently the UCD Programme Director of the MSc Digital Agriculture and a Principal Investigator with the UCD Institute of Food and Health.

Tom Arnold

Adjunct Professor

Tommy Boland

Professor

graduated from UCD in 2001 with a first class honours degree in Animal Science and later with a PhD in 2005 focussed on maternal mineral nutrition and subsequent impacts on neonatal health and performance. Following a short period involved in the organization of the International Grassland Congress hosted in Dublin in 2005 I joined the lecturing staff in UCD where I currently specialise in ruminant nutrition and sheep husbandry.

Paula Bourke

Professor

Paula Bourke is a Professor in the UCD School of Biosystems and Food Engineering, a Conway Institute Research Fellow and a member of the UCD Institute of Food and Health. She graduated from the University of limerick in 2001 with a PhD in microbiological safety of novel non thermal processing technologies.

Lorraine Brennan

Theme Leader: Health & Nutrition / Full Professor

I am a full professor in the UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science. I am a PI in UCD Institute of Food & Health and Conway institute. I lead a nutritional metabolomics group that are at the forefront of the application of metabolomics in nutrition research and the development of Personalized nutrition. I was awarded an ERC consolidator grant in the field for discovery work and currently am involved in two European Consortia- Improve and Promed-cog.

Nigel Brunton

Associate Professor

Dr. Nigel Brunton has an MSc and PhD from the School of Agriculture and Food at University College Dublin.
Dr. Brunton's has 30 years of expertise in food chemistry, sample extraction and chromatography analysis.

Francis Butler

Professor

Professor Francis Butler, an engineer by training, joined UCD as an academic in Biosystems Engineering in 1990 having previously worked in production management in the Irish dairy Industry. He was appointed a Professor in 2007 and was the Head of School, UCD School of Biosystems Engineering from 2011 - 2014.

Colm Collins

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

My research focuses on the development of novel therapies for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. Our lab is currently assessing the impact of the endocannabinoid system on mucosal immunology. We have demonstrated a clear role for the endocannabinoid pathway in attenuating intestinal disease and are now working to understand a number of key components of that process.

Clare Corish

Associate Professor

Professor Clare Corish has a background in human nutrition and dietetics and worked for over 15 years in dietetic practice in Ireland, the UK and Saudi Arabia. She has extensive teaching and research experience in clinical nutrition and dietetics as lecturer in human nutrition and dietetics and programme director on the joint Technological University Dublin/University of Dublin,Trinity College undergraduate programme in human nutrition and dietetics.

Enda Cummins

Professor

Professor in the UCD School of Biosystems and Food Engineering. Visiting Professor KU Leuven, Belgium. Programme Director for the Masters of Engineering Science in Food Engineering. His main research area is risk assessment and predictive modelling, with a particular focus on implications for human health and environmental contamination.

Tom Curran

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Tom Curran is an Associate Professor and Vice Principal for Internationalisation in UCD College of Engineering & Architecture. He leads the Horizon Europe project, BioBeo, on innovative education for the bioeconomy with 15 partners across 10 European countries. He is the Director of the UCD MSc Environmental Technology degree programme. His research interests include waste management and air quality.

Giuseppe de Vito

Full Professor

Professor Giuseppe De Vito was born in 1958 in Blantyre (Malawi). He then grew up in Italy where he graduated in Medicine and Surgery in 1986 at the medical school of the University of Rome la Sapienza. At the same university he completed firstly a clinical specialization in Sports Medicine (1989) and then a PhD in Human and Exercise physiology (1994) presenting a thesis on exercise training adaptations in the older individual.

Fiona Doohan

Theme Leader: Primary Production Systems / Full Professor

Employment History 01/2014 - present Associate Professor (plant pathology), School of BIology and Environmental Science, College of Life Sciences, UCD, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland. 07/2006 - 12/2013Senior Lecturer (plant-microbe interactions), School of BIology and Environmental Science, College of Life Sciences, UCD, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland. 10/1999 - 07/2006 College Lecturer (plant-microbe interactions), School of BIology and Environmental Science, College of Life Sciences, UCD.

Alison Eldridge

Adjunct Professor

Seamus Fanning

Theme Leader: Food Safety / Full Professor

Professor of Food Safety Centre
University College Dublin, Food Safety30 Dec 1999 - 30 Dec 1999

Angela Feechan

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Emma Feeney

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Dr. Emma Feeney hold degrees from Queen's University, Belfast (BSc Genetics) and University College Dublin (PhD Genetics and Nutrition). She conducted postdoctoral experience in UCD and at the Pennsylvania State University, in the areas of human nutrition and metabolism, functional food ingredients from dairy, and in Sensory Evaluation.

Mark Fenelon

Adjunct Professor

Ciaran Forde

Adjunct Professor

Marco Garcia Vaquero

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Assistant Professor & Ad Astra Fellow

Eileen Gibney

Associate Professor & Deputy Director

Prof Eileen Gibney (BSc, PhD, MSc) has worked in the area of human nutrition since 1997. Graduating with a degree in human nutrition from Ulster University, she then obtained her PhD from the Dunn Nutrition Unit, University of Cambridge in 2001. She went on to complete an MSc in Molecular Medicine (TCD) in 2003. Eileen held post-doctoral positions at the University of Newcastle and Trinity College Dublin, before joining UCD in 2005.

Ronan Gormley

Adjunct Professor

Ronan Gormley is a graduate of University College Dublin in organic chemistry [BSc (1st class) and PhD] and has conducted post-doctoral research in the Universities of Michigan (chemistry) and Maryland (food science), USA. He also has a Diploma in Industrial Microbiology from UCD.

Aoife Gowen

Professor

Aoife Gowen is a Professor in the UCD School of Biosystems and Food Engineering. Her research area is multidisciplinary, involving applications of hyperspectral imaging and chemometrics to biological systems, including foods, microbes and biomaterials.

Ronald Halim

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Ronald Halim BE PhD MIChemE is an Assistant Professor in the School of Biosystems and Food Engineering at University College Dublin. He has multidisciplinary research interests in the use of microalgae for bioremediation of agri-food waste products and sustainable co-generation of food, fuel and biochemicals.

Niamh Harbourne

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Dr. Niamh Harbourne is an Assistant Professor in the UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science. She is the Programme Director of the BSc Food Science and a Principal Investigator with the UCD Institute of Food and Health. Her research aims to understand the impact of processing and storage on biologically active chemicals in foods, with a view to producing sustainable food products with improved health benefits while maintaining or improving overall product quality.

Vincent Hargaden

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Dr. Vincent Hargaden was appointed Assistant Professor in Engineering Management in October 2011, 20 years after entering UCD as a first year undergraduate engineering student. In the intervening period he completed the BE (Mechanical) degree and then pursued a two year masters by research at the Computer Integrated Manufacturing Research Unit (CIMRU) at NUI Galway.

Edmund Harty

Adjunct Full Professor

Nick Holden

Theme Leader: Food Sustainability / Professor

My research is on the sustainability of agriculture and food chains, with a focus on: (i) Life Cycle Assessment; (ii) Soil Quality (Sensing and Visual methods); and (iii) Agricultural Systems Technology I studied geographical and soil sciences to PhD level and then worked as an NERC research fellow (UK) and a Newman Scholar (Irl) researching water and nutrient transport process in soils and the controlling influence of soil structure.

Katy Horner

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Katy joined the School of Public Health, Physiotherapy and Sport Sciences at UCD as a lecturer in Sport and Exercise Science in 2017. She specialises in the areas of exercise physiology and nutrition.

Daniel Hurley

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Lecturer/Assistant Professor
School of Agriculture and Food Science

JC Jacquier

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Lecturer/Assistant Professor
School of Agriculture and Food Science

Cecily Kelleher

Full Professor

Cecily Kelleher qualified in medicine from UCD in 1980. She worked subsequently in clinical medicine, obtaining an MD degree on the relationship between hypertension and diabetes from UCC in 1987 and fellowship of Royal College of Physicians in 1991.

Alan Kelly

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

2002-2006: B.Agr.Sc - University College Dublin - Animal Science.2006-2009: PhD - University College Dublin - Nutritional Physiology. PhD thesis: An examination of the biological control of energetic efficiency in beef cattle. 2010-2011: Post-doctural Scientist - University College Dublin - Ruminant Nutrition.2011-present: Lecturer in Animal Science - School of Agriculture and Food Science, University College Dublin.

Fiona Lalor

Assistant Professor

Fiona Lalor is a Lecturer/Assistant Professor in the School of Agriculture and Food Science where she is the Programme Director for the Online MSc in Food, Nutrition Health. Fiona also teaches, manages and coordinates a further Online Professional Diploma in Food Safety & Quality. Fiona's area of expertise is Food Regulation and Food Policy and in 2010, Fiona completed her PhD in Food Regulation from the School of Public Health at UCD.

James Lyng

Professor

Fionnuala McAuliffe

Full Professor

Head of Women's and Child's Health, Fionnuala McAuliffe is Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at National Maternity Hospital Dublin and Director of the UCD Perinatal Research Centre. She graduated from UCD and following initial training in Dublin, moved to the UK. At King's College Hospital, London, she did a fellowship in Fetal Medicine and subsequently undertook Maternal and Fetal subspecialisation at Mount Sinai Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.

Paul McCabe

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

I obtained my B.Sc and Ph.D from NUI Maynooth. My Ph.D was undertaken under the supervision of Prof. Philip Dix and I studied chloroplasts genetics. I was sucessful in obtaining a one year UNESCO research fellowship at the Biological Research Centre in Szeged, Hungary and worked with Dr. Peter Medgyesy. I spent 2 years in the laboratory of Prof. Ken Sink at Michigan State University, USA, as a Postdoctoral Fellow and studied asymmetic protoplast fusion.

Kevin McDonnell

Professor

Sustainable energy systems, Green technology, Bioenergy and Biofuels, Crop production, Power and machinery systems, agricultural systems, New generation energy technologies2012-present Senior Lecturer UCD2002- 2012 College lecturer UCD2000-2002 Inspector (waste licensing and enforcement) EPA1997-2000 Post doctoral Researcher UCD1996 PhD NUI1993-1997 Teaching assistant UCD1992 M.Eng.Sc UCD1991 B.Agr.Sc

Fiona McGillicudy

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

I graduated from University College Dublin (UCD) in 2002 with a Bachelor of Science degree in pharmacology. I undertook a PhD in pharmacology under the supervision of Prof. Alan Keenan where I evaluated the potential of novel microparticle systems to act as local drug delivery vehicles for treatment of in-stent restenosis (2002-2006).

Breige McNulty

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

I am an associate professor in human nutrition in the schoold Argiculture and Food Science and PI based in the UCD Institute of Food And Health. My main research interests are in the area of food consumption and using such data to gain an understanding of the impact of foods, nutrients, food ingredients and chemicals on health with a view to underpinning food safety and policy.

Kieran Meade

Associate Professor

Dr Kieran Meade is an associate professor in the School of Agriculture and Food Science. Kieran has been appointed as a Senior Conway Fellow in UCD Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research and is a member of the Institute of Food and Health.

Frank Monahan

Professor

Frank Monahan is Dean of Agriculture and Head of the School of Agriculture and Food Science at University College Dublin.

Fionnuala Murphy

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Dr Fionnuala Murphy is an Assistant Professor in the UCD School of Biosystems & Food Engineering, and is UCD Programme Director of the MSc Bioeconomy with Business, and Programme Coordinator of the MSc in Sustainable Energy and Green Technologies and ME in Biosystems & Food Engineering.

Celine Murrin

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Dr Celine Murrin is a lecturer/assistant professor in Public Health Nutrition at the School of Public Health, Physiotherapy, and Sports Science in University College Dublin. She graduated from University College Dublin with a degree in Biochemistry and then completed a Masters in Human Nutrition from Ulster University in 1998.

Sonia Negrao

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

We live in an exciting age- the ‘omics’ revolution, where genomics-powered genetics and high-throughput phenotyping using temporal resolution are revolutionizing plant physiology. These advances require an interdisciplinary vision and the development of new methodologies using computer science and statistics.

Anne Nugent

Adjunct Professor

Dr. Anne Nugent has worked in the area of human nutrition since 1999. She graduated with a degree in human nutrition from the University of Ulster at Coleraine, and then obtained a PhD from Trinity College Dublin in 2003 in the area of dietary fatty acids and immune function.

Tom Norton

Adjunct Professor

John O'Doherty

Full Professor

Colm O'Donnell

Theme Leader: Innovative Processing & Quality / Full Professor

Colm O'Donnell BE PhD CEng FIAE is a Full Professor of Biosystems & Food Engineering. He leads the Food Quality and Processing Pillar in UCD's Institute of Food & Health. His previous UCD roles include Head of the UCD School of Biosystems and Food Engineering, and UCD College of Engineering & Architecture Vice-Principal(Teaching & Learning).

Alva O'Loughlin Kennedy

Communications Manager

Sharleen O'Reilly

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Sharleen O'Reilly (BSc, PhD, RD) is a CORU registered dietitian who works at the interface of research, teaching and practice in public health nutrition. Sharleen graduated from Trinity College Dublin with a degree in human nutrition and dietetics and her PhD. She worked as a dietitian in both Ireland and the UK before moving to Melbourne, Australia in late 2004.

Dolores O'Riordan

Insitute Director and Full Professor

Dolores O'Riordan completed a PhD in Protein Chemistry and following some time as a research fellow at UCC and Cornell University, Ithaca, New York she moved to research in the industrial food sector.

Sharon O'Rourke

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

01 716 7365

Aifric O'Sullivan

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Dr Aifric O’Sullivan (BSc, MSc, PhD) is an Assistant Professor at UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science, Principal Investigator at UCD Institute of Food and Health and Deputy Vice Principal (International) at UCD College of Health and Agricultural Sciences.

Mick O'Sullivan

Associate Professor

Philip Owende

Adjunct Professor

Catherine Phillips

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Dr Catherine Phillips is an Assistant Professor (Ad Astra Fellow) in the School of Public Health, Physiotherapy and Sports Science, University College Dublin. Her academic background includes a B.Sc (Hons) in Biochemistry from UCD and a Ph.D in Clinical Medicine (topic diabetic dyslipidaemia) from Trinity College Dublin.

Geraldine Quinn

General Manager

Alan Reilly

Adjunct Professor

Clare Reynolds

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

I am an Assistant Professor (Ad Astra Fellow) in the School of Public Health, Physiotherapy and Sports Science, University College Dublin and a Senior Conway Fellow.

Helen Roche

Full Professor

Helen Roche's academic background is in Human Nutrition & Molecular Medicine. Her appointment as Full Professor of Nutrigenomics bridges disciplines based at the UCD Conway Institute and the UCD Institute of Food & Health within UCD.

Amalia Scannell

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Dr. Scannell is a Microbiologist / Food Technologist focussed on developing improved food safety and sensory performance in food through multi-disciplinary research.

Helen Sheridan

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Torres Sweeney

Full Professor

Brijish Tiwari

Adjunct Professor

Saoirse Tracy

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Dr. Saoirse Tracy is Assistant Professor in Applied Plant Biology in the School of Agriculture and Food Science. She is a soil and plant scientist and her research centres around understanding plant root and soil interactions.

Stafford Vigors

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

PhD, University College Dublin, 2011-2015: My thesis title was ‘An examination of the mechanisms involved in feed efficiency improvement in pigs’. The project entailed a multidisciplinary approach with a focus on nutrition, genetics, physiology, immunology and microbiology to better understand the processes influencing feed efficiency in pigs.

Patrick Wall

Professor

Martina Wallace

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Shane Ward

Full Professor

Paul Whyte

Professor

Prof Paul Whyte graduated from UCD in 1992 with a BSc (Hons) in Industrial Microbiology. He then completed a Masters Degree in Food Science in the Faculty of Agriculture, UCD in 1994.

Karina Pierce

Associate Professor

Aleksandra Konic Ristic

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

I obtained a MPharm Degree from the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Belgrade, and both MSc and PhD Degrees in Food Science and Nutrition from the same faculty. I have almost 15 years of experience in research and teaching in the area of Food, Diet and Health.

Simona Grasso

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Lecturer / Assistant Professor in Food Science & Nutrition at University College Dublin, I have international lecturing and research experience.

Junli Xu

Doctor

Junli Xu is an Assistant Professor at the School of Biosystems and Food Engineering, under the UCD Ad Astra Fellowship scheme. She received her Bachler degree in Food Engineering (2014), Zhejiang University.

Sarah Browne

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Dr. Sarah Browne is a registered dietitian and assistant professor in clinical nutrition and dietetics. She graduated from Trinity College Dublin and Dublin Institute of Technology in 2006.

Tesfaye Bedane

Lecturer/Assistant Professorv

Tesfaye Bedane is an Assitant Professor in the School of Agriculture and Food Science, University College Dublin (UCD). He received his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering and MSc in Food Engineering from University of Salerno (Italy) and BSc in Chemical Engineering from Bahir Dar University (Ethiopia).

Ajay Mennon

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Cathal McCabe

Lecturer

Ragat Nag

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

Rajat is a Lecturer/Assistant Professor in Biological Engineering at UCD School of Biosystems and Food Engineering, University College Dublin, Ireland. He is also a Chartered Engineer (CEng) from Engineers Ireland (Discipline: Civil, Struct, Environmental).

Guerrino Macori

Lecturer/Assistant Professor

My research focuses on exploring the "microbial dark matter", aiming to discover unknown aspects of microbes using advanced genomics and multi-omics integration. My work covers diverse environments and provides key insights for health, agriculture, and environmental sustainability, while also preparing future researchers in this exciting field.

Saskia van Ruth

Full Professor

Over the past two decades her research and teaching in various universities has focused on the integrity in food supply chains, food fraud prevention and food authentication. She worked in this area before at Wageningen University, Wageningen Research, Queen's University Belfast and University College Cork.

Kate Pumpa

Full Professor

Professor Kate Pumpa is an Accredited Exercise Physiologist (Exercise & Sports Science Australia) and Advanced Sports Dietitian (Sports Dietitians Australia), with expertise in optimising sporting performance through nutritional and physiological interventions. Kate has extensive clinical and research experience in High Performance Sport, particularly in Rugby Union and Basketball.