A NEW €20 million research centre which aims to merge the fields of computer technology and life sciences is to be established at UCD, Minister for Science, Technology and Innovation Conor Lenihan announced yesterday.
The venture is being jointly funded by the Government through Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) and a range of companies from the private sector, including Hewlett-Packard, Servier, Siemens Ireland, Ark Therapeutics, Agilent Technologies and Protagen AG.
So far the industry partners have contributed €4.7 million to the project with an additional €14.8 million provided by the Government.
Up to 69 employees, a mixture of academics, postgraduate students, post-doctoral researches and laboratory technicians, will work on the project, which aims to use computer technology and mathematical modelling to further the understanding of biology.
The new centre will be known as Systems Biology Ireland, and is the 10th C-set (centre for science, engineering and technology) founded by SFI, the Government agency which funds scientific research.
The first C-sets were established by SFI in 2003 as a way of fostering research collaboration between industry and academia.
Foundation general director Prof Frank Gannon said the new C-set will be researching a “critical emerging area” in the field of life science research.
“It is not surprising that we are seeing a convergence of computer modelling and the study of biological systems. The field of systems biology generates a massive amount of data. Technology is needed to handle this data.”
The research at the centre will help develop better treatments for a range of medical conditions, including various cancers, the centre’s director, Prof Walter Kolch, said yesterday.
Mr Lenihan said that the increasing collaboration between academia and industry-led research will help Ireland’s economic recovery .
In July, the McCarthy report on public spending questioned the impact Government expenditure on scientific research was having on actual economic activity, and called for a reduction in public expenditure on science.
Mr Lenihan said yesterday that the Government will continue its commitment to scientific investment.
However, he said there was a need to “explain the benefits better to the general public”, particularly at a time of economic crisis.
