A research centre for medical diagnostic devices to give early warnings of diseases has been formally opened at Dublin City University today.
The Biomedical Diagnostics Institute (BDI) was opened by the Taoiseach Bertie Ahern.
It aims to produce home diagnostic devices to give early warnings of life-threatening illnesses such as cancer, heart disease and diabetes. They will use "markers" in blood, breath and saliva to help in these early diagnoses.
DCU is leading the research - a collaboration between industry and academia - with the help of funding of €22.5 million from Science Foundation Ireland.
The facility employs some 60 researchers and has six industrial partners - Åmic, Analog Devices, Becton Dickinson, Enfer Scientific, Hospira, and Inverness Medical Innovations/Unipath.
Mr Ahern said the development of accurate devices for home health testing would enable people to manage their health and so "reduce hospital stays and save lives".
According to DCU, the global medical diagnostics industry is now worth more than €20 billion, and the medical device and diagnostic sector is a significant growth area in the Irish economy with over 130 companies involved.