My primary research interest is in the mining of multifunctional bioactive peptides from marine protein sources that have applications as functional food ingredients for the prevention and management of diseases such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. In particular I am interested in the development of industrial relevant protocols for the extraction of proteins from marine sources including macroalgae, salmon by-products, boarfish and blue whiting, the targeted generation, characterisation and identification of bioactive peptides therefrom.

Dr Pádraigín Harnedy-Rothwell joined the technical team as a Senior Technical Officer (STO) in October 2022.andnbsp; She obtained her PhD in Biotechnology from Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT), and she has since worked as a part-time lecturer at WIT, in the Forensic Science Laboratory located in Garda HQ in the Phoenix Park, Dublin and as a postdoctoral researcher in Teagasc Ashtown Food Research Centre, Dublin. She joined the Biological Science Department in UL in 2009 as a postdoctoral researcher in the Proteins and Peptides Research Group which is led by Prof Dick FitzGerald and worked in the group until her appointment as a STO. During her time in the Proteins and Peptides Research Group her research focused on marine-derived proteinaceous functional food ingredients. In particular, the mining for and characterisation of marine-derived peptides for the prevention and management of type II diabetes, cardiovascular disease and obesity. From her career to date Pádraigín has gained significant knowledge and practical experience in technologies related to microbiology, molecular biology, and food science.