DCU is delighted to announce a collaborative research initiative between Alltech and the National Institute for Cellular Biotechnology (NICB) at DCU. Alltech and a team at the NICB, under the guidance of Prof. Martin Clynes will investigate the role of micronutrient products in cellular health. This work will be carried out at the state of the art NICB facilities in DCU and will add significant value to Alltech’s on-going research and development activities, as well as contributing to industry and academic understanding of the role of micronutrients in maintaining gut health and immunity. Alltech is a global leader in the animal health and nutrition industry and one of the top animal health companies in the world. The company focuses on natural scientific solutions to today’s biggest agriculture and food industry challenges. The NICB is a multidisciplinary centre of research in fundamental and applied Cellular Biotechnology, Molecular Cell Biology, Ocular diseases and Biological Chemistry and is located in DCU.
This project is supported by Enterprise Ireland’s Innovation Partnership Scheme and is an excellent example of Industry-academic engagement that is core to the National strategy for Science, Technology and Innovation. Enterprise Ireland’s Innovation Partnership Programme was designed to enable companies to access the latest skills and expertise from research institutes throughout Ireland. The programme can provide up to 80% of the cost of research to develop new and improved products, processes or services, or generate new knowledge and know-how. It is an excellent mechanism for companies based in Ireland to engage in industry-academic collaboration. When asked about choosing the NICB as partner for this project, Alltech’s Director of Research, Dr Richard Murphy, acknowledged that the level of expertise and research facilities at DCU were the primary factor in developing the collaboration. “The NICB and Prof. Clynes are to be commended for their research capabilities and commitment to enabling and delivering world class research”. Dr Murphy also indicated that the Innovation Partnership programme enabled this long term relationship to progress further.