RCSI has been awarded its first ever ETS Walton Visitor award by Science Foundation Ireland.

This award is an internationally peer reviewed award. The grant is to enable highly qualified academic researchers resident outside Ireland to carry out research projects of their own choice in Ireland.

Professor Michael Berndt will spend four months in Dublin working with Niamh Moran and Dermot Kenny in molecular and cellular therapeutics. The research develops collaborative projects in the platelet research group already funded by Science Foundation Ireland and the Health Research Board. The award follows in the success of the first international platelet research meeting hosted by Professors Moran and Kenny at RCSI in September 2005.

Commenting on the award Professor Kenny said, “RCSI has been recognised internationally for a long time for its expertise in clinical medicine. With this award the recent strategic investments in RCSI are also now being recognised at the international level."

Michael Berndt
Prof. Michael Berndt, age 52, is currently Head and Professor of Immunology at Monash University and Deputy Dean of Research for the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences. His research interests include thrombosis, inflammation and vascular biology and he is currently funded by the NHMRC, NIH and NHF.

He has received numerous national and international research awards including the Glaxo-Wellcome Medal in 1996 and a Distinguished Career Award from the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis in 2003. He serves on several editorial boards, including the journals Blood and Arteriosclerosis Thrombosis and Vascular Biology. He has published over 230 papers, including major international journals such as Science, Journal of Experimental Medicine and Blood.

He has collaborated with pharmaceutical companies including E. Merck and Hoffman-la-Roche and has filed a number of patents including one licensed to Genetics Institute (Wyeth). He was a co-founder of the ASX-listed proteomics-based biotechnology company, Cryptome Pharmaceuticals Ltd (now Healthlinx).

He has served on numerous NH&MRC committees, is currently on the board of The Cancer Council, Victoria, and chairs its Medical and Scientific Committee. He was Programme Chair for the 20th Congress of the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis, Sydney, 2005 and is Programme Chair for the 15th International Vascular Biology Meeting, Sydney, 2008.