Dr Eoghan de Barra
Consultant in Infectious Diseases, Beaumont Hospital and RCSI
Professor Karen Boland
Consultant Gastroenterologist, Beaumont Hospital and RCSI
Clinical research centre profiles leading investigators in gastroenterology and infectious disease, whose groundbreaking research is improving patient care and advancing therapeutic discoveries.
Instrumental in delivering the WHO Covid-19 Solidarity Trial in Ireland, Dr Eoghan de Barra leads multiple clinical trials and biobanks focused on emerging infectious diseases, antimicrobial resistance and novel therapeutic interventions for viral and bacterial infections.
Advancing infectious disease research
“My primary focus is expanding Ireland’s participation in large clinical trial platforms, improving access and building capacity,” Dr de Barra explains. “We’re building on post-Covid vaccine work, including mpox vaccination and surrogates of protection while working to integrate Ireland into global initiatives like the SNAP trial to advance immunological and therapeutics research in infectious diseases. All this can be achieved with partners in our new National Infectious Diseases Clinical Trial Network.”
Having a research centre on-site
means I can access clinical space.
Revolutionising gastroenterology research
Leading an active clinical and translational research programme focused on improving outcomes for patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and liver cirrhosis, Prof Karen Boland’s work is improving treatment response with an emphasis on associated lifestyle interventions.
“We’ve found, by measuring muscle mass in patients with IBD, that those with more muscle are more likely to respond to treatment,” Prof Boland explains. “Our work involves exploring amino acid supplementation, exercise and dietary intervention in IBD and patients with cirrhosis; these data will have a big impact on validating these measures in clinical practice.”
With a large portfolio of work on IBD, Prof Boland also plays a key role in personalising therapeutic interventions. “Although we have treatments for patients with IBD, we don’t have a good understanding of which treatment is best for each patient,” she explains. “We are analysing samples to understand how the microbiome contributes to IBD to identify potential therapeutic targets.”
Clinical research support hub
The RCSI Clinical Research Centre (CRC) provides the facilities and expertise to enable investigators to conduct clinical research to the highest standards, supporting them across a spectrum of clinical areas. “Having a research centre on-site means I can access clinical space for visits with my dietitian, secure storage for patient samples and administrative support for grants and contracts,” Prof Boland explains. “I don’t have protected research time. I have four kids and a busy workload; I lean on a lot of people around me. Without that additional support, this work wouldn’t be possible.”
Dr de Barra agrees: “As a researcher, you don’t have all the answers. It’s important to be able to reach out to experts, discuss challenges and collaborate.”
