Teagasc launch new Research and Innovation magazine

Teagasc has launched a new magazine, TResearch, featuring the latest research and innovation performed at its six research centres. Popular science broadcaster and Chairman of the Discover Science and Engineering Programme, Leo Enright, was guest speaker at the launch, which took place, today, 9 November 2006, at the RDS, Dublin.

• TResearch (Winter 2006)

Speaking at the launch, Chairman of the Teagasc Authority, Dr Tom O Dwyer said: “Scientific research will be one of the key drivers of the knowledge-based economy in Ireland in the future. The need for effective communication of research and the promotion of science is more important than ever, if young people are to be attracted to study science and to pursue a career in research. TResearch aims to disseminate to a wider audience some of the important scientific work being undertaken in Teagasc and in other research institutions.”

He continued: “The planned increase in investment in science under the Strategy for Science, Technology and Innovation 2006-2013, aims to place Ireland firmly on the global map in terms of the excellence of our research and its application for the benefit of society. It is now more essential than ever that Irish scientists engage in a genuine dialogue with the public so that the latter can better understand, support, and indeed challenge, the science that is being undertaken while, at the same time, helping scientists understand public interests and concerns.”

In the first issue of TResearch, Teagasc’s involvement in an international consortium that is sequencing the potato genome is outlined. This research could speed up the potato breeding process. Teagasc will sequence a significant part of potato chromosome 4, with a specific emphasis on a region that contains a number of genes that confer resistance to important diseases such as late blight and eelworm.

Dan Milbourne based at Teagasc Crops Research Centre, Oak Park explains: “The Potato Genome Sequencing Consortium involves fifteen countries with a common interest in sequencing the entire genome of potato over the next five years; an endeavour currently estimated to cost a total of approximately €36 million. Overall, the potential impact of this project on potato genetics and breeding cannot be overstated. The complete genome sequence will revolutionise our ability to find which genes are responsible for a whole range of important characteristics in potato, from disease resistance to yield.”

Teagasc has adopted a multidisciplinary approach to the most efficient use of nutrients in the wake of the Nitrates Directive. Rogier Schulte, Johnstown Castle Environment Research Centre, said:, “Teagasc has launched a large cluster of research projects that aim to provide answers for farmers to rise to these challenges. This research programme involves over 15 Teagasc researchers from all major research centres, and is conducted in close collaboration with the Department of Agriculture and Food and many national and international universities. The main goal is to develop strategies to improve nutrient efficiency on farms, i.e., to maintain production levels (meat, milk and crops) with reduced fertiliser inputs, thereby reducing emissions to the environment. In order to achieve this, Teagasc has developed three parallel research approaches: finding the main leaks of nitrogen, plugging these nitrogen leaks and catching the nutrients that got away.”

Obesity in young people is a cause of concern and Liam Donnelly and his colleagues at Moorepark Food Research Centre, Co Cork, are addressing some of the challenges posed to the research community by the obesity epidemic. Researchers at the centre have commenced work on a number of research projects aimed at developing low fat foods with improved taste and ‘mouthfeel’.

“The replacement of fat with ‘natural’ alternatives, whilst maintaining sensory quality, is a technological challenge that requires an understanding of the complex events of oral processing on ‘multiphase’ or ‘complex’ foods. To maintain competitiveness, Irish food companies must develop innovative, added-value products that not only promote health, but have desirable sensory properties. It is hoped that this new research will help technologists to design innovative reduced fat foods,” explains researcher Mark Auty.