Mytilus species complex genomics
The blue mussel (Mytilus spp) is an ecologically and economically important marine bivalve that plays key roles in coastal ecosystems as well as the seafood industry. This species is found around the entire Irish coast, where it co-occurs and hybridizes with the non-indigenous Mediterranean mussel (Mytilus galloprovincialis). A better understanding of genetic structure and connectivity […]
SeaSoil

SeaSoil – Value creation and ecosystem services of European seaweed industry by reducing and handling potentially toxic elements from breeding to soil is an ERA-NET BlueBio cofund project led by NOFIMA in Norway to which the MFRC is a partner through Dr Colin Hannon
Development and application of traceability tools for Irish shellfish and fish of economic and conservation concern (TRACE-FISH)

The fisheries and aquaculture industries provide considerable employment in Irelands’ maritime communities. These industries require traceability tools in order to verify the origin of produce. Trace Elemental Fingerprinting (TEF) analyses the natural composition of seafood and can be used to determine its origin with high degrees of accuracy. This research aims to develop the world’s […]
AquaVitae H2020

AquaVitae is a new research and innovation project funded by the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme and coordinated by Dr Philip James of Nofima in Norway. The project consortium consists of 36 partners, from 16 different countries, spread across four continents. In addition to Europe, partners are situated in countries bordering the Atlantic Ocean, including Brazil, […]
Assessment of microplastics in farmed oysters

This project intends to assess the abundance of microplastics in two species of farmed oysters in Ireland, after depuration. The selected species are the European oyster (Ostrea edulis) and the Pacific oyster (Magallana gigas).
Role of seaweed aquaculture in marine ecosystems

This RISE project builds up on previous field and laboratory investigations conducted in GENIALG aiming to quantify the effect of kelp aquaculture on marine ecosystems. The projects focuses on their impacts on benthic communities and their role in food webs, as biodiversity reservoirs and nursery habitats for fish. This project will determine and quantify the […]
AGD Vaccine Development

The aim of this work is to develop a novel vaccine against Amoebic Gill Disease (AGD). This project is funded by the Knowledge Gateway Scheme, facilitated by an Bord Iascaigh Mhara and will continue until May 2023.
Genetic screening of zooplankton

This project aims at developing state-of-the-art molecular tools for the rapid and cost-effective screening of plankton samples for the presence of bivalve and crustacean species of commercial value. This project is in collaboration with BIM and is funded by the European Maritime Fisheries Fund.
Fish vaccines

Since 2018, research has been carried out at the MFRC to develop and test the effectiveness of vaccines for the protection of freshwater and marine finfish against disease. Vaccines were successfully made for administration by immersion, orally, and intraperitoneal injection. More recently, the research focus is on developing nucleic acid and recombinant protein vaccines Project […]
Antimicrobial peptides in seaweed

The aim of the project is to identify and characterise antimicrobial peptides from a range of seaweed species and is particularly focused on the functional effect of the peptides extracted from seaweed products. The research is conducted in a partnership with This is Seaweed Ltd with funding from the GMIT Research and Innovation Strategic Endowment […]