DrNoreen Sheehy

Dr Noreen Sheehy is a lecturer in Medical Microbiology in the UCD School of Medicine and a Principal Investigator at Infection Research Ireland at UCD (formerly Centre for Experimental Pathogen Host Research, CEPHR). Noreen obtained her PhD from Warwick University, UK on the development of resistance to antiretroviral drugs in people living with HIV and after graduation, she worked on a variety of infectious agents including chlamydia, hepatitis C, arboviruses, human T cell leukaemia viruses (HTLVs) and human respiratory viruses. Dr Sheehy's research is in the area molecular Virology and in particular deciphering host pathogen interactions that contribute to disease development. Her group’s work on HTLVs focused on the investigation of mechanisms involved in the development of adult T cell leukaemia in infected individuals. Dr Sheehy’s research on respiratory viruses is focused on the investigation of mechanisms and pathways involved in the binding and entry of seasonal and pandemic coronaviruses into airway epithelial cells using a combination of virological and spectroscopic assays. Her group also focuses on the composition of extracellular vesicles (EVs) produced by cells infected with seasonal influenza viruses, with particular focus on miRNA and proteomic content.

Dr Sheehy currently coordinates and contributes to several undergraduate modules in the UCD School of Medicine across the subject areas of Medical Microbiology and Pathology. She currently coordinates the School of Medicine Intercalated MSc programme in Medical Science and coordinated the Student Summer Research Award (SSRA) programme from 2017-2025. Dr Sheehy is a member of various School of Medicine committees that support undergraduate research.