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Email

[email protected]

Location

Waterford

Campus

Cork Road campus

  • Room name or number IT2.11
  • Phone +353 51 845501
  • ORCID NUMBER 0000-0003-0632-7365

  • Social Media

Biography

Geraldine Canny holds a B.Sc. in Biotechnology from National University of Ireland Galway and a Ph.D. in Immunology from University College Dublin. Her doctoral work focussed on the role of pro- and anti-inflammatory molecules in the intestine. She then carried out a CCFA-funded postdoctoral fellowship at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston where her work addressed the molecular regulation of epithelial antimicrobial proteins and their function in mucosal immunity. She held the position of Instructor at Harvard Medical School from 2005-2007. Her awards include the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America Young investigator of the year.

Subsequently, as Senior Lecturer at Lausanne University Hospital and the University of Lausanne, she established and ran a translational research programme on endometrial biology and endometriosis. This work, financed by the Swiss National Science Foundation and other funding agencies, involved a three-pronged approach using molecular biology and cell culture, clinical samples and a mouse model of endometriosis and resulted in the discovery of novel biomarkers and several publications. During this time, Geraldine established the ethics framework for her division and was a member of the University of Lausanne Faculty of Biology and Medicine Research Commission and of the Selection committee for the International Ph.D. Programme. From 2009 to 2012 Geraldine also held the position of Adjunct lecturer at University College Dublin.

Geraldine was then employed at a foundation and at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) where she managed several national and international fellowship programmes as well as European funding programmes. On a voluntary basis, she also established the regional platform for a public-private partnership devoted to patient education and facilitated an endometriosis patient education group.

Between 2018 and 2021 Dr. Canny held the position of Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) National Delegate and National Contact Point. During her tenure as Head of the Irish MSCA office funding awarded to Irish HEIs, companies and non-academic organisations exceeded 95 million euros. She led a project under the Net4Mobility+ CSA and as National delegate, contributed to the policy underpinning MSCA in Horizon Europe. She also served as a Steering committee member for several MSCA COFUND programmes and for the Irish Health Research Forum.

Geraldine’s current interests include mucosal immunity, immune-endocrine system crosstalk, hormone signalling and anti-inflammatory lipids. She is a member of several professional organisations, European RRI networks and serves as a reviewer for various journals and as an advisor for a swiss Startup company (non-remunerated).

Research interests: Mucosal immunity, epithelial biology, infectious disease, reproductive hormones and estrogen signalling, subcellular signalling, non-invasive diagnostics, inflammation and immunometabolism, anti-inflammatory lipids.

 

Publications

  1. Cemsel Bafligil, Suzanne Ratte, Julie Russell, Marian Biocanin, Magda Zachara, Florian Klemm, Bart Deplancke, Geraldine O. Canny, Petra C Schwalie, Angela Goncalves. Menstrual effluent as a non-invasive cellular source for female health research and diagnostics. In preparation.
  2. Massimi I, Pulcinelli FM, Piscitelli VP, Alemanno L, Maltese T, Guarino ML, Marci R, Canny GO, Frati L, Mallozzi M, Frega A, Caserta D.  Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs increase MRP4 expression in an endometriotic epithelial cell line in a PPARa dependent manner. Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci. 2018 Dec;22(23):8487-8496.
  3. Cássia G. T. Silveira, Gabriele Marschner, Geraldine O. Canny, Silke Klocke, Peter Hunold, Frank Köster, Thorben Ahrens, Achim Rody, Admir Agic, Daniela Hornung. Disrupting Y-box-binding protein 1 (YB-1) function using OSU-03012 prevents endometriosis progression in in vitro and in vivo models.. Reprod Sci. 2017 Jan;24(1):67-76.
  4. Sobel J, Waridel P, Gori I, Quadroni M*, Canny GO*. Proteome-wide effect of 17-β-estradiol and Lipoxin A4 in an endometriotic epithelial cell line. Front. Endocrinol., 2016 Jan 6;6:192. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2015.00192.*: joint senior authors.
  5. Rajesh Kumar, Anne-Catherine Clerc, Ilaria Gori, Ronan Russell, Chiara Pellegrini, Lerisa Govender, Jean-Christophe Wyss, Dela Golshayan*, Geraldine O. Canny*. Lipoxin A4 prevents the progression of de novo and established endometriosis in a mouse model by attenuating PGE2 production and Estrogen signaling. PLOS One. 2014 Feb 24;9(2):e89742.  *: joint senior authors.
  6. Silveira CG, Finas D, Hunold P, Köster F, Stroschein K, Canny GO, Moldenhauer G, Altevogt P, Rody A, Hornung D. L1 cell adhesion molecule as a potential therapeutic target in murine models of endometriosis using a monoclonal antibody approach. PLOS One. 2013 Dec 4;8(12):e82512.
  7. Gori I, Rodriguez Y, Pellegrini C, Achtari C, Hornung D, Chardonnens E, Wunder D, Fiche M, Canny GO. Augmented epithelial Multidrug resistance-associated protein 4 expression in peritoneal endometriosis; regulation by Lipoxin A4. Fertility and Sterility. 2013 Jun;99(7):1965-1973.
  8. Pellegrini C, Gori I, Achtari C, Hornung D, Chardonnens E, Wunder D, Fiche M, Canny GO. The expression of estrogen receptors as well as GREB1, c-MYC and Cyclin D1, estrogen-regulated genes implicated in proliferation, is increased in peritoneal endometriosis. Fertility and Sterility, 2012 Nov;98(5):1200-8.
  9. Russell R, Gori I, Pellegrini C, Kumar R, Achtari C, Canny GO. Lipoxin A4 is a novel estrogen receptor modulator. FASEB J. 2011 Dec;25(12):4326-37.
  10. Kumar R, Vicari M, Gori I, Achtari C, Fiche M, Surbeck I, Damnon F, Canny GO. Compartmentalized Secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor expression and hormone responses along the reproductive tract of postmenopausal women. J Reprod Immunol. 2011 Dec;92(1-2):88-96.
  11. Gori I, Pellegrini C, Staedler D, Russell R, Jan C, Canny GO. Tumour Necrosis Factor-alpha activates Estrogen signaling pathways in endometrial epithelial cells via Estrogen Receptor alpha. Mol Cell Endocrinol. 2011 Oct 15;345(1-2):27-37.
  12. Campbell EL, Louis NA, Tomassetti SE, Canny GO, Arita M, Serhan CN, Colgan SP.  Resolvin E1 promotes mucosal surface clearance of neutrophils: a new paradigm for inflammatory resolution. FASEB J. 2007 Oct;21(12):3162-70.
  13. Canny G O, Trifonova R T, Kindelberger D, Colgan SP, Fichorova RN. Expression and function of Bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein (BPI) in human genital tract epithelial cells. J Infect Dis. 2006 Aug 15;194(4):498-502.
  14. Louis NA, Hamilton KE, Canny G, Shekels LL, Ho SB, Colgan SP.  Selective induction of Mucin-3 by hypoxia in intestinal epithelia. J Cell Biochem. 2006 Dec 15;99(6):1616-27.
  15. Canny G, Cario E, Lennartsson A, Gullberg U, Brennan C, Levy O, Colgan SP.  Biochemical and functional characterization of epithelial Bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein (BPI). Am. J. Physiol. Gastrointest. Liver. Physiol., 2006 Mar; 290(3):G557-67.
  16. Canny G, Drudy D, Mac Mathuna P, O’farrelly C, Baird AW.  Toxigenic C. difficile induced inflammatory marker expression by human intestinal epithelial layer models is assymetrical. Life Sci. 2006 Jan 25;78(9):920-5.
  17. Canny G, Levy O, Furuta GT, Narravula S, Sisson RB, Serhan CN, Colgan SP.  Lipid mediator induced expression of Bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein (BPI) in human mucosal epithelia. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. (USA) 2002 99: 3902-7.

Reviews

  1. Deshiré Alpízar-Rodríguez, Nicola Pluchino, Geraldine Canny, Cem Gabay, Axel Finckh. The Role of Female Hormonal Factors in the Development of Rheumatoid Arthritis. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2017 Aug 1;56(8):1254-1263. doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/kew318.
  2. Canny GO, Lessey B. The role of Lipoxin A4 in endometrial biology and endometriosis. Commissioned review. Mucosal Immunology. 2013 May;6(3):439-50.
  3. Canny GO, McCormick B. Bacteria in the intestine, a helpful resident or an enemy from within? Infect Immun. 2008 Aug;76(8):3360-73.
  4. Canny GO, Levy O. Bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein (BPI) and BPI-homologues at mucosal sites. Review. Trends Immunol. 2008 Nov;29(11):541-7.
  5. Canny G and Colgan SP. Adaptation to a Microbial World: Role of Epithelial Bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein (BPI). Am. J. Physiol. Gastrointest. Liver Physiol. 2005 288: G593-G597.
  6. Levy O, Canny G, Serhan C, Colgan SP. Expression of BPI by Human Epithelia. Biochem. Soc. Trans., 2003 (Pt 4): 795-800.

Book contributions

  1. Cássia G. T. Silveira, Admir Agic, Geraldine O. Canny, Daniela Hornung. Altered biological characteristics of eutopic and ectopic endometrium. Endometriosis - Pathogenesis and Treatment; 251-276, Springer Japan, 2014.
  2. Geraldine Canny, Alexander Swidsinski and Beth McCormick. Interactions of intestinal epithelial cells with bacteria and immune cells: methods to characterize microflora and functional consequences. Methods in Molecular Biology Series 341; 17-35, Humana Press, 2006.

Letters to the Editor

  1. Geraldine Canny. Cell line contamination and misidentification. Biol Reprod. 2013 Sep 27;89(3):76.