James Curtin PhD

James Curtin completed his PhD in 2003 in the laboratory of Prof Tom Cotter, University College Cork. He then moved to Los Angeles, to work with Prof Maria Castro and Prof Pedro Lowenstein in the Gene Therapeutics Research Institute at Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre and the University of California, Los Angeles for five years. James returned to Ireland in 2008 and joined Technological University Dublin as a Lecturer. James was promoted to Head of School in 2011 and Faculty Dean in 2021.

James has authored more than 90 peer-reviewed publications and has a H-index of 36. One therapy he developed while working in the Gene Therapeutic Research Institute has completed phase I clinical trials with Phase II trials planned. In the last decade, James has secured more than €2,500,000 in research funding as lead applicant and €2,000,000 as co-applicant / collaborator. James is currently lead supervisor for two postdoctoral researchers, and eight PhD students, co-supervisor for four PhD students, and has successfully supervised four PhD students and 3 MPhil students to completion since 2011. James is an editor of international peer-reviewed journals including Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience and PeerJ and an expert reviewer for Horizon Europe.

The goal of the Curtin Laboratory is to develop, understand, and refine the use of technological solutions for the treatment of brain cancer. The research is funded through a variety of National and International research funding bodies including Science Foundation Ireland (SFI), the Irish Research Council (IRC), and internal funding. Our research involves the development of experimental systems to accurately model tumor microenvironments such as spheroid cultures and 3D bioprinting, and the development of technologies such as ultrasound, cold plasma, nanomaterials, and gene therapies that modify cancer cells and carry potential therapeutic benefits alone or in combination with chemotherapeutic agents. The outcome of this research will be to identify lead therapeutic candidates to progress into human clinical trials.