Dr Carmel Mothersill, scientific director of the Radiation Science Centre at DIT

Born: 1950

Education: Loreto High School, Beaufort, Dublin; UCD, BSc in zoology; UCD; PhD UCD.

Research experience: 28 years experience, the last 24 of which have been in effects of radiation and carcinogens on epithelial tissue. The main focus has been on human responses to in vitro radiation but, recently, considerable funding has been obtained to develop systems for other environmentally important species.

Membership: UK Institute of Physics (with chartered physicist status); Institute of Biology of Ireland; UK Institute of Biology (with chartered biologist status); founder member and secretary of the Irish Radiation Research Society; American Radiation Research Society; European Society for Radiation Biology; American Association for Cancer Research; European Biotechnology Society.

External Research collaborations include the University of St Andrew's, Scotland; Atomic Energy Agency, France; Brunel University of West London; University of Uppsala, Sweden; UK Medical Research council.

Languages: fluent Irish, working knowledge of French, German, learning Spanish

Family: married to Dr Colin Seymour; children: Miranda (16), Rebecca (13) and Eleanor (11).