News
Aliaa Sherif Karam has successfully defended her PhD on September 17th 2026
Her thesis, entitled “Biofabrication strategies to engineer structurally organized cartilage and osteochondral grafts” explores the use of physical boundaries to engineer structurally organised articular cartilage and meniscal grafts that recapitulate the collagen architecture of native tissues. Her work characterises articular cartilage progenitor cells as a cell source for cartilage engineering and develops embedded bioprinting strategies, using both single cells and microtissues, in which a physically constraining support bath directs collagen alignment within the engineered tissue. The thesis also investigates the mechanisms by which these boundaries drive collagen organisation and evaluates the regenerative potential of microtissue laden decellularized articular cartilage extracellular matrix based osteochondral grafts in a pre-clinical large animal model of joint injury, providing important insights towards the development of structurally organised and hence functional cartilage grafts. We were also delighted to host her external examiner, Prof. Lawrence Bonassar, from Cornell University, who delivered a great seminar during his visit. We congratulate Aliaa on this achievement and wish her every success in her new position as a Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Galway.
We are delighted to congratulate Dr Kaoutar Chattahy on successfully passing her PhD thesis with minor corrections.
Her thesis, entitled “Biofabrication and Preclinical Testing of Functional Meniscal Grafts derived from Zone Specific Microtissues,” focused on developing biofabrication strategies to engineer functional, region-specific meniscal grafts using meniscus progenitor cell-derived microtissues. Her work progressed from controlling microtissue fusion and organisation through to the preclinical evaluation of engineered meniscal grafts in a large-animal model. We were delighted to welcome Professor Stephen Richardson from the University of Manchester as external examiner, alongside Professor Mark Ahearne as internal examiner and Professor Conor Buckley as chair. We warmly congratulate Kaoutar and wish her every success as she begins her postdoctoral research with The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA) at Trinity College Dublin.
We are delighted to announce that Kyle Storey has successfully passed his PhD viva with minor corrections.
His thesis, entitled "Development of a high cell density, versatile 3D embedded bioprinting platform for the biofabrication of musculoskeletal soft tissues", explored how key factors including cellular density, bioprinting parameters, culture conditions and influenced resulting tissue composition and organisation. This thesis also explored how modulating the support bath microenvironment, via stiffness or degradation modulatory mechanics, can influence cellular and resulting tissue phenotype and organisation. We were also pleased to host Dr. Anthony Callanan from the University of Edinburgh and thank him for his time and expertise. We congratulate Kyle on his achievement and wish him the best for his future career.
We are delighted to announce that Francesca Spagnuolo has successfully passed her PhD viva with minor corrections.
Her thesis, entitled “An Embedded Bioprinting Platform to Guide the Fusion, Phenotype and Remodelling of Microtissues to Engineer Anisotropic Musculoskeletal Tissue,” explores the development of a novel embedded bioprinting platform designed to direct the fusion of microtissues and ultimately engineer anisotropic musculoskeletal tissues. Her work investigates key factors required for the successful bioprinting of microtissues, including the role of microtissue maturation prior to printing and critical parameters that influence printability. The thesis also examines how the stiffness of the surrounding environment impacts microtissue phenotype and maturation following printing, providing important insights for the development of more functional musculoskeletal tissue constructs. We were also pleased to host her external examiner, Adam Feinberg, who delivered an excellent seminar during his visit. We congratulate Francesca on this achievement and wish her the very best for her future career.
Dr. Gabriela Soares Kronemberger recieved the best presentation prize for Postdoctoral/Fellow Researcher in the Cartilage and Nervous track at the 31st Bioengineering in Ireland.
Professor Daniel Kelly from TCD School of Engineering have been ranked among the top 2% scientists globally by Elsevier & Stanford University.
🏅 17 researchers from @tcddublin School of Engineering have been ranked among the top 2% scientists globally by Elsevier & Stanford University! 🌍 Huge congratulations to our world-class innovators! Read more here: https://t.co/FUKd5hK95I #EngineeringExcellence #TrinityResearch https://t.co/VGwlHw8hxG (https://x.com/tcdengineering/status/1846191933502210143?t=I-mwFVYG7b2lZfGuKPrqDw&s=03)
Professor Daniel Kelly presented a keynote talk on ‘Biofabrication and 3D bioprinting for musculoskeletal tissue regeneration’.
Professor Daniel Kelly and PhD students Max, Catarina and Thibault attended the workshop on additive biofabrication in Madrid in Sep 2024.
Professor Daniel Kelly from Trinity College Dublin is elected as a new member of the Royal Irish Academy
28 newly elected Members were officially admitted to the Academy on 21 May 2024, for their exceptional contributions to the sciences, humanities and social sciences, as well as to public service. https://www.ria.ie/news/membership/admittance-day-2024
Our labs work is highlighted in a recent news article in the Irish Times
https://www.irishtimes.com/science/2024/02/22/aim-of-next-generation-biomaterials-is-to-train-human-tissue-to-heal-itself/?s=09
Advanced Healthcare Materials
Learn more: https://x.com/AdvSciNews/status/1752708547480092894?s=20
Wrapping up an incredible Biofabrication 2025 in Warsaw! The Kelly group was proud to contribute and engage with so many inspiring talks, poster and discussions. A great opportunity for science, collaboration, and future ideas in the field of biofabrication.
PhD candidates Nadia Rodriguez, Kaoutar Chattahy and Aliaa Karam proudly presented their work at the 7th TERMIS World Congress held in Seattle, USA, 25-28 June 2024, taking part to global discussions on the latest research advancements in osteochondral and meniscal tissue engineering.
Congratulations to Dr Josephine Wu and Nadia Rodriguez for presenting their work at the 12th World Biomaterials Congress, 26-31 May 2024, Daegu, South Korea.
Best Poster award by Francesca Spagnuolo in Alpine winter school for biofabrication 2024, Radstadt, Austria (10-13th January).
Kyle Storey Presented at the Cellink Partnership Conference 2023 in the Rising Pioneers in Bioprinting Special Session.
Francesca’s latest bioprinting study accepted for publication
We’re pleased to share that Francesca’s recent work in bioprinting has been accepted for publication. The study introduces a new approach to engineering microstructured, living constructs with improved control over cell organization and maturation-supporting future translation in regenerative medicine. Further details (including the final citation and access link) will be posted once the article is online.