Aileen Houston

Aileen Houston is a Senior Research Scientist in the Department of Medicine at University College Cork (UCC) and a Faculty Member of the APC Microbiome Ireland. She holds a B.Sc. (Hons) in Biomedical Science and a Ph.D. in Medicine from UCC. Her research focuses on inflammation and cancer, particularly the role of cytokines like IL-36 and IL-1 family members in colorectal cancer (CRC) pathogenesis, as well as the interplay between the gut microbiota and host immunity. Her work combines molecular biology, functional genomics, and pre-clinical models to identify therapeutic targets for anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer therapies.

Dr. Houston has led multiple research projects funded by the Health Research Board and Science Foundation Ireland, investigating mechanisms such as Fas ligand signaling, prostaglandin pathways, and IL-36 receptor antagonism. She has published extensively in journals like *Cancer Research* and *Journal of Immunology*, with an H-index of 22. Her honors include the St. Luke’s Young Investigator Award (2006) and the Health Research Board Post-doctoral Fellowship (2005).

Her lab’s recent work explores how microbial metabolites influence tumor growth and immune responses, with a focus on GABA and vitamin D pathways. She collaborates with institutions like the Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre (APC) and has supervised over 8 PhD and MD students, including notable graduates like Kevin Baker (PhD, 2022) and Jonathan Keane (PhD, 2023). Current projects include developing IL-36R antagonists for colon cancer therapy and studying the tumor-promoting role of IL-36 signaling.