معرفی
Ronnie Mooney is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Strathclyde in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering within the Faculty of Engineering. His research focuses on the complex interactions between amphizoic amoebae and bacterial endosymbionts, particularly investigating how these interactions contribute to antimicrobial resistance (AMR) spread and impact pathogenicity.
His primary research interests include antimicrobial resistance mechanisms, free-living amoebae, One Health approaches, microbial interactions, and environmental DNA applications. Mooney has extensive expertise in molecular techniques, omics, bioinformatics, and cytotoxicity analysis, with research spanning biomedical and environmental sciences.
His recent publications demonstrate a consistent focus on Acanthamoeba-bacterial interactions, with research spanning clinical environments, water systems, and extreme environments. The work shows increasing integration of One Health approaches, examining connections between human health, animal health, and environmental systems in the context of AMR.
Scientific Awards:
- Microbiology Society - Early Career Microbiologist of the Year Talk Competition Finalist (2025)
- SULSA ECR Award - Microbes Finalist (2025)
- SULSA ECR Prize Finalist (2023)
- The Herald's Higher Education Award Research Project of the Year Shortlist (2019)
- Dr William J. C. Watt Medal (2017)
- Court Medal (2017)
- Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland - PhD Scholarship (2017)
Mooney actively collaborates with eye-care corporations, clinicians, aquaculture industry partners, wastewater treatment plants, hospitals, universities, government agencies, and pollution control boards. His current projects include evaluating environmental DNA for biodiversity assessment, updating the Scottish One Health AMR Register, and developing portable biosensors for antimicrobial detection. He is also involved in professional activities including conference presentations and organizing events focused on antimicrobial resistance.
His research team works across multiple projects investigating interkingdom interactions between protists and bacteria, with a particular emphasis on amoebae's role in AMR emergence and spread.
