The winners of the prestigious 2022 Science Foundation Ireland Awards were revealed at the annual SFI Science Summit, held in person for the first time in two years. Joined by over 500 leading members of the Irish research community, SFI is celebrating the contribution researchers have made to our society and economy
This year there are nine categories in total and congratulations to Mariana Oliveira Diniz, a PhD student with SSPC, the SFI Research Centre for Pharmaceuticals, University of limerick on winning SFI Research Image of the Year Award 2022 for her image entitled A spring garden of griseoflowers.
In her research at the Bernal Institute, University of Limerick, Diniz investigates the nucleation kinetics of griseofulvin in different solvents and different scales. The image was taken on a phone camera and shows crystals that formed when a solution of griseofulvin (an antifungal drug used to treat skin infections) in acetonitrile was left to evaporate at room temperature on a fume hood for three days.
Description: Griseofulvin is a drug with wide interest in the pharmaceutical field as it is used as an antifungal antibiotic to treat skin infections. Griseofulvin was first isolated from Penicillium griseofulvum in 1939 and became the first clinical oral antifungal approved to be used in 1950. For its relevance, griseofulvin is listed on the List of Essential Medicines of the World Health Organization (WHO). In my PhD research, I investigate the nucleation kinetics of griseofulvin in different solvents and different scales. These crystals were formed when a solution of griseofulvin in acetonitrile was left to evaporate at room temperature on a fume hood for 3 days. This image was captured by a phone camera without any further treatment.
