46 William C. Campbell
Mutebutton
46 William C. Campbell
Mutebutton
( neuromod)
47
2015 saw the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine being jointly awarded to Donegal born William C. Campbell. The Trinity College Dublin graduate was awarded the prize for his work on avermectins, an anti-parasitic drug used in domestic farm animals. While working at Merck in the USA, Prof Campbell developed Avermectin from a component of a strain of bacteria identified by Chinese professor You Tu, with whom he shares the prize. Avermectin was then further refined to produce Ivermectin, a profound treatment for‘ River Blindness’, and is named on the World Health Organisation’ s list of essential medicines required as a staple of the modern health system.
Researchers at the National University of Ireland Maynooth have developed a technology that aims to alleviate the symptoms of tinnitus, a condition where the person‘ hears’ noises such as ringing or hissing even though there is no external source of the sound. The device, called MuteButton, simultaneously stimulates the sense of hearing and touch by playing sounds to the ear and stimulating touch using sensors on the tongue. The approach targets centres in the spinal cord and brain that integrate sound and touch, with the aim of suppressing the perceived but imaginary sounds of tinnitus.
www. mutebutton. ie