School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine

Congratulations to Professor Pat Monaghan on being awarded another Advanced Grant from the European Research Council - it’s a real achievement to obtain one of these grants, so to be awarded a second is even better! The 5 year grant (of €2.5M) is for a study of the effects of maternal age on offspring. The age at which reproduction takes place has been shaped by evolution to give the best outcome for parents and offspring, but we still know very little about the mechanisms that determine optimal reproductive age. This project will break new ground in examining a number of fundamental processes through which the age of parents might influence the biology of their offspring. The study will use birds, whose relatively long reproductive lives and egg laying make them very suitable for this kind of work. It will integrate measures of ageing biomarkers such as telomeres with those of mitochondrial function, and involve collaboration with Colin Selman and Neil Metcalfe.

First published: 22 April 2021