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Mike Dunne, Senior Research Technician, has answered some questions for faces in science: 

1. What is your job within SCMH? 

I am a senior research technician, specialising in in vivo techniques. My main role is producing models of myocardial infarction in rabbits and mice. This work supports my two primary PIs and their groups as well as numerous internal and external collaborations. I also provide training and surgical and theatre support in in vivo techniques to internal and external researchers and students.

2. What is the most enjoyable part of your job? 

Things I enjoy about my job.

There is always something new to learn. There are updates and refinements to surgical skills, new procedures to learn, new equipment to use and animal welfare improvements to implement.  

I also enjoy training people and passing on knowledge and skills, seeing them pass assessments and begin to work independently.

3. What are you most proud of having been part of during your time in SCMH?

We recently made a major refinement to one of our surgical models, allowing us to produce a more clinically relevant model with a huge improvement to animal welfare. This won the AWERB culture of care prize. It was a huge undertaking and brought together PGRs, vets, clinicians and animal techs and triggered a cascade of smaller refinements to equipment and techniques.

Mike has a recent contribution on the paper: Ribonucleicacid interference or small molecule inhibition of Runx1 in the border zone prevents cardiac contractile dysfunction following myocardial infarction published in Cardiovasular Research. 

Link to Paper

 

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First published: 30 August 2023