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Dr. Roisin Mc Mackin

Assistant Professor (Physiology)
BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES INSTITUTE
      
Profile Photo

Dr. Roisin Mc Mackin

Assistant Professor (Physiology)
BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES INSTITUTE

 mcmackro@tcd.ie

 3531896 2718


Following graduation from Neuroscience at Trinity College Dublin with First Class Honours and a University Gold Medal, Dr Roisin McMackin undertook a PhD in Clinical Medicine from 2016-2021 at Trinity College Dublin investigating electrophysiological biomarkers of ALS, supported by an IRC Postgraduate Award. Having been awarded her Doctorate with no corrections, Dr McMackin subsequently continued her research postdoctorally as recipient of a prestigious MNDA Non-Clinical Fellowship (2021-2022). Dr McMackin began her role as Assistant Professor in the Discipline of Physiology in October 2022, and now leads a team of research students who use electrophysiology based measures to understand brain function in health and disease. She has since been awarded a number of highly competitive project grants, including an ALS Finding A Cure Early Diagnostics Initiative Award and funding from the Galen Hilary Weston Foundation under the Characterisation of Novel Biomarkers for Neurodegenerative Diseases of Ageing program. Dr McMackin was awarded the ENCALS 2025 Young Investigator Award in recognition of outstanding contribution to the field of ALS research, as well as the Neuroscience Ireland Early Career Researcher Award for her contribution to the field of neuroscience research. Dr McMackin's research is supported by the Motor Neurone Disease Association UK, the ALS Association, The Galen Hilary Weston Foundation, the Irish Health Research Board and Research Motor Neurone, in addition to previous support from the Irish Research Council. Dr McMackin teaches across across a number of undergraduate and postgraduate courses, including Neuroscience, Human Health and Disease, Physiology, Medicine, Clinical Neuropsychology, Biomedical Engineering, Biochemistry and Medical Device Design, in addition to providing international training courses on electrophysiological methods. Dr McMackin is the Associate Director of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion for the School of Medicine. She is also the Education Officer and Trinity College representative for Neuroscience Ireland, as well as a member of the Women In Research Ireland Committee. Dr McMackin is also an Associate Editor of Brain Communications, the Q1 open access sister journal of Brain.
  Age related diseases   Biomedical sciences   Biostatistical methods   Clinical research, trials   Genomes, Genomics   Human genetics   Neurodegeneration   Neuropsychology
Project Title
 Electromarkers of ALS: Detecting abnormal brain network function before ALS symptoms emerge in C9orf72 mutation-prevalent families.
From
2023
To
2027
Summary
It is well established that a long period of degeneration occurs in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) before the symptoms begin. However, diagnosis of ALS currently depends on muscle weakness emerging. As ALS cannot be diagnosed until symptoms are apparent, potential drug treatments cannot be offered until the nervous system has already been extensively damaged. This dramatically limits the chances of the treatment halting or reversing the effects of ALS. A measurement that can detect ALS at an earlier stage, before clinically discernible signs emerge, is urgently needed. Those carrying long hexanucleotide repeat expansions in the C9orf72 gene are at greater risk of developing ALS and/or frontotemporal dementia (FTD). We and others have demonstrated that measurements of nervous system function, recorded with electroencephalography (EEG) and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), can directly detect ALS/FTD-related changes in brain function prior to symptoms being detected. We now aim to perform a larger, more extensive study in individuals carrying the ALS/FTD-associated C9orf72 mutation, to determine the most informative brain function changes that are predictive of if/how the disease will emerge.
Funding Agency
ALS Finding A Cure

Details Date
Associate Editor of Brain Communications 05/2025
Leader of INITIATE (Implementing Necessary Initiation Training in ALS/MND Through Education) - Working group to develop consensus guidelines on training of MND Early Career Researchers 01/11/2025
Trinity College Dublin Representative of the Neuroscience Ireland Committee 08/2023
UK Motor Neuron Disease Research Institute Independent Oversight Committee - International Committee Member 28/11/2025
TMS MultiLab - Working Group Member 01/06/2025
Coordinator of Civic Engagement activities for the Discipline of Physiology 01/2024
Target ALS VIBRANT (Virtual International Biorepository Alliance NeTwork) - Working Group Member 17/01/2026
PhD Viva External Examiner, King's College London 06/2024
MND Association UK: From Cause to Early Intervention - Focus Group member 24/7/2025
Education Officer, Neuroscience Ireland
European Initiative to Enhance the Current Sex as A Biological Variable Policy in Preclinical Biomedical Research - Working Group Member 19/05/2026
Details Date From Date To
Irish Electrophysiology Research Clinic - Co-founder and organiser 26/05/2020 01/01/2025
Neuroscience Ireland - Education Officer and Trinity College Dublin representative 09/2022 Present
Women In Research Ireland - Committee member 2024 Present
Federation of European Neuroscience Societies (FENS) member 09/2022 Present
European Huntington's Disease Network (EHDN) member 15/10/2024 Present
De Vocht J, Costello E, McHutchison C, Radakovic R, Foucher J, McMackin R, Peelo C, van den Berg L, Hardiman O, Van Damme P, Pender N, Abrahams S, Lulé D, first ICNALS Workshop., Prioritizing neuropsychological research and care in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS): building an international neuropsychological framework for ALS., Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis & frontotemporal degeneration, 2026, p1-4 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
McMackin R., Tadjine Y., Suleyman N., Woods E., Plaitano S., Fasano A., Awiszus F., Hardiman O., Carson R.G., Long-interval intracortical inhibition is similar in people with and without amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Brain Communications, 8, (2), 2026, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
McMackin R., Price S., Slator G.R., Hardiman O., Kelly J.A., JAK4D, a first-in-class thyrotropin-releasing hormone analogue, reverses scopolamine-induced memory deficits, Brain Communications, 8, (1), 2026, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
O'Sullivan S, Tadjine Y, Palma GR, Suleyman N, Woods E, Fasano A, Walsh C, Awiszus F, Hardiman O, Carson RG, McMackin R., Very low-amplitude muscle activity increases probability of motor evoked potentials in healthy individuals and in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis., Experimental physiology, 2026, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Novel approaches to EEG and MEG in motor neurone disease: IFCN Handbook Chapter. in, 2025, pp301-315 , [Dukic S, Govaarts R, Hillebrand A, de Visser M, Seeck M, McMackin R.], Book Chapter, PUBLISHED  DOI
Brain Communications, Oxford University Press, 2025, Editorial Board, SUBMITTED
Dukic S, van Veenhuijzen K, Westeneng HJ, McMackin R, van Eijk RPA, Sleutjes BTHM, Nasseroleslami B, Hardiman O, van den Berg LH., Altered EEG Response of the Parietal Network in Asymptomatic C9orf72 Carriers., Human brain mapping, 46, (11), 2025, pe70275 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Fasano A, Vacchiano V, Bonan L, McMackin R, Nasseroleslami B, Hardiman O, Liguori R., Neurophysiological biomarkers of networks impairment in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis., Journal of neurology, 272, (8), 2025, p507 , Review Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Roisin McMackin, Yasmine Tadjine, Antonio Fasano, Matthew Mitchell, Mark Heverin, Friedemann Awiszus, Bahman Nasseroleslami, Richard G Carson, Orla Hardiman, Examining short interval intracortical inhibition with different transcranial magnetic stimulation-induced current directions in ALS, Clinical Neurophysiology Practice, 13, (9), 2024, p120 - 129, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  TARA - Full Text  DOI  URL
Dukic S, Fasano A, Coffey A, Buxó T, McMackin R, Chipika R, Heverin M, Bede P, Muthuraman M, Lowery M, Carson RG, Hardiman O, Nasseroleslami B., Electroencephalographic ß-band oscillations in the sensorimotor network reflect motor symptom severity in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis., Eur J Neurol., 2024, Notes: [2024 Jan 18:e16201. doi: 10.1111/ene.16201. Online ahead of print. PMID: 38235854], Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI  URL
  

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Séamus O'Sullivan, Yasmine Tadjine, Gabriel R Palma, Narin Suleyman, Eva Woods, Antonio Fasano, Cathal Walsh, Friedemann Awiszus, Orla Hardiman, Richard G. Carson, Roisin McMackin, Very low amplitude muscle activity increases probability of motor evoked potentials in healthy individuals and in ALS - TMS-EMG dataset, 1, Zenodo, 2026, Dataset, PUBLISHED
Meher Sabharwal, Narin Suleyman, Gabriel R. Palma, Roisin McMackin, Closed Eyes and Coil Size -- Effects on Motor Threshold and Intracortical Inhibition, measured with TMS, arXiv, 2026, Preprint, SUBMITTED

  


Award Date
FENS-EJN Early Career Investigator Award 08/04/2026
Trinity College Dublin Inspiring Educator Award 31/03/2026
ENCALS Young Investigator Award 2025
Neuroscience Ireland Early Career Investigator Award 2022
Brainbox Research Challenge Award 2020
Omniscient Neurotechnology Infinitome Imaging Award 2021
Trinity College Dublin University Gold Medal 2016
Trinity College Dublin Non-Foundation Scholarship 2014
Barbara Ryan Prize (TCD) 2015
Julian Boldy Prize (TCD) 2013
Eli Lilly Chemistry Prize 2013
The key direction of my research is to identify non-invasive, economical and accessible measures of the central nervous system changes which underpin disease or functional decline. Specifically, my team's research centres on the use of electrophysiology, including electroencephalography (EEG) and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), to measure neural network function and dysfunction in health and neurodegenerative diseases. In doing so, we aim to (i) improve understanding of the neurophysiology captured by electrophysiological measurements, (ii) use electrophysiological measurements to progress understanding of disease mechanisms and (iii) identify diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers and improve the outcome measures used to test potential therapies in disease. I have a particular interest in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), the most common form of Motor Neurone Disease, and Huntington's Disease, and whether these electrophysiological measures can detect disease prior to symptom onset and reliably measure disease progression. I am also engaged in preclinical neurotherapeutic research, in collaboration with Dr Julie Kelly, Associate Professor in TCD, in addition to consulting on the application of electrophysiology in international clinical trials for The Science Behind Ltd. I am also passionate about equality, diversity and inclusion in medical academia and research. Within this I have several ongoing research projects: 1. Development and assessment of a taught laboratory practical to educate students on the importance of recognising and accounting for diversity in physiological research, working in collaboration with Prof. Sean Roe and Prof. Mary McGahon of Queen's University Belfast. 2. Development of an international working group to establish recommendations for the training of early career researchers who work with individuals with MND in a research context. 3. Investigation of gender-related differences in neurophysiological measures. 4. Identifying and characterising barriers to research participation in the Irish Huntington's Disease community.