Professor Iseult Lynch PhD, MBA

Professor Iseult Lynch

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences
Professor of Environmental Nanosciences
Theme lead for Environmental Sciences

Contact details

Telephone
+44 (0)121 414 5532
Email
i.lynch@bham.ac.uk
View my research portal
Address
School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
UK

Iseult Lynch is an Associate Editor for Environmental Science: Nano, and Deputy director for the Facility for Environmental Nanomaterials Analysis and Characterisation (FENAC) at the University of Birmingham.  Her research focuses on the environmental interactions of nanoparticles and nanostructured surfaces with biological entities from macromolecules to organisms.

She has a very broad overview of all aspects of nanomaterials safety assessment and the data requirements, having served as Chair of the EU Nanosafety Cluster Working Group (NSC WG) on databases for two years (and as co-Chair of the Hazed WG prior to that), as well as being theme editor for the Materials and classification section of the NSC Vision2020 research roadmap (under review for publication in June 2013). Prior to the University of Birmingham she was Strategic Research Manager at the Centre for BioNano Interactions in University College Dublin, where she was instrumental in the development and implementation of numerous large EU-funded projects.

Iseult is part of the Birmingham Plastics Network, an interdisciplinary team of more than 40 academics working together to shape the fate and sustainable future of plastics.  This unique team brings together chemists, environmental scientists, philosophers, linguists, economists, and experts in many other fields, to holistically address the global plastics problem.

Qualifications

BSc. (Hons) Chemistry (1995)

PhD (Chemistry, 2000)

MBA (2012)

Biography

Professor Iseult Lynch undertook her PhD in Physical Chemistry at University College Dublin developing responsive polymeric materials for use in medical devices and as tissue growth substrates. She subsequently did several years of postdoctoral research at Physical Chemistry 1, Lund University in Sweden, including as an EU Marie Curie Fellow, investigating several aspects of colloid and interface science and biophysics. She returned to University College Dublin in 2006 where she led the nanoparticle synthesis and bio-characterisation group at the Centre for BioNano Interactions (CBNI). She then became the Strategic Research Manager for CBNI, and was instrumental in securing multiple large scale national and EU funding bids. In March 2013 she joined the University of Birmingham as a Lecturer in Environmental Nanosciences, becoming Senior Lecturer in 2015 and Professor of Environmental Nanosciences in 2016.

Teaching

Professor Lynch is the undergraduate admissions tutor for Environmental Science.

Leads and contributes to undergraduate modules on the following topics:

  • molecules and materials
  • environmental protection
  • environmental pollution

Deputy director of the MRes in Biological and Environmental Nanoscience, and module leader for the MRes module 'Biological and Environmental Nanoscience'.

Postgraduate supervision

Professor Lynch supervises PhD projects on a range of environmental nanoscience topics, including:

  • interactions of engineered nanoparticles with Daphnia and the secreted eco-corona
  • fate and transformation of silver nanoparticles in the environment
  • assessment of the micro- and nano-structure of Vietnamese biochars
  • routes of uptake of SPIONs in cells
  • impacts of microplastics on freshwater ecosystems

Interested students, including those with existing funding or applying for funding, should contact Professor Lynch by email to discuss potential projects.

Research

Research interests

  • Synthesis of novel composite polymeric materials for biomaterials and environmental applications, such as controlled release and delivery, environmental remediation and Nano(eco)toxicology.
  • Nanoparticle interactions with biomolecules in the environment (natural organic matter, secreted proteins, organic pollutants, etc.) – the “eco-corona” and secondary pollutant effects
  • Determination of the fate and behavior of nanomaterials in the environment
  • Development of high throughput screening applications: nano(eco)toxicology, bionanointeractions and assessment of environmental fate of nanomaterials.
  • Impact and risk assessment of nanomaterials / nanoproducts / nanomedicines.

Other activities

Publications

Recent publications

Article

Thakur, AK, Sathyamurthy, R, Velraj, R, Saidur, R, Lynch, I, Venkatesh, R, Kumar, PG, Kim, SC & Sillanpää, M 2022, 'A novel solar absorber using activated carbon nanoparticles synthesized from bio-waste for the performance improvement of solar desalination unit', Desalination, vol. 527, 115564. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2022.115564

Cross, R, Matzke, M, Spurgeon, D, Diez, M, Andres, VG, Galvez, EC, Esponda, MF, Belinga-Desaunay-Nault, MF, Lynch, I, Jeliazkova, N & Svendsen, C 2022, 'Assessing the similarity of nanoforms based on the biodegradation of organic surface treatment chemicals', NanoImpact, vol. 26, 100395. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.impact.2022.100395

Abdolahpur Monikh, F, Hansen, SF, Vijver, MG, Kentin, E, Nielsen, MB, Baun, A, Syberg, K, Lynch, I, Valsami-Jones, E & Peijnenburg, WJGM 2022, 'Can Current Regulations Account for Intentionally Produced Nanoplastics?', Environmental Science and Technology, vol. 56, no. 7, pp. 3836-3839. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.2c00965

Yan, Z, Yang, X, Lynch, I & Cui, F 2022, 'Comparative evaluation of the mechanisms of toxicity of graphene oxide and graphene oxide quantum dots to blue-green algae Microcystis aeruginosa in the aquatic environment', Journal of Hazardous Materials, vol. 425, 127898. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.127898

Thakur, AK, Sathyamurthy, R, Velraj, R & Lynch, I 2022, 'Development of a novel cellulose foam augmented with candle-soot derived carbon nanoparticles for solar-powered desalination of brackish water', Environmental Science: Nano. https://doi.org/10.1039/D1EN01112J

Zhang, P, Guo, Z & Lynch, I 2022, 'Dynamic intracellular exchange of nanomaterials' protein corona perturbs proteostasis and remodels cell metabolism', Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.

Xie, C, Guo, Z, Zhang, P, Yang, J, Zhang, J, Ma, Y, He, X, Lynch, I & Zhang, Z 2022, 'Effect of CeO2 nanoparticles on plant growth and soil microcosm in a soil-plant interactive system', Environmental Pollution, vol. 300, 118938. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2022.118938

Thakur, AK, Sathyamurthy, R, Saidur, R, Velraj, R, Lynch, I & Aslfattahi, N 2022, 'Exploring the potential of MXene-based advanced solar-absorber in improving the performance and efficiency of a solar-desalination unit for brackish water purification', Desalination, vol. 526, 115521. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2021.115521

Yasmin, T, Farrelly, MA, Rogers, BC, Krause, S & Lynch, I 2022, 'Hybrid and Multi-Level Adaptive Governance for Sustainable Urban Transformations in the Global South: A Secondary City Case Study', Frontiers in Water, vol. 4, 756273. https://doi.org/10.3389/frwa.2022.756273

Cai, S, Zhang, P, Guo, Z, Jin, F, Wang, J, Song, Z, Nadezhda, T, Lynch, I & Dang, X 2022, 'Multi-walled carbon nanotubes improve nitrogen use efficiency and nutritional quality in Brassica campestris', Environmental Science: Nano, no. 9, pp. 1315-1329. https://doi.org/10.1039/D1EN01211H

Comment/debate

Quevedo, AC, Ellis, LJA, Lynch, I & Valsami-Jones, E 2022, 'Correction: Quevedo et al. Mechanisms of silver nanoparticle uptake by embryonic zebrafish cells. Nanomaterials, 2021, 11, 2699', Nanomaterials, vol. 12, no. 2, 225. https://doi.org/10.3390/nano12020225

Hannah, DM, Abbott, BW, Khamis, K, Kelleher, C, Lynch, I, Krause, S & Ward, AS 2022, 'Illuminating the ‘invisible water crisis’ to address global water pollution challenges', Hydrological Processes, vol. 36, no. 3, e14525. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.14525

Letter

Saarimäki, LA, Melagraki, G, Afantitis, A, Lynch, I & Greco, D 2022, 'Prospects and challenges for FAIR toxicogenomics data', Nature Nanotechnology, vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 17–18. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-021-01049-1

Review article

Zhao, W, Adeel, M, Zhang, P, Zhou, P, Huang, L, Zhao, Y, Ahmad, MA, Shakoor, N, Lou, B, Jiang, Y, Lynch, I & Rui, Y 2022, 'A critical review on surface-modified nano-catalyst application for the photocatalytic degradation of volatile organic compounds', Environmental Science: Nano, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 61-80. https://doi.org/10.1039/D1EN00955A

Martinez, DST, Ellis, LJA, Da Silva, GH, Petry, R, Medeiros, AMZ, Davoudi, HH, Papadiamantis, AG, Fazzio, A, Afantitis, A, Melagraki, G & Lynch, I 2022, 'Daphnia magna and mixture toxicity with nanomaterials – Current status and perspectives in data-driven risk prediction', Nano Today, vol. 43, 101430. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nantod.2022.101430

View all publications in research portal

Expertise

Nanomaterials in the environment (as well as food, cosmetics, consumer products, nanomedicines, nanopesticides etc.); nanomaterials transformations; nanomaterials fate and behaviour; nanomaterials eco/toxicology; Nanosafety assessment; nanoregulation; nanogovernance; Microplastics; nanoplastics; Open data

Culture and collections

Schools, institutes and departments

Services and facilities