Professor Mark Ferguson is Chair of the Board of the European Innovation Council (EIC) for the European Commission.Previously ( 2012-2022) Director General of Science Foundation Ireland and Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government of Ireland.He has served on Boards and Committees internationally concerning research ,innovation and science advice eg Governing Boards of the Global Research Council and the EU Joint Research Centre.Professor (since 1984) and Dean of Biological Sciences at the University of Manchester, he was cofounder and CEO of the biotech company Renovo (1998-2011).
Mark is the recipient of numerous international research prizes and awards including the 2002 European Science Prize ( jointly),author of 329 papers and book chapters ,61 patent families and author/editor of 8 books.Research interests include cellular and molecular mechanisms of wound healing and scarring,developmental mechanisms in normal and cleft palate formation ,alligator and crocodile biology including temperature dependent sex determination .He graduated from Queens University of Belfast in Dentistry (BDS),Anatomy /Embryology ( BSc,Phd,DMedSci ),holds Fellowships from Royal Colleges of Surgeons in Ireland(FFD) and Edinburgh(FDS),Founding Fellow of the UK Academy of Medical Sciences ( FMedSci) and was made a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) by the Queen for services to Health and Life Sciences.