Ronan received his BSc (Hons) in Biological Sciences with concurrent Education from the University of Limerick (UL), Ireland, where he also completed a PhD in the Department of Biological Sciences. His doctoral research focused on the role of antithrombotic polar lipids and their applications in functional foods, nutraceuticals, and pharmaceuticals, particularly in relation to platelet homeostasis and human health. In addition, he earned a postgraduate certificate and a master’s degree in teaching, learning, and scholarship from UL’s Center for Transformative Learning.
At UL, Ronan lectured in nutrition, molecular biology, food chemistry, genetics, and physiology across the School of Natural Sciences and the School of Allied Health. He later served as an Instructor in the Department of Biology at the University of Pennsylvania, where he taught molecular biology and genetics. His postdoctoral research in the FitzGerald Laboratory at Penn’s Institute for Translational Medicine and Therapeutics (ITMAT) centers on circadian rhythms in health and disease.
Ronan is currently a Research Associate and circadian physiologist at ITMAT. He is the co-director of the ITMAT First program for 2025. He also serves as co-chair of the Conflict and Conduct Working Group within the Penn Postdoctoral Association (PPA) and as a Postdoctoral Community Advisor in the Perelman School of Medicine. Nationally, he is the Eastern Regional Coordinator for Pint of Science USA and City Coordinator for Philadelphia.
He was a member of the COVID-19 Literature Review Consortium, jointly led by the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Colorado School of Medicine, where more than 70 scientists synthesized emerging research on SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19. Ronan has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals, book chapters, and technical reports, and is an active reviewer and editor in the fields of nutrition, pharmacology, medicine, and translational science.