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Posted:
January 15, 2015
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Mike Hinchey Lero

Lero – the Irish Software Research Centre (Lero) has been selected by the European Space Agency (ESA) for the implementation of a research programme worth €400,000. The 18 month programme, which will be led by Lero Director Prof. Mike Hinchey, will commence this month.

Lero will collaborate with chip manufacturer Cobham Gaisler AB of Gothenburg, Sweden on the software behind specialist microchips to be used in European space missions. The Cobham Gaisler  LEON radiation hardened microchip, which was developed in association with the European Space Agency, is designed to operate in harsh environments such as space.

Lero researchers based at the University of Limerick will work on a new back end for the Open Source LLVM compiler library to enable it to be used for the LEON chip family. This is designed to expand the toolset available to developers working on the flight software for future European space missions in order to boost reliability.

This is the third and largest contract awarded in recent years by the European Space Agency to Lero, which is backed by Science Foundation Ireland.

“We are honoured to be selected for this important work,” commented Prof Mike Hinchey, Director, Lero. “Software designed for space missions needs to be leading edge and highly reliable in view of the cost, distance and unforgiving environment involved.”

Before heading up Lero, Prof. Hinchey was Director of the Software Engineering Laboratory at NASA Goddard Space Flight Centre in Greenbelt, Maryland. He remains a consultant to NASA.

Lero (www.lero.ie) is a global leader in software engineering research. It combines the best in Irish software talent by bringing together researchers from Dublin City University, Dundalk Institute of Technology, NUI Galway, Trinity College Dublin, University College Cork, University College Dublin and University of Limerick. It is funded by Science Foundation Ireland as well as by contracts from Irish and international technology corporations.

Posted:
November 26, 2014
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Equilume-Barbara

Equilume, the University College Dublin (UCD) equine technology spin-out company, has announced that it has secured €550,000 in seed funding.

The innovative technology was profiled in The Science Squad Series 3, Episode 4 which aired on RTE One on Monday 17th November. You can view the programme on the RTE Player by clicking here:  http://www.rte.ie/player/ie/show/10345569/

Equilume, which is based in Co. Kildare, has secured the funding from Enterprise Ireland and a number of angel investors based in Ireland, the UK and in the USA. The company intends to use the investment to accelerate sales of its innovative Equilume Light Mask technology within the global Thoroughbred industry to assist breeders to maximise the reproductive efficiency and performance in their horses.

The Equilume Light Mask, which is manufactured entirely in Ireland, is a novel automated mobile lighting device that fits comfortably under a horse’s head collar. The Light Mask has been scientifically proven to provide the optimum level of blue light to a single eye of a mare to successfully advance her breeding season, prevent long gestations and ensure reproductive activity in early foaling mares.

Thoroughbred breeders around the world are currently using the Equilume Light Mask to eliminate the requirement to maintain their non-pregnant mares indoors under artificial lighting and thereby save at least €1,000 per mare per season while at the same meeting crucial industry timelines. The technology is also being successfully used globally to help pregnant mares foal on time.

Dr Barbara Murphy, UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science and the founder of Equilume said, “The Equilume Light Mask has already gained considerable traction within the global Thoroughbred market and this summer we doubled our sales in the key Australian market. This seed funding will help us accelerate our marketing efforts, expand our reach into new market segments and continue to break new boundaries in advancing equine reproductive health technologies with our ongoing new product development.”

She added, “Equilume currently employs 7 people and we plan to increase staff numbers to 11 by end of 2016.”

The Equilume Light Mask has been developed as a result of ground breaking research carried out by Dr Barbara Murphy from UCD’s School of Agriculture and Food Science, in collaboration with Professor John Sheridan, an optoelectronics researcher in UCD’s School of Electrical, Electronic and Communications Engineering.

Dr Brian O’Neill, Manager, High Potential Start-Ups, Lifesciences, Enterprise Ireland said, “This is an amazing success story and a world’s first. We are delighted to have supported this company from a research concept stage right through to commercialisation and global roll-out. I believe Equilume has enormous potential and is a real game changer for the equine industry. It really adds to Ireland’s reputation as a global centre of excellence for equine technology.”

Brendan Cremen, UCD Director of Enterprise and Commercialisation said, “Equilume is an excellent example of a UCD spin-out company, established with the support of our technology transfer and enterprise development team at NovaUCD, which has translated an innovative idea arising from world-class UCD research into a commercial entity which in generating global sales and impact in the Thoroughbred industry.”

Equilume has already won a number awards including Enterprise Ireland’s ‘One to Watch’ Award (2012); overall winner Newbridge 200 Business Start-Up Competition (2012) and a NovaUCD Start-Up Award (2011).

For more information click here

 

Posted:
November 4, 2014
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_DSC5207

Athlone, 3rd November – Minister for Skills, Research and Innovation, Damien English TD, this evening announced Prof Barry Smyth as the Science Foundation Ireland Researcher of the Year 2014 at the SFI Science Summit, to an audience of 300 researchers in attendance.  Prof Smyth, an international expert on personalization technologies and recommender systems, was recognised by his peers for his exceptional research accomplishments and contribution to the Irish scientific community over the past year.

Prof Barry Smyth holds the Digital Chair of Computer Science in UCD’s Scho­­­ol of Computer Science and Informatics. He is also a co-founder of ChangingWorlds, which was acquired by Amdocs Inc, and is Chief Scientist and co-founder of HeyStaks, an Irish collaborative search analytics company.

Presenting the award to Prof Smyth, Minister English, said: “Professor Smyth exemplifies the theme of this year’s SFI Science Summit 2014 – ‘Illustrating Impact.’  An experienced entrepreneur, he has been able to translate his research into the commercial world.  Barry is adept at straddling the worlds of research and commerce, and was one of the the driving forces behind INSIGHT – Ireland’s Data Analytics Research Centre established in 2013 through the SFI Research Centres Programme. INSIGHT is developing innovative new technologies of critical importance to Ireland’s future economic success.  His experience and expertise has brought about a highly successful collaboration between academia and industry, ultimately delivering a commercial impact and generating job creation opportunities in Ireland.”

Professor Mark Ferguson, Director General of SFI and Chief Scientific Advisor to the Government of Ireland, added: “We are delighted to recognise Professor Smyth’s achievements with this award.  He is working at the cutting edge, putting Ireland at the forefront of the big data analytics and the sensor web revolution.  His research illustrates the positive benefits that investment in the Irish scientific community can unlock.  We wish him continued success into the future and are glad to be able to honour him with this prestigious award.”

Accepting his award, Professor Barry Smyth, said: “I am delighted to be receiving this award. The journey to here has been an unusual and exciting one because I have been able to combine my research interests with commercial opportunities. It is hugely fulfilling to see the product of research make an impact in the real-world. It has been possible only because of the support of UCD, SFI and the Irish government, as well as the hard work of dozens of students and collaborators, and for this I am very grateful.”

Barry Smyth holds the Digital Chair of Computer Science in UCD’s School of Computer Science and Informatics. Barry has published more than 400 scientific papers. He has received more than 20 best paper awards, the inaugural Irish Software Association Outstanding Academic Achievement of the Year Award (2012) and an Honorary Doctor of Technology degree from Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen. Barry’s research has found broad application across markets such as web services, social networking and mobile internet, leading to a number of successful patents and licences and to the foundation of two companies: ChangingWorlds (1998) and HeyStaks Technologies (2008). Barry played a leading role (as CTO and/or CSO) in these companies, which have created more than 150 jobs in Ireland. ChangingWorlds was acquired by Amdocs in 2008 for more than $60m. As the Director of the CLARITY Centre for Sensor Web Technologies, Barry helped to grow CLARITY from seed funding of €12m to more than €35m in just 4 years, with approximately 30% from industry. More recently, the INSIGHT Centre for Data Analytics was established under his leadership in 2013 with the largest ever single SFI Research Centre award of €58 million, combined with €30 million from over 30 industry collaborators.

Posted:
July 9, 2014
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Space Enbio

Investment in 40 new projects to help transition high potential young talent to fully independent research leaders

Minister for Research and Innovation, Mr Seán Sherlock, T.D. has announced €23 million in new funding to help support 40 of Ireland’s most promising young research talent to become fully independent researchers. The funding which is being awarded by Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) will help ensure that Ireland’s most talented young researchers can be encouraged to remain in Ireland, while also helping to attract excellent young researchers from other countries to base themselves here.

Minister for Research and Innovation, Mr Seán Sherlock TD said:“Funding for researchers at the outset of their careers is an important element of the Government’s strategy for job creation in research and innovation under our Action Plan for Jobs. SFI’s funding schemes for early career researchers help ensure that excellent research with the potential for real economic and societal impact is properly supported in Ireland. Investment like this is important for Ireland’s developing international reputation for excellent research with impact. The 40 research projects being awarded by SFI today demonstrate the enormous talent and potential that exists among Ireland’s young researchers.”

The €23 million in funding delivered by the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, through SFI’s Starting Investigator Research Grant (SIRG) and Career Development Award (CDA) Programmes will support researchers and post-graduate students working on projects in areas such as sustainable and renewable energy, cancer research, neurological disorders, immunology, microbiology, biotherapeutics and Wireless Networks.

Professor Mark Ferguson, Director General of SFI and Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government of Ireland, said:“Both of the programmes under which funding is being announced today will help promising young researchers to create and develop impactful careers here in Ireland and in turn enable the pursuit of scientific research that has potential economic and societal impact. These programmes are also an important factor in ensuring that Ireland can succeed in persuading top young scientific talent from abroad to base their research efforts here in Ireland.”

SFI’s Starting Investigator Research Grant (SIRG) provides support for excellent postdoctoral researchers who wish to take steps towards a fully independent research career, while the Career Development Award (CDA) aims to support early and mid-career researchers who already hold a salaried, independent research post and who are looking to expand their research activities. Both programmes aim to support the development of young researchers with the potential to become excellent, fully independent research leaders in their chosen fields.

The 40 research projects awarded funding today will be funded by SFI through 12 research bodies, as follows: Trinity College Dublin (5), National University of Ireland Galway (5), Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (4), Dublin City University (4), University College Cork (4), University of Limerick (4), National University of Ireland Maynooth (3), University College Dublin (3), National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training (3), Teagasc (2), Tyndall National Institute (2) and Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (1).

A further 12 projects were also deemed scientifically excellent by the International Review Panel and are on a reserve list to be funded by SFI, if budgets permit later in the year.

Examples of projects supported:

Orla O’Sullivan (Teagasc Food Research Centre, Cork) SIRG

Orla’s research focuses on microbial diversity in the gut. Microbial diversity is highest in a healthy gut and Orla’s research will investigate if it is possible to improve that diversity and in turn improve the overall health of individuals. The research will also examine whether alterations in diet and/or lifestyle can influence microbial diversity and function.  Orla’s ultimate goal is to inform the potential development of nutritional supplements that can help improve human health.

Stephen Dooley (University of Limerick) SIRG

Stephen’s research will focus on understanding ways that cleaner and more versatile energy sources can be developed from indigenous biomass resources, including plant matter.  His goal is to find ways that help ensure that Ireland imports less fossil energy by creating environmentally benign energy technologies, particularly for transportation. He hopes that his research can help achieve this by informing a deeper and predictive understanding of how indigenous biomass, in particular, can be harnessed.

Patrick Hayden (Dublin City University) SIRG

Patrick’s research will investigate techniques that could improve the quality of laser-powered high-precision measurement. High-precision measurements on the composition and uniformity of drugs are useful to the pharmaceutical industry to help perform quality control as drugs are developed and produced. One method to perform these measurements is by measuring light emitted from the surface of the drug when a laser pulse is focused on it. The process is known as laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) at short wavelengths and Patrick’s research aims to increase the efficiency of this process. The research could also have applications in other areas including archaeology and forensic science.

Aoife Morrin (Dublin City University) CDA

Aoife’s research aims to explore the potential for the analysis of skin in non-invasive or minimally invasive diagnostic approaches as an alternative to more invasive blood sampling. Skin is the largest human organ and contains rich analytical information related to a wide variety of medical conditions. Pressures on healthcare systems have resulted in a greater focus on enhanced efficacy of treatments and cost reduction. As such, there is a lot of research into new diagnostics that can address these challenges. Aoife intends her research to demonstrate innovative approaches to the analysis of skin that can be used for the early detection of various conditions including eczema flare-ups, liver failure, and skin cancer.

Alex von Kriegsheim (University College Dublin) SIRG

Alex’s research aims to develop new treatments to help prevent against bowel cancer in patients with colitis and Crohn’s disease. Both conditions lead to chronic inflammation of the gut, which can in turn increase the risk of bowel cancer. Alex hopes that his research can identify the ways in which this inflammation causes the growth of cancer cells and how the process can be halted through the release of important enzymes known as hydroxylases, which are blocked in chronically inflamed tissues.

Click Here for the list of Funded Projects

Posted:
July 2, 2014
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MikeCoey

A team of researchers from the AMBER centre at Trinity College Dublin (TCD) are behind the discovery of a new magnetic material they claim will revolutionise the ICT sector.

The material is made from an alloy of three metals, manganese, ruthenium and gallium (MRG), and is reportedly as strong as the strongest magnets available in the world today. However, it has the characteristic of not appearing magnetic at all to the untrained eye.

Known technically as ‘zero-moment half metal’, the material could potentially spawn a completely new line of materials research and open up numerous possibilities for electronics and information technology.

Led by Prof Michael Coey, the AMBER team said MRG has incredible potential and could lead to the possibility of limitless data storage, resulting in huge, superfast memory in personal computer devices. It could also eliminate the potential of external magnetic forces to ‘wipe’ computer data.

For 25 years, researchers worldwide have grappled with how to create a magnet such as MRG by trying to arrange numerous combinations of atoms in a way which was difficult without flouting the basic principles of physics.

Potential ‘big data revolution’

The AMBER research team claims to have solved this problem by using established industry-standard processes for making the electronic circuits on silicon chips, making it relatively easy for MRG to be adopted by computer and electronics companies.

Commenting on the discovery and its potential to lead a ‘big data revolution’, Coey said, “Magnetic materials are what make reading and storing data – either on personal devices or on large-scale servers in data centres – possible. Magnets are at the heart of every electronic device we use, from computers and laptops to tablets, smartphones and digital cameras.

“Given its unique insensitivity to magnetic fields, and the tenacity of its internal magnetic properties, MRG could now revolutionise how data is stored, which could have major implications for the future development of electronics, information technology and a host of other applications.”

Posted:
July 1, 2014
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PROF LUKE O'NEILL

Eleven researchers based in Irish universities have been ranked among the world’s top 3,000 by the multinational media body Thompson Reuters. Inclusion means the person’s research is listed in the top 1 per cent for the number of times their work has been cited by other scientists.

The list includes scientists and engineers in NUI Galway, Trinity College Dublin,University College Dublin, University of Limerick, University College Cork, Beaumont Hospital, Dublin and the University of Ulster.

All were gauged to be “highly cited researchers” who had had an “exceptional impact”, Thompson Reuters said.

Their work “has consistently been judged by peers to be of particular significance and utility”, the company said when releasing the list on the website highlycited.com.

Those selected will also be published in book form, the Thompson Reuters 2014 World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds.

Cutting edge

Inclusion in this publication means the researcher is among those “who are on the cutting edge of their fields. They are performing and publishing work that their peers recognise as vital to the advancement of their science”.

NUI Galway had three academics on the list: Henry Curran (engineering), Colin O’Dowd (geosciences) and Donal O’Regan (mathematics).

TCD had two: Luke O’Neill (immunology and also pharmacology and toxicology) and Jonathan Coleman (materials science).

UCD also had two: Colm O’Donnell (agricultural sciences) and Desmond Higgins (computer science).

UL had Michael Zaworotko (chemistry), UCC had John Cryan (pharmacology and toxicology), Beaumont Hospital had Mary Cannon (psychiatry and psychology) and University of Ulster had Brendan McCormack (social sciences).

The use of citation listings as a measure of research quality has sometimes been drawn into question but it remains a widely used metric despite this. Its strength lies in the fact that it reflects later access of the research by scientists working in the same area. If your paper is truly cutting edge then others will want to cite the original work within their research papers.

‘Huge testament’

Prof O’Neill yesterday expressed his delight at having been named on the list. “Being included in the top 1 per cent of anything is great,” he said. He described it as a “huge testament” to the work of his research team over the past decade.

Prof Coleman also praised the students and post doctoral researchers who work with him in the lab, and thanked funding bodies including TCD and Science Foundation Ireland. “Without them this would have been impossible,” he said.

Posted:
June 10, 2014
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FameLab

Pádraic Flood, a University College Dublin (UCD) science graduate, beat off nearly 2,000 scientists from 22 countries, to be crowned the 2014 FameLab International Champion, at The Times Cheltenham Science Festival, held last week.

Pádraic, who graduated from UCD in 2008 with a BSc (Hons), is currently completing a PhD in plant genetics at Wageningen University in the Netherlands.  Earlier this year he won the FameLab Benelux competition and represented the trio of countries at the FameLab International finals in Cheltenham.

Pádraic’s winning talk discussed improving photosynthesis to prevent food scarcity. He first took the audience into the leaf and told them about the mechanics of photosynthesis, leading to where light meets water, saying “it is at this point that light becomes life”. He then told the audience about food shortages in the future and how we might combat this through improving photosynthesis.

After winning the competition Pádraic said, “FameLab is fantastic, it opens a direct dialogue between scientists and the public, and I’m so glad to have been a part of it this year.”

For more click here

Posted:
January 16, 2014
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Radiological_evaluation_through_HRCT

Scientists in Trinity College Dublin have identified a new process that causes scarring in the lungs of patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). The research was led by Professor Padraic Fallon, School of Medicine, Trinity College Dublin and was an international collaboration with scientists from University College Dublin, MRC-LMB Cambridge, the University of Edinburgh, and the University of Erlangen. The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Pulmonary fibrosis arises as a result of excessive scarring (fibrosis) of the lung tissue and is associated with shortness of breath.  IPF is a progressive chronic condition for which there are very few effective therapies available and consequentially there is a poor prognosis.  Despite extensive investigation, the causes underlying IPF remain unknown although it has been linked with exposure to cigarette smoke and other environmental factors such as occupational exposure to gases, chemicals and dust.  It is hypothesized that chronic and repeated injury to lung cells, in particular alveolar epithelial cells, results in the release of pro-fibrotic factors such as transforming growth factor β (TGF β). These factors induce fibroblasts to release collagen that leads to scaring of the lungs tissue and thereby compromising the function of the lungs.

In this new study the authors have used animal models of lung fibrosis to show an increase in expression of a cytokine, interleukin-25 (IL-25), in the lungs with the development of pulmonary fibrosis being dependent on the presence of IL-25. In addition, a new role for a novel immune cell type, the type 2 innate lymphoid cell (ILC2) previously discovered by Professor Fallon and colleagues, in the initiation of fibrosis was described. It was also shown that the ILC2, induced by IL-25, cells themselves can induce collagen deposition in the lung via the release of pro-fibrotic factors such as IL-13.

To address the relevance of these findings to human disease a cohort of patients with pulmonary fibrosis were recruited from clinical collaborators Professor Seamas Donnelly (St Vincent’s Hospital and University College Dublin), Dr Nikhil Hirani (University of Edinburgh) and Dr Ruairi Fahy (St James’s Hospital).  Lung biopsies samples were recovered from patients at initial diagnosis and on follow-up visits to assess progression. High levels of IL-25 in the lungs of patients at initial IPF diagnosed were associated with disease progression.  Furthermore, a population of ILC2 was also present in the lungs of IPF patients but not control patients.

These discoveries open up a new perspective on how scarring develops in the lungs of people, as well as in other sites of the body, and further identifies potential avenues to develop therapies.

Professor Padraic Fallon, Science Foundation Ireland Stokes Professor of Translation Immunology who led the study commented: “We have highlighted in laboratory models and in patients how the immune system can malfunction to stimulate specific cytokines and novel cell types that can lead to tissue damage which, in the context of this study, can induce lung fibrosis. We are now addressing how we can reverse such tissue scarring and identify why there are differences in severity of pulmonary inflammation and fibrosis between patients with lung diseases, such as IPF and asthma.”

Professor Mark Ferguson, Director General, Science Foundation Ireland which funded the research jointly with the National Children’s Research Centre, and Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government of Ireland commented: “Pulmonary fibrosis is a devastating condition, with few treatment options. Professor Fallon’s research results provide a new understanding of the disease process and suggest new targets for future potential therapies – an example of excellent scientific research with potential future health and economic impacts.”

These studies may have broader implications to human disease. Professor Fallon and Wellcome Trust funded scientist Dr Sean Saunders in collaboration with Professor Graham Ogg (University of Oxford, UK) and Dr Andrew McKenzie (LMB Cambridge, UK) also just published this month in the leading medical peer-review journal The Journal of Experimental Medicine studies that implicate ILC2 and IL-25 in the development of atopic dermatitis (eczema) in patients.  The first author of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences paper Dr Emily Hams from Trinity College Dublin has also recently implicated a function for these cellular responses in regulation of obesity. These new studies raise the potential for therapies targeting the initial responses that evoke aberrant inflammation that leads to a range of major human inflammatory diseases.

The research was funded by Science Foundation Ireland and the National Children’s Research Centre.

Posted:
October 30, 2013
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UCD science film fest
UCD Science Expression – Ireland’s first and only dedicated science film festival – kicks off tomorrow, Thursday 31st October.

If you love science, have a soft spot for scientists and relish the innovative thinking of researchers worldwide, UCD Science Expression is for you.

The 2013 edition of UCD Science Expression showcases some of the most exciting filmmaking inspired by and excavating science. From classic movies seen in a very different light to world-class features and shorts premiering at UCD Science Expression. We present screenings, events and debate for enquiring minds of all ages.  Festival 2013 takes a unique journey through key themes including The Curious Mind, Land & Identity, Frontiers of Discovery and Biodiversity and Ecology in The Lighthouse, IFI, Botanic Gardens and The Ark from October 31st – November 3rd.

Click here to find out more…
Posted:
September 6, 2013
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equilume

Equilume, a new Irish equine technology company, today announced its official launch. Equilume, a University College Dublin (UCD) spin-out company supported by Enterprise Ireland, is set to become a world leader in light therapy solutions to assist global Thoroughbred breeders to maximise the reproductive efficiency and performance in their horses.

The company has developed and is selling the Equilume Light Mask, a novel automated mobile lighting device, which fits comfortably under a horse’s head collar. The Mask has been scientifically proven to provide the optimum level of blue light to a single eye of a mare to successfully advance her breeding season.

The universal birthday for a Thoroughbred foal (born in the northern hemisphere) is January 1st in the year in which a foal is born which contrasts with the natural foaling season of the horse which is from May to October. This crucial, industry wide, date creates a demand for Thoroughbred breeders to advance the onset of their mares’ breeding season to produce early foals, to ensure mature yearlings for sales and precocious two-year olds for racing.

Horses are naturally ‘long-day’ seasonal breeders and daylight is a primary regulator of reproduction in horses. As days start to get longer in Spring, the inhibitory action of the hormone melatonin on a mare’s reproduction activity is reduced and mares come into season.

Thoroughbred breeders have known about the importance of light on a mare’s reproduction cycle for decades. In order to fool a mare’s reproductive system into activating earlier than in nature, many breeders currently maintain, at a significant cost, their non-pregnant mares indoors, under artificial lighting for 8 to 10 weeks prior to the official start of the breeding season in February.

However by using the Equilume Light Mask Thoroughbred breeders can now still meet crucial industry timelines and at the same time eliminate the requirement to maintain their non-pregnant mares indoors under artificial lighting and save at least €1,000 per mare per season.

The Equilume Light Mask has been developed as a result of ground breaking research carried out by company founder, Dr Barbara Murphy, UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science in collaboration with Professor John Sheridan, an optoelectronics researcher in UCD’s School of Electrical, Electronic and Communications Engineering.

Speaking at the official launch of Equilume, Dr Barbara Murphy said, “Our research at University College Dublin found that very low intensities of blue light are required to inhibit circulating concentrations of melatonin in the horse and that it is sufficient to deliver blue light to a single eye of a mare and still inhibit melatonin levels to daylight levels.”

“We developed the Equilume Light Mask to provide a safe and cost-effective method of administering an automated, low-level light to a single eye of a mare and it has been designed and tested to deliver sufficient light stimulus to inhibit melatonin production in the mare and thus advance the mare’s reproductively active season.”

She added, “An important advantage of the Equilume Light Mask is that it also allows horses be horses, and live outdoors in their natural environment where they are happier and healthier.”

It is currently not standard industry practice to maintain pregnant mares indoors under artificial lighting prior to foaling. The consequences of the lack of sufficient natural or artificial light for early foaling mares during late pregnancy are longer gestation periods, lower foal birth weights and post-foaling reproductive problems.

The Equilume Light Mask can also be used to provide pregnant mares with the light stimulus required to ensure timely gestation, increased foal birth weights and reductions in post-foaling cyclicity problems which are associated with early foaling dates outside of the natural breeding season.

Speaking at the launch, Dermot Cantillon, one of Ireland’s leading commercial Thoroughbred breeders, and owner/manager of three stud farms in Ireland and in the USA, said, “I have been excited since being introduced to this concept and having successfully used the Equilume Light Masks for the last two breeding seasons, I am confident that it will be a worldwide success for breeders.”

W.R. (Twink) Allen, Director, Paul Mellon Laboratory of Reproduction, Newmarket, UK, speaking about the new mask said, “At last, a novel and exciting advance in horse breeding which is based on sound theory and solid science. The Equilume Light Mask is sure to be of major practical benefit to the Thoroughbred breeders around the world who have the good sense to use it.”

UCD’s technology transfer team at NovaUCD facilitated the identification and protection of the intellectual property arising from Dr Murphy’s research which resulted in the development of the Equilume Light Mask. Dr Murphy was also a participant, and an award winner, on the NovaUCD 2011 Campus Company Development Programme. This Programme assists UCD academic and research entrepreneurs in bringing their innovative ideas from intellectual concepts to fully developed and sound commercial businesses.

Brendan Cremen, UCD Director of Enterprise and Commercialisation said, “Equilume, is a prime example of a UCD spin-out company established to translate an innovative idea arising from world-class research carried out in the University into a commercial entity with global potential.”

Equilume currently employs 4 people and plans to increase staff numbers to 10 by the end of 2016.

The Equilume Light Mask is entirely manufactured in Ireland.

Equilume has already won a number of other awards including Enterprise Ireland’s ‘One to Watch’ Award (2012) and overall winner Newbridge 200 Business Start-Up Competition (2012).

Equilume made the official announcement of its launch at an event held at Killashee House Hotel, Co. Kildare attended by leading Thoroughbred breeders and veterinarians in Ireland.