We are very proud to announce four INFANT colleagues were recognised at the 2024 UCC Research and Innovation Awards.
UCC is an internationally competitive, research-led university that plays a key role in the development of Ireland’s knowledge-based economy and provides the insight and understanding of the challenges facing our society. The UCC Research and Innovation Awards embrace this excellence in research, innovation, and entrepreneurial activity, across the entire university research community, spanning all disciplines.
Researchers were awarded across twenty-two categories, five of which recognise specific achievements in entrepreneurship and innovation.
Jerry Deasy, INFANT’s Research Systems Manager was awarded with the Research Support Person of the Year.
Jerry’s unwavering commitment, technical expertise, and proactive approach have been pivotal in enabling researchers at INFANT to achieve groundbreaking advancements in maternal and child health research. His contributions are far-reaching, transforming the way we approach data systems, computing infrastructure, and international collaboration.
Dr Cathal O’Connor, INFANT PhD student was awarded Dean of Doctoral Studies PhD Student of the Year.
Cathal is a phenomenal PhD student and dual trained dermatologist and paediatrician with almost 100 peer-reviewed publications. His PhD study assesses sleep in early-onset atopic dermatitis by longitudinal evaluation study. In 2024 he ranked top in Europe and was voted a ‘Future Leader’ by both the European Society for Paediatric Dermatology and the European Society for Dermatological Research. In 2024 he received significant national and international recognition, and was awarded the William Stokes award, which recognises “research of the highest standards carried out by Trainees in Higher Specialist Training” for his PhD study, and he also won the Royal Academy of Medicines in Ireland award for best research in dermatology for research performed as part of his PhD in UCC.
INFANT PI Prof Fergus McCarthy and pHetalSafe team’s “Raman for Lactate” was awarded Invention of the Year.
The innovation lies in a non-invasive fetal monitoring device that uses Raman spectroscopy to measure fetal wellbeing from the fetal scalp during labor. The device measures the blood biomarker, lactate, to ascertain if the baby is hypoxic (lacking oxygen). The pHetalsafe device addresses the limitations of current fetal monitoring methods like the gold standard cardiotocography (CTG) which often leads to misinterpretation, and Fetal Blood Sampling (FBS) which uses an invasive blade for sampling and separate lab analysis.
INFANT, UCC spin-out company NeuroBell was awarded Spin-out of the Year.
NeuroBell was founded by Dr. Mark O’Sullivan, Dr. Alison O’Shea, and Colm Murphy in 2023, Neurobell is a spin-out from UCC and the Irish Centre for Maternal and Child Health Research (INFANT). The company aims to revolutionise seizure detection in newborns in NICUs, crucial for early intervention in brain injury cases like epilepsy and cerebral palsy. Neurobell is developing the Neurobell Wave; a pocket-sized wireless neonatal brain EEG monitor that utilizes embedded edge-AI, enabling seamless and expert-free monitoring, enhancing care without the need for extensive training. In 2024, Neurobell secured a €2.1 million investment led by Furthr VC, Atlantic Bridge, and HBAN MedTech Syndicate, with additional support from Enterprise Ireland and private investors. This funding will advance the development of their AI-powered medical device for real-time seizure detection in newborns, create 12 new jobs, and facilitate clinical studies in the USA.
Professor John F. Cryan, UCC Vice President for Research and Innovation at UCC said: “We are delighted to celebrate the award recipients of this year’s UCC Research and Innovation Awards. Our awardees’ achievements reflect the exceptional research and innovation culture that exists across the UCC campus. The quality of nominations was outstanding and speaks to the creativity, commitment, and impact of our research and innovation community. These awards not only honour individual excellence but also highlight how UCC research and innovation continues to lead and inspire on both a national and international stage.”
The Awards are sponsored by PurdyLucey, one of Ireland’s top European Intellectual Property (IP) firms working across Irish, UK, European, US and international markets, and specialising in Life Science, Food Tech, Med Tech, High-Tech and Engineering projects.
