Dr Emmeline Hill, Equinome and UCD School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine
Equinome, a new biotech company that is developing genetic tests to optimise decision-making in the breeding and racing of Thoroughbred horses, has won NovaUCD’s 2009 start-up award.
Equinome will recieve a €5,000 prize after being named overall winner of the 14th NovaUCD Campus Company Development Programme. The company was founded earlier this year by Dr Emmeline Hill, a leading horse genomics researcher in UCD’s School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine, in partnership with Mr Jim Bolger, a leading Irish race horse trainer.
In 2004, Dr Hill became a UCD principal investigator when she was awarded a Science Foundation Ireland President of Ireland Young Researcher Award. This award supported a five-year programme of research to investigate the genomics of performance in thoroughbred horses, a project endorsed by the Irish Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association.
The Thoroughbred horse breeding and racing industry is an international, multi-billion euro business and Equinome, launching commercially in early 2010, will become the first company to provide genetic tests for performance associated genes in Thoroughbred horses. Further details of Equinome’s first product will be announced to coincide with the company’s official launch.
Dr Pat Frain, Director, NovaUCD, said, “The CCDP is designed specifically to assist entrepreneurs in establishing new high-tech and knowledge-intensive ventures, predominantly to commercialise the innovative ideas arising from UCD research programmes.” He added, “These new ventures are of critical importance, especially in the present economic climate, where there is an increasing need to generate opportunities for the creation of highly-skilled employment.”
Equinome will also receive a new website valued at €2,000, designed by Ionic Business Systems, a NovaUCD resident company.
Two other ventures participating on this year’s Programme, Novocept and bettie TM received runner-up awards, prizes of €3,000 and €2,000 respectively and six-months free desk space in NovaUCD. A fourth new venture, Nanolytic Laboratories, received a special commendation award of six-months free desk space at NovaUCD.
Congratulating all the participants on this year's NovaUCD CCDP Tom Hayes, Manager, Enterprise Ireland’s High Potential Start-Up Division, said, "Enterprise Ireland is delighted to continue to work in partnership with NovaUCD to assist in the establishment of new market-led businesses such as those which have completed this year’s CCDP and which capitalise on innovative technology.” He added, "Such companies are an essential element of realising the full commercial potential of the significant and ongoing investment in research and development being made by the Irish Government. Enterprise Ireland looks forward to supporting this year's participants in the future and to assist them to realise their full commercial potential.”
