Tyndall Early-Career Researcher Recognised in the Researcher of the Year 2024 Awards 

Dr Luiza Wasiewska was among the winners in the Researcher of the Year (IRC legacy) 2024 awards. These awards celebrate the best of IRC-funded researchers deemed to have made highly significant and valuable contributions to knowledge, society, culture, and innovation. The awardees were selected by an independent expert panel, chaired by Emeritus Professor of Education, Áine Hyland. 

Dr Luiza Wasiewska was awarded the Thomas Mitchell Medal of Excellence for being the top-ranked postdoctoral researcher in the STEM category. Dr Wasiewska is a postdoctoral researcher at Tyndall National Institute and APC Microbiome Ireland, under the supervision of Dr Sofia Teixeira and Professor Colin Hill.  

Dr Wasiewska’s PhD project was completed between Tyndall National Institute and Teagasc in Dublin, and investigated the development of biosensors for the DNA-based detection of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC). After her PhD, she worked as a postdoctoral researcher on an industry-funded project at APC Microbiome Ireland in the microbiota-gut-brain axis group, where she studied the influence of microbial metabolites from prebiotic fermentation on gut-brain-axis targets. 

Her current IRC postdoctoral fellowship focuses on the development of electrochemical biosensors, which are rapid detection devices for the detection of relevant pathogenic bacteria. A novel approach used in this work is the use of endolysins, enzymes produced by bacteriophages, which are viruses that kill bacteria. These enzymes are specific to the bacteria that the bacteriophage can kill, and based on the literature, they can be used in biosensor development for the specific recognition of pathogens.  

Speaking about her award, Dr Wasiewska said: “Winning this prize is a great honour, and it means a lot to me. Learning that I was a top-scoring candidate in my area was a huge shock to me, but it proves that other people recognise the massive potential in using endolysins for bacterial detection. I will do my best to make the rapid detection of pathogens in clinical setting a reality.” 

Professor William Scanlon, Tyndall CEO, said: “I warmly congratulate Dr Luiza Wasiewska on the receipt of the Thomas Mitchell Medal of Excellence. Dr Wasiewska’s fantastic achievement of topping the ranks in the postdoctoral researcher STEM category is a phenomenal feat and we are extremely proud of her accomplishment. I wish Dr Wasiewska every success and look forward to seeing her future research developments.”

UCC researcher from the Department of Geography, Dr Aaron Lim, was named as Early Career Research of the Year at the awards. Dr Lim is a lecturer in Marine Geosciences in UCC College of Arts, Celtic Studies and Social Sciences, Director of MSc Applied Coastal and Marine Management, and Head of the Earth and Ocean Lab at UCC. Dr Lim has been awarded over €4 million in research funding since 2017 and published over 30 peer-reviewed articles.

Congratulating both award winners, Professor John Cryan, UCC Vice President for Research & Innovation, said: “I wish to extend the warmest congratulations to Dr Aaron Lim and Dr Luzia Wasiewska on receiving these prestigious national awards from Research Ireland. Both awardees have achieved incredible research success in their short research careers and are deserving recipients of these awards. We are all immensely proud of their achievements to date and look forward to watching them both develop further into world-leading researchers.” 

Peter Brown, Director, Researcher Development in Research Ireland congratulated the Researcher of the Year (IRC legacy) awardees, adding, “The awardees are wonderful examples of those that have gone above and beyond to bring new knowledge and understandings to the fore. At different stages in their research journey, they are enriching their respective fields and Ireland’s research and innovation system. Across the humanities, science and medicine, the awardees are contributing to a better, healthier, more sustainable, and more culturally enriched world, benefiting us all.”